Colonel Sir Edward Talbot Thackeray (19 October 1836 – 3 September 1927) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

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 British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

and Commonwealth forces. The son of Rev. Francis Thackeray and Mary Anne Shakespear, he was the first cousin of the novelist,

William Makepeace Thackeray William Makepeace Thackeray (; 18 July 1811 – 24 December 1863) was a British novelist, author and illustrator. He is known for his satirical works, particularly his 1848 novel ''Vanity Fair'', a panoramic portrait of British society, and t ...

. He was educated at Marlborough College and Addiscombe Military Seminary.Philip A. Wilkins, ''The History of the Victoria Cross: Being an account of the 520 acts of bravery for which the decoration has been awarded and portraits of 392 recipients'', Andrews UK Limited, 2012, , 9781781516737 Thackeray was 20 years old, and a second lieutenant in the

Bengal Engineers The Bengal Engineer Group (BEG) (informally the Bengal Sappers or Bengal Engineers) is a military engineering regiment in the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army. The unit was originally part of the Bengal Army of the East India Company's B ...

, Bengal Army during the Indian Mutiny when the following deed took place on 16 September 1857 at

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross He later achieved the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

, and was elected to the

Athenaeum Athenaeum may refer to: Books and periodicals * ''Athenaeum'' (German magazine), a journal of German Romanticism, established 1798 * ''Athenaeum'' (British magazine), a weekly London literary magazine 1828–1921 * ''The Athenaeum'' (Acadia U ...

in 1876. Thackeray retired from the Army in 1888 and in 1898 he went to live in Italy where he spent the rest of his life. His medal is currently displayed at the National Museum of Military History in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Dem ...

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Works

Biographical notices of officers of the Royal (Bengal) engineers; (1900)

References and sources

;References ;Sources *''

Monuments to Courage David Charles Harvey (29 July 1946 – 4 March 2004) was a historian and author. He is notable for his seminal work, ''Monuments To Courage'', which documents the graves of almost all recipients of the Victoria Cross, a task that took him over 3 ...

'' (David Harvey, 1999) *''

The Register of the Victoria Cross ''The Register of the Victoria Cross'' is a reference work that provides brief information on every Victoria Cross awarded until the publication date. Each entry provides a summary of the deed, along with a photograph of the recipient and the fo ...

'' (This England, 1997) *'' The Sapper VCs'' (Gerald Napier, 1998)

External links

Profile
remuseum.org.uk. Accessed 2 December 2022. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thackeray, Edward Talbot 1836 births 1927 deaths British recipients of the Victoria Cross Alumni of Addiscombe Military Seminary British Indian Army officers Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Indian Rebellion of 1857 recipients of the Victoria Cross People from Broxbourne People educated at Marlborough College British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Afghan War Royal Engineers officers Bengal Engineers officers Edward