Chief Petty Officer A chief petty officer (CPO) is a senior non-commissioned officer in many navies and coast guards. Canada "Chief petty officer" refers to two ranks in the Royal Canadian Navy. A chief petty officer 2nd class (CPO2) (''premier maître de deuxi� ...

George Henry Prowse VC, DCM (29 August 1886 – 27 September 1918) was a British 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. He served with the

Royal Naval Division The 63rd (Royal Naval) Division was a United Kingdom infantry division of the First World War. It was originally formed as the Royal Naval Division at the outbreak of the war, from Royal Navy and Royal Marine reservists and volunteers, who wer ...

during the Gallipoli Campaign and in France on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

where he was killed in action before the award of either of his decorations was announced.

Naval service

According to his service record, which has been placed online by

The National Archives National archives are central archives maintained by countries. This article contains a list of national archives. Among its more important tasks are to ensure the accessibility and preservation of the information produced by governments, both ...

, Prowse was born on 28 August 1896, however the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

gives his age at death as 32, which would place his birth in 1886. Recent research in South Wales has unearthed a birth certificate that shows he was actually born on 29 August 1886 in Brynsion Terrace, Gilfach Goch, Llantrisant and a

Blue plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom and elsewhere to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving as a historical marker. The term i ...

was placed on the house (Brynsion Terrace has since been renamed to be part of High Street) by the local council,

Rhondda Cynon Taff Rhondda Cynon Taf (; RCT; also spelt as Rhondda Cynon Taff) is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It consists of five valleys: the Rhondda Fawr, Rhondda Fach, Cynon, Taff (Welsh: ''Taf'') and Ely valleys, plus a number of towns and vil ...

on 21 October 2006.Alt URL
/ref> He enlisted in the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve for the

, on 26 February 1915. The details recorded in his service record show he was living in the Landore area of

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

with his wife Sarah; he had been working as a collier, was tall, had grey eyes, brown hair and a "fair" complexion. At some time he relocated to Camerton in Somerset, probably to work in the coal mines there. In the churchyard at Camerton there is a war memorial with his name shown. Prowse was initially rated

Ordinary Seaman __NOTOC__ An ordinary seaman (OS) is a member of the deck department of a ship. The position is an apprenticeship to become an able seaman, and has been for centuries. In modern times, an OS is required to work on a ship for a specific amount o ...

, on 5 May 1915 he was promoted to

Able Seaman (rank) Able seaman is a military rank used in naval forces. Royal Navy In 1653 the Royal Navy introduced a new pay scale as part of reforms following defeat in the Battle of Dungeness the previous year. Included in these reforms were, for the firs ...

. After completing training at Blandford, in September 1915 he was posted to the Drake Battalion, which was then engaged in the Gallipoli Campaign. It is not clear how much active service Prowse saw at this time as he spent significant periods hospitalised with first

jaundice Jaundice, also known as icterus, is a yellowish or greenish pigmentation of the skin and sclera due to high bilirubin levels. Jaundice in adults is typically a sign indicating the presence of underlying diseases involving abnormal heme meta ...

and then

gastroenteritis Gastroenteritis, also known as infectious diarrhea and gastro, is an inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract including the stomach and intestine. Symptoms may include diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Fever, lack of energy, and dehydra ...

, finally rejoining his battalion in Egypt on 9 January 1916. The division remained engaged in the Gallipoli Campaign until May 1916 when it was transferred to France. Prowse arrived at

Marseilles Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

on 7 June 1916, on 20 June he was promoted Petty Officer. In November 1916 the Division was employed in the

Battle of the Ancre The Battle of the Ancre was fought by the British Fifth Army (Lieutenant-General Hubert Gough), against the German 1st Army (General Fritz von Below). The Reserve Army had been renamed the Fifth Army on 30 October. The battle was the last ...

, the final attempt to resolve the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme ( French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place bet ...

. Prowse received a gunshot wound in his left thigh on 13 November (the opening day of the battle) and after initial treatment in France was admitted to a hospital in Epsom on 17 November. Having been discharged from hospital, he went back to the base at Blandford on 9 January 1917, and eventually returned to his battalion in France on 28 March 1917. In August 1918 Prowse was recommended for the award of the DCM. The citation, published posthumously in 1919 stated Prowse was about 32 years old, and a

in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, (Drake Battalion, Royal Naval Division) 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. On 2 September 1918 at

Pronville Pronville-en-Artois (; literally "Pronville in Artois"), simply Pronville until 2017, is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Geography Pronville-en-Artois is situated southeast of Arras, on the D22 ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, Chief Petty Officer Prowse led a small party of men against an enemy strong-point, capturing it, together with 23 prisoners and 5 machine-guns. On three other occasions he displayed great heroism in dealing with difficult and dangerous situations, and at one time he dashed forward and attacked and captured two machine-gun posts, killing six of the enemy and taking 13 prisoners and two machine-guns. He was the only survivor of this gallant party, but his action enabled the battalion to push forward in comparative safety.

Citation

He was killed in action,

Anneux Anneux () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Its church is dedicated to Saint Léger. History Anneux was among the villages fought over at the western end of the Battle of Cambrai (1917). Population Heraldry See also * ...

, on 27 September 1918.

Medal award

Sarah Prowse was presented with her husband's Victoria Cross by H.M. King George V at Buckingham Palace on 17 July 1919, after all the live recipients. She led the list of posthumous awards and was presented with the last VC with the blue naval ribbon. Prowse's Victoria Cross is in the Lord Ashcroft VC Collection at the Imperial War Museum.

References

Biog details
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prowse, George 1886 births 1918 deaths Royal Navy sailors British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross British military personnel killed in World War I Recipients of the Distinguished Conduct Medal Royal Navy recipients of the Victoria Cross Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War I People from Tonyrefail