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Major Edric Frederick Gifford, 3rd Baron Gifford, VC (5 July 1849 – 5 June 1911) was an English recipient of the
Gifford married Sophia Catherine Street, the daughter of Gen. John Alfred Street, in April 1880, then went to 
Location of grave and VC medal
''(West Sussex)'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Gifford, Edric Gifford, 3rd Baron 1849 births 1911 deaths People educated at Harrow School Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom South Wales Borderers officers British military personnel of the Third Anglo-Ashanti War British recipients of the Victoria Cross Colonial Secretaries of Western Australia Military personnel from London Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council 57th Regiment of Foot officers 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot officers British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Colonial Secretaries of Gibraltar British expatriates in Australia Eldest sons of British hereditary barons People from Bosham
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
A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with " republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from th ...
forces.
Military career
Edric Gifford was born inLondon
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
on 5 July 1849. His father was Robert Francis Gifford, 2nd Baron Gifford, and his mother was Hon. Swinburne Frederica Charlotte FitzHardinge Berkeley. His brother was Maurice Gifford, CMG, who raised "Gifford's Horse" in the Second Matabele War
The Second Matabele War, also known as the Matabeleland Rebellion or part of what is now known in Zimbabwe as the First '' Chimurenga'', was fought between 1896 and 1897 in the region later known as Southern Rhodesia, now modern-day Zimbabwe ...
.
He was educated at Harrow
Harrow may refer to:
Places
* Harrow, Victoria, Australia
* Harrow, Ontario, Canada
* The Harrow, County Wexford, a village in Ireland
* London Borough of Harrow, England
** Harrow, London, a town in London
** Harrow (UK Parliament constituency)
...
, and in 1869 entered the 83rd Foot. On the death of his father in 1872, he became 3rd Baron Gifford.
In 1874, at the age of 23, Gifford was a lieutenant
A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations.
The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...
in the 2nd Battalion, 24th Foot
The South Wales Borderers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for 280 years.
It came into existence in England in 1689, as Sir Edward Dering's Regiment of Foot, and afterwards had a variety of names and headquarters. In ...
(later the South Wales Borderers
The South Wales Borderers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for 280 years.
It came into existence in England in 1689, as Sir Edward Dering's Regiment of Foot, and afterwards had a variety of names and headquarters. In ...
), 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 Gur ...
during the Third Anglo-Ashanti War, when the events took place which resulted in the award of his Victoria Cross with the citation:
In 1876, Gifford left the 24th Foot, moving to the 57th Foot
The 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot was a regiment of line infantry in the British Army, raised in 1755. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 77th (East Middlesex) Regiment of Foot to form the Middlesex Regiment in 1881.
His ...
. In 1878 he was in Cyprus
Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...
, and in 1879 he was aide-de-camp to Sir Garnet Wolseley in the Anglo-Zulu War
The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Following the passing of the British North America Act of 1867 forming a federation in Canada, Lord Carnarvon thought that a similar political effort, coup ...
. Shortly afterwards he retired from the Army as a brevet
Brevet may refer to:
Military
* Brevet (military), higher rank that rewards merit or gallantry, but without higher pay
* Brevet d'état-major, a military distinction in France and Belgium awarded to officers passing military staff college
* Aircre ...
major.
Colonial administrator
Gifford married Sophia Catherine Street, the daughter of Gen. John Alfred Street, in April 1880, then went to Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to ...
, which was at that time a British colony. He arrived in Western Australia in October 1880 and immediately took up an appointment to the position of Colonial Secretary, and a nomination to the Western Australian Legislative Council
The Western Australian Legislative Council is the upper house of the Parliament of Western Australia, a state of Australia. It is regarded as a house of review for legislation passed by the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, Legislative A ...
. After leaving Western Australia in January 1883 following disputes with the Chief Justice, Sir Henry Wrenfordsley and the Governor Sir William Robinson, Gifford was Colonial Secretary of Gibraltar from 1883 to 1887. In 1889 he became a director of the British South Africa Company
The British South Africa Company (BSAC or BSACo) was chartered in 1889 following the amalgamation of Cecil Rhodes' Central Search Association and the London-based Exploring Company Ltd, which had originally competed to capitalize on the expect ...
.
Edric Gifford died on 5 June 1911 in Chichester
Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ...
, England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
. He had no children. His nephew John Fitzhardinge Paul Butler also won a Victoria Cross.
Edric Gifford's Victoria Cross medal is not publicly held.
Coat of arms
Notes
References
* * Bennett, J. M., Sir Henry Wrenfordsley - Second Chief Justice of Western Australia 1880–1883, The Federation Press, Sydney, 2004, pp 32–33, 40–41, 44–49, 78.External links
Location of grave and VC medal
''(West Sussex)'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Gifford, Edric Gifford, 3rd Baron 1849 births 1911 deaths People educated at Harrow School Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom South Wales Borderers officers British military personnel of the Third Anglo-Ashanti War British recipients of the Victoria Cross Colonial Secretaries of Western Australia Military personnel from London Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council 57th Regiment of Foot officers 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot officers British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Colonial Secretaries of Gibraltar British expatriates in Australia Eldest sons of British hereditary barons People from Bosham