Jack White (born Jacob Weiss; 23 December 1896 – 27 November 1949) 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.

Background

White was born Jacob Weiss in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

on 23 December 1896 into an immigrant Russian Jewish family. After finishing his education, he joined the family business, a waterproofing company. When the First World War broke out, he returned home from a business trip and volunteered for active service with the

King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster) The King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army. It served under various titles and fought in many wars and conflicts, including both the First and the Second World Wars, from 1680 to 1959. In 1959, the r ...

. Originally assigned to a battalion destined for France, he missed the battalion's deployment while home on compassionate leave to attend the funeral of his father. Instead, he was transferred to the 6th (Service) Battalion, King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster). The 6th Bn was attached to the

13th (Western) Division The 13th (Western) Division was one of the Kitchener's Army divisions in the First World War, raised from volunteers by Lord Kitchener. It fought at Gallipoli, in Mesopotamia (including the capture of Baghdad) and Persia. War service 1914– ...

. Originally ordered to

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 ...

, he remained with the battalion through the Gallipoli campaign. Eventually, he and his unit were ordered to join the

Tigris Corps The III Corps is a formation of the Indian Army that was formed during World War I in Mesopotamia during its respective campaign. Prior to the reorganization of the British and Indian forces in Mesopotamia, it was designated as the Tigris Corps. ...

, attempting to relieve the

Siege of Kut The siege of Kut Al Amara (7 December 1915 – 29 April 1916), also known as the first battle of Kut, was the besieging of an 8,000 strong British Army garrison in the town of Kut, south of Baghdad, by the Ottoman Army. In 1915, its population ...

. After the failure of the relief effort, White's unit participated in the counter-offensive in 1917. It was during the 13th Division's crossing of the

Diyala River The Diyala River (Arabic: ; ku, Sîrwan; Farsi: , ) is a river and tributary of the Tigris. It is formed by the confluence of Sirwan river and Tanjaro river in Darbandikhan Dam in the Sulaymaniyah Governorate of Northern Iraq. It covers a total ...

that he earned the Victoria Cross.

Details

White was 20 years old, and a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

when, on 7/8 March 1917 on the Dialah River,

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...

, the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. This citation was

gazetted A gazette is an official journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper. In English and French speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name ''Gazette'' since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers ...

on 27 June 1917: He was also awarded the Italian

Bronze Medal of Military Valour The Bronze Medal of Military Valor ( it, Medaglia di bronzo al valor militare) is an Italian medal for gallantry. It was established by Charles Albert of Sardinia on 26 March 1833, along with the higher ranking Gold and Silver Medals for Military ...

Freemasonry

He was initiated into Freemasonry in Lodge Montefiore, No. 753, (Glasgow, Scotland) on 2 June 1919. The records show the following entry: 'Jack White (Weiss) VC, Waterproof Maker Commercial. Age 23.'The Great War 1914-1918 Victoria Cross Freemasons. Granville Angell. 2014. pp.459 - 463.

Later life

White later achieved the rank of

lance corporal Lance corporal is a military rank, used by many armed forces worldwide, and also by some police forces and other uniformed organisations. It is below the rank of corporal, and is typically the lowest non-commissioned officer (NCO), usually equi ...

. Although a Victoria Cross holder he was not permitted to join the

Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting wi ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

because his Russian-born father had failed to naturalised as a British subject. After his service, White returned to Manchester and undertook an apprenticeship as a trainee pattern cutter in a local factory. He went on to become General Manager and then Owner before fading health forced him to relinquish his interest and he died in 1949 aged 52. He was the subject of a comic strip in '' The Victor'' published in 1987.

Background

Details

Freemasonry

Later life

References

Further reading