John Berryman
VC (18 July 1825 – 27 June 1896) 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 ...
non-commissioned officer and a 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 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.
Victoria Cross action
Born in
Dudley, England, Berriman was 29 years old, and a
Troop Sergeant-Major in the
17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own)
The 17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1759 and notable for its participation in the Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War. The regiment was amalgamated with the 21st Lancer ...
during the
Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...
when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.
On 25 October 1854 at
Balaclava,
Crimea
Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...
, (''see''
Charge of the Light Brigade
The Charge of the Light Brigade was a failed military action involving the British light cavalry led by Lord Cardigan against Russian forces during the Battle of Balaclava on 25 October 1854 in the Crimean War. Lord Raglan had intended to se ...
) Troop Sergeant-Major Berryman, whose horse had been shot under him, stopped on the field with a wounded officer amidst a storm of shot and shell. Two sergeants (
John Farrell and
Joseph Malone) came to his assistance and between them they carried the wounded officer out of range of the guns.
[ Brighton, Terry, ''Hell Riders: the Truth about the Charge of the Light Brigade''. London: Penguin, 2005 .]
Further information
Berryman later achieved the rank of
major
Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
and transferred to the
5th Lancers
The 5th Royal Irish Lancers was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. It saw service for three centuries, including the First World War. It amalgamated with the 16th The Queen's Lancers to become the 16th/5th Lancers in 1922.
History Early wa ...
in 1880.
He died at
Woldingham,
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
References
External links
Location of grave and VC medal''(Surrey)''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berryman, John
1825 births
1896 deaths
People from Dudley
British recipients of the Victoria Cross
Crimean War recipients of the Victoria Cross
British Army personnel of the Crimean War
17th Lancers soldiers
17th Lancers officers
5th Royal Irish Lancers officers
British Army personnel of the Anglo-Zulu War
British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross
Military personnel from Worcestershire
Burials in Surrey