William La Touche Congreve, (12 March 1891 – 20 July 1916) was an English recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Life and career

He was at school at

Summer Fields School Summer Fields is a fee-paying boys' independent day and boarding preparatory school in Summertown, Oxford. It was originally called Summerfield and used to have a subsidiary school, Summerfields, St Leonards-on-Sea (known as "Summers mi"). H ...

, Oxford, and then at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

, leaving in 1907. On 1 June 1916 he married Pamela Cynthia Maude, the daughter of actors

Cyril Maude Cyril Francis Maude (24 April 1862 — 20 February 1951) was an English actor-manager. Biography Maude was born in London and educated at Wixenford and Charterhouse School. In 1881, he was sent to Adelaide, South Australia, on the clipper ship ...

and

Winifred Emery Winifred Emery (1 August 1861 – 15 July 1924), born Maud Isabel Emery, was an English actress and actor-manager of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. She was the wife of the actor Cyril Maude. Born into a family of actors, Emery began ...

. Congreve was 25 years old, and a major in

The Rifle Brigade The Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army formed in January 1800 as the "Experimental Corps of Riflemen" to provide sharpshooters, scouts, and skirmishers. They were soon renamed the "Rifle ...

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

, during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. During the period 6 to 20 July 1916 at

Longueval Longueval () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Longueval is located northwest of Amiens on the D919 road, at the junction with the D8. Longueval is found in the north-east of the départeme ...

, France, Major Congreve constantly inspired those round him by numerous acts of gallantry. As Brigade Major he not only conducted battalions up to their positions but when the brigade headquarters was heavily shelled he went out with the medical officer to remove the wounded to places of safety, although he himself was suffering from gas and other shell effects. He went out again on a subsequent occasion tending the wounded under heavy shell fire. Finally, on returning to the front line to ascertain the position after an unsuccessful attack, he was shot by a sniper and died instantly. He was the son of General Sir

Walter Congreve General Sir Walter Norris Congreve, (20 November 1862 – 28 February 1927), was a British Army officer in the Second Boer War and the First World War, and Governor of Malta from 1924 to 1927. He received the Victoria Cross, the highest award f ...

, also a Victoria Cross awardee – they are one of only three father and son pairings to win a VC. His younger brother, Geoffrey, first of the Congreve baronets of Congreve, Staffordshire, was a distinguished sailor, awarded the DSO for a raid on Norway and killed in 1941 during a raid on the French coast. His widow bore a posthumous daughter, Mary Gloria Congreve, born 21 March 1917. Pamela Congreve later remarried, to Brigadier the Hon. William Fraser, in 1919.

Memorials

William Congreve's grave is at Corbie Communal Cemetery Extension, France, 9 miles east of

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

, Plot I, Row F, Grave 35. There is also a memorial to him in the form of a plaque in

Corbie Corbie (; nl, Korbei) is a commune of the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography The small town is situated up river from Amiens, in the département of Somme and is the main town of the canton of Corbie. It lies in ...

church, designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens.CWGC entry
/ref> Lutyens designed another plaque to his memory which is at St John the Baptist's church in

Stowe-by-Chartley Stowe-by-Chartley is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Stafford, Staffordshire, England. According to the parish council, the parish includes Amerton, Chartley, Grindley and Drointon. The village and civil parish of Hixon is to ...

, Staffordshire. Congreve's service in the First World War is also recalled, along with that of his father, in a Roll of Honour book in St Michael's Church,

West Felton West Felton is a village and civil parish near Oswestry in Shropshire, England. At the 2001 census the parish, which also includes the settlements of Rednal, Grimpo and Haughton, had a population of 1,380,

, Shropshire, the latter village having been his childhood home when his father lived at West Felton Grange from 1903 to 1924. His VC is recorded in the same village on the community building called the Haslehurst Institute, land for building which had been given by his father. His Victoria Cross is displayed at the

Royal Green Jackets (Rifles) Museum The Royal Green Jackets (Rifles) Museum is situated at Peninsula Barracks in Winchester, England. The museum is one of several regimental museums that form part of Winchester's Military Museums. History The museum brings together the collection ...

, Winchester, England.

References

External links

William la Touche Congreve VC., DSO., M.C.
''(detailed biography)'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Congreve, Billy 1891 births 1916 deaths People from Neston People educated at Eton College Rifle Brigade officers British Army personnel of World War I Recipients of the Military Cross Companions of the Distinguished Service Order British Battle of the Somme recipients of the Victoria Cross British military personnel killed in the Battle of the Somme People educated at Summer Fields School Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Deaths by firearm in France Military personnel from Cheshire