Frederick William Palmer (11 November 1891 – 10 September 1955) was an
English recipient of the
Victoria Cross, 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 the ...
forces.
Details
He was 20 years old, and a
Lance-Sergeant in the 22nd Battalion,
The Royal Fusiliers
The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881.
The regiment served in many wars ...
,
during the
First World War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.
On 16/17 February 1917 north of
Courcelette,
France, Lance-Sergeant Palmer assumed command of his company when all his officers had become casualties. Having cut his way under point-blank fire, through wire entanglements, he dislodged an enemy machine-gun and established a "block". He then collected some other men and held the barricade for nearly three hours against seven determined counter-attacks. While he was fetching more bombs an eighth counter-attack was delivered, threatening the advance of the whole flank. At this critical moment, although suffering from extreme exhaustion, he rallied his men, drove back the enemy and maintained his position.
He later achieved the rank of
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank.
Australia
The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...
. When his battalion was disbanded, he joined the RFC as an observer.
After the war, he went to Malaya, where he set up in business. After the outbreak of the
Second World War, he returned to England in 1940, arriving just in time for the
Battle of Britain, and re-joined the
Royal Air Force. He achieved the rank of Wing-Commander, and was mentioned in dispatches at the end of the war. He then returned to Malaya.
He retired to the south of England in 1950.
References
*
Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
*
The Register of the Victoria Cross (This England, 1997)
External links
Royal Fusiliers Recipients of the Victoria Cross
''(Dorset)''
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Palmer, Frederick
1891 births
1955 deaths
Military personnel from London
People from Hammersmith
British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross
Royal Fusiliers officers
Recipients of the Military Medal
British Army personnel of World War I
Royal Air Force officers
Royal Flying Corps officers
Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II
British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross