Memorial to Garth Neville Walford in Exeter Cathedral

Captain Garth Neville Walford (27 May 1882 – 26 April 1915) was a

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 ...

officer and 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 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.

Biography

Walford was born to Colonel Neville Walford (Royal Artillery) and his wife at No 5, The Terrace in Camberley, which is now part of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. Walford was listed as a ′University Candidate′ when he was commissioned into the British Army as a

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 ...

in the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of t ...

on 24 December 1902. He had advanced to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

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 ...

, and was awarded a Victoria Cross for his actions on 26 April 1915 at the

V Beach The landing at Cape Helles ( tr, Seddülbahir Çıkarması) was part of the Gallipoli Campaign the amphibious landings on the Gallipoli peninsula by British and French forces on 25 April 1915 during the First World War. Cape Helles, Helles, a ...

Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. After his senior officers had been killed, Walford and

Charles Hotham Montagu Doughty-Wylie Lieutenant Colonel Charles Hotham Montagu "Richard" Doughty-Wylie, (23 July 1868 – 26 April 1915) was a British Army officer and an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be ...

organised a successful attack targeted on the old fort at the top of the hill, although both men were killed in the battle. Walford was 32 years old when he died, and married to Elizabeth Walford. He is buried in V Beach Cemetery.V Beach Cemetery
Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Citation

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 36 ...

(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 fol ...

(This England, 1997) *

VCs of the First World War - Gallipoli ''VCs of the First World War'' is a series of books that list the Victoria Cross recipients of the First World War. The series consists of 13 books written by four different authors, first published under the label Sutton Publishing Limited, part ...

(Stephen Snelling, 1995) {{DEFAULTSORT:Walford, Gareth Neville 1882 births 1915 deaths Military personnel from Surrey Royal Field Artillery officers British Army personnel of World War I British Gallipoli campaign recipients of the Victoria Cross British military personnel killed in World War I People from Frimley People educated at Harrow School Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Burials at V Beach Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery