Major Henry Kelly VC, MC & Bar (10 July 1887 – 18 July 1960) was 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. Kelly was born on 10 July 1887 in

Collyhurst Collyhurst is an inner city area of Manchester, England, northeast of the Manchester city centre, city centre on Rochdale Road (A664) and A62 road, Oldham Road (A62), bounded by Smedley, Manchester, Smedley, Harpurhey and Monsall tram stop, Mons ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

. He was a temporary

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 10th Battalion, The Duke of Wellington's (West Riding) Regiment 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 ...

at the time of his award of the Victoria Cross in 1916. He was awarded a Military Cross and later a Bar to that medal in Italy in 1918. Other Military awards include the

Belgian Croix de guerre The ''Croix de guerre'' ( French) or ''Oorlogskruis'' (Dutch), both literally translating as "Cross of War", is a military decoration of the Kingdom of Belgium established by royal decree on 25 October 1915. It was primarily awarded for bravery ...

, the French

Médaille militaire The ''Médaille militaire'' ( en, Military Medal) is a military decoration of the French Republic for other ranks for meritorious service and acts of bravery in action against an enemy force. It is the third highest award of the French Republic, ...

and the Spanish Grand Laurelled Cross of San Fernando.

Early life

Henry Kelly was born to Charles Kelly of

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

and Jane (née McGarry) of

. He was left the oldest of 10 children after his father died in 1904. He was educated at St Patrick's School and

Xaverian College Xaverian College is a Roman Catholic college in Manchester, England, south of the city centre in Rusholme. Established in 1862, Xaverian College has become one of the most oversubscribed Sixth form college in Greater Manchester, along with Lore ...

, both in Manchester. After moving to King Street in Moston, he was employed as a sorting clerk at the Newton Street sorting office and trained with the 'Manchester Royal Engineers territorial Regiment'.On 5 September 1914, aged 27, he enlisted into the

Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders or 79th (The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders) Regiment of Foot was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1793. It amalgamated with the Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Al ...

as a private. He transferred to the

Manchester Regiment The Manchester Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1958. The regiment was created during the 1881 Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment of Foot and the 96th ...

and became a lance corporal and two weeks later a sergeant major. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant on 12 May 1915 into the

Duke of Wellington's Regiment The Duke of Wellington's Regiment (West Riding) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, forming part of the King's Division. In 1702, Colonel George Hastings, 8th Earl of Huntingdon, was authorised to raise a new regiment, which he di ...

(West Riding Regiment). On 29 October 1918 he was awarded the Victoria Cross, and, after being presented with his VC ribbon by the corps commander on 11 September, he was made a temporary lieutenant.

Award of Victoria Cross

On 4 October 1916, when Kelly was 29 years old, he performed an act of bravery at

Le Sars Le Sars is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Geography Le Sars is situated south of Arras, at the junction of the D11 and the D929 roads. Population Places of interest * The church of St.Pi ...

, France, for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross. Later he was also awarded the

and the French

.Manchesters Military and Civilian Heroes – Henry Velly VC MC

Award of Military Cross

In June 1918, as a Captain serving in the 10th Battalion, Kelly saw action in Italy on the

Asiago Asiago (; Venetian: ''Axiago'', Cimbrian: ''Slege'', German: ''Schlägen'' ) is a minor township (population roughly 6,500) in the surrounding plateau region (the ''Altopiano di Asiago'' or '' Altopiano dei Sette Comuni'', Asiago plateau) in ...

Plateau, where he led a company and a half on a successful raid on Ave, to the south of Asiago, on the night of 21–22 June, after which he was awarded the Military Cross.

Award of Bar to Military Cross

Kelly was involved in later actions on Il Montello above the river Piave On 27 October 1918 during the Piave he led another successful attack across the Piave, after which he was awarded a bar to his Military Cross. Kelly left the army in 1920, having been promoted to the rank of Temporary Major and put in charge of a rest camp in France.

Between the wars

Kelly spent 1922–1923 in the

Irish National Army The National Army, sometimes unofficially referred to as the Free State army or the Regulars, was the army of the Irish Free State from January 1922 until October 1924. Its role in this period was defined by its service in the Irish Civil War, ...

during the

Irish Civil War The Irish Civil War ( ga, Cogadh Cathartha na hÉireann; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United ...

, then later joined the

International Brigades The International Brigades ( es, Brigadas Internacionales) were military units set up by the Communist International to assist the Popular Front government of the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. The organization existed f ...

, in 1936, as a foreign volunteer fighting against

Fascists Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and th ...

in the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

and was ranked Commandante General. Here he was awarded the Grand Laurelled Cross of San Fernando. At the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, aged 52, he rejoined the British army and served from thence as a lieutenant in the

Cheshire Regiment The Cheshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. The 22nd Regiment of Foot was raised by the Duke of Norfolk in 1689 and was able to boast an independent existence of over 300 years. T ...

. From October 1943 until February 1944 he was placed in charge of the District Claims office of London District, at Curzon Street. He was at that time court martialled and severely reprimanded for making an allegedly false claim for £2 10s. He later resigned his commission and left the army to return to work for the post office.

Post war

Kelly continued to work for the post office and lived in

Wythenshawe Wythenshawe () is a district of the city of Manchester, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in Cheshire, Wythenshawe was transferred in 1931 to the City of Manchester, which had begun building a massive housing estate there in the ...

, Manchester. Following a long illness Kelly died, on 18 January 1960, in

Prestwich Hospital Prestwich Hospital was a mental health facility in Prestwich, Greater Manchester, England. History The site was selected at Prestwich Woods and acquired from Oswald Milne, a solicitor, in 1847. The hospital was designed by Isaac Holden, a Manche ...

. He was buried in

Southern Cemetery, Manchester Southern Cemetery is a large municipal cemetery in Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester, England, south of the city centre. It opened in 1879 and is owned and administered by Manchester City Council. It is the largest municipal cemetery in the United ...

Medal location

Kelly's Victoria Cross is displayed in The Duke of Wellington's Regimental Museum, located within the Bankfield Museum,

Halifax, West Yorkshire Halifax () is a minster and market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. It is the commercial, cultural and administrative centre of the borough, and the headquarters of Calderdale Council. In the 15th cen ...

, England.Duke of Wellington's Regimental Website