Godfrey Meynell VC, MC (20 May 1904 – 29 September 1935) was a

British Indian Army The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...

officer and an English 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.

Early life and education

Meynell was the son of an army officer who was also named Godfrey Meynell, by his wife Edith Violet Cammell. He won a scholarship to

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

. He was commended to

Cyril Connolly Cyril Vernon Connolly CBE (10 September 1903 – 26 November 1974) was an English literary critic and writer. He was the editor of the influential literary magazine ''Horizon'' (1940–49) and wrote '' Enemies of Promise'' (1938), which combin ...

when he arrived there as a boy with character. After an initial amount of bullying, (from Godfrey to Cecil) the two became firm friends as described in ''

Enemies of Promise ''Enemies of Promise'' is a critical and autobiographical work written by Cyril Connolly first published in 1938. It comprises three parts, the first dedicated to Connolly's observations about English literature and the English literary world of ...

''.

Military career

Meynell had graduated 13th at Sandhurst before he volunteered for the

. He was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

in 1933 for his work in

Chitral Chitral ( khw, , lit=field, translit=ćhitrār; ur, , translit=ćitrāl) is situated on the Chitral River in northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It serves as the capital of the Chitral District and before that as the capital of Chitral ...

Victoria Cross

Meynell was thirty-one years old, and a

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 ...

in the 5th Battalion ( Queen Victoria's Own Corps of Guides),

12th Frontier Force Regiment The 12th Frontier Force Regiment was formed in 1922 as part of the British Indian Army. It consisted of five regular battalions; numbered 1 to 5 and the 10th (Training) Battalion. During the Second World War a further ten battalions were raised. ...

during the

1935 Mohmand Campaign The Second Mohmand campaign of 1935 was a British military campaign against the Mohmand tribes in the Northwest Frontier area of British India, now Pakistan. Tanks were used, the first operational use of tanks in India. The First Mohmand campaign i ...

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 ...

. Captain Meynell married "Jill", Sophia Patricia (Jill) Lowis, at the Guides Chapel in Mardan on 31 January 1933, both were speakers of Urdu. Their eldest son Godfrey was born on 20 July 1934. On 29 September 1935 at

Mohmand The Mohmand ( ps, مومند) or Mohmand is a prominent tribe of Pashtun people. They are based primarily in the Mohmand territory, which is located in Nangarhar, Afghanistan and Mohmand Agency, Pakistan. Most people of the Mohmand tribe spe ...

, in the Nahaqi Pass within the

Khyber Pass The Khyber Pass (خیبر درہ) is a mountain pass in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, on the border with the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. It connects the town of Landi Kotal to the Valley of Peshawar at Jamrud by traversing pa ...

on the North West Frontier, in the final phase of an attack, Captain Meynell, seeking information on the most forward troops, found them involved in a struggle against an enemy vastly superior in numbers. He at once took command, and with two Lewis guns and about thirty men, maintained a heavy and accurate fire on the advancing enemy, whose overwhelming numbers nevertheless succeeded in reaching the position and putting the Lewis guns out of action. In the hand-to-hand struggle which ensued, Captain Meynell was mortally wounded, but the heavy casualties inflicted on the enemy prevented them from exploiting their success. Regimental records suggest that when the bodies of his men were mutilated by the enemy (as was their custom), Captain Meynell sought to defend those bodies even as he himself was dying. His body is laid to rest at the Guides Chapel in

Mardan Mardān (Pashto and ; Urdu ; Pashto: ) is a city in the Mardan District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, Pakistan. Located in the Valley of Peshawar, Mardan is the second-largest city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (after Peshawar). It is a fast-growing ...

, near

Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...

in the North West Frontier Province (of what is now Pakistan), where he and his wife Sophia Patricia (but known as Jill) née Lowis were married. According to shipping records, his widow returned to England with their eldest son accompanied by her twin brother (and his brother officer) "Jack" (Ross Henry) Lowis and they arrived in England after a 10 day sea journey at the end of October, within one month of Godfrey Meynell VC MC's death.shipping records record details to be added Clare B Dimyon MBE Three months after he was killed, news of the award of the VC arrived at Meynell Langley on 24 December 1935. Three months later their 2nd son,

Hugo Anthony Meynell Hugo Anthony Meynell (23 March 1936 – 1 October 2021) was an English academic and author. Academic career Born in Meynell Langley, Derbyshire, England, half a year after the death of his father, Captain Godfrey Meynell, who was awarded the Vict ...

, was born on 24 March 1936 and less than three months later his widow Jill (Sophia Patricia née Lowis) received the VC at a ceremony at Buckingham Palace on 14 July 1936, the only one to be handed out by Edward VIII.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meynell, Godfrey 1904 births 1935 deaths People educated at Eton College British recipients of the Victoria Cross British Indian Army officers British Indian Army personnel killed in action People from Amber Valley Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Corps of Guides (India) officers British military personnel of the Second Mohmand Campaign Military personnel from Derbyshire British people in colonial India