John McAulay, (27 December 1888 – 14 January 1956) was a Scottish policeman, soldier and 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.

Early life

He was born in

Kinghorn Kinghorn (; gd, Ceann Gronna) is a town and parish in Fife, Scotland. A seaside resort with two beaches, Kinghorn Beach and Pettycur Bay, plus a fishing port, it stands on the north shore of the Firth of Forth, opposite Edinburgh. According ...

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

on 27 December 1888 the son of John McAulay and his wife Isabella. The family moved to 4 Gillespie Crescent in

Plean Plean is a village, in the Stirling council area of central Scotland, located on the main A9 road from Falkirk. At the 2001 census, Plean had a population of 1,740. Plean has some historic buildings, some council houses and an estate. Landmar ...

(near

Falkirk Falkirk ( gd, An Eaglais Bhreac, sco, Fawkirk) is a large town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland, historically within the county of Stirlingshire. It lies in the Forth Valley, northwest of Edinburgh and northeast of Glasgow. Falkirk had a ...

) and he was educated at Plean Primary School. He left school around 1901 and began working as a coal-miner. Being both tall and strong he left the pits to join the police force in 1911 and was based in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

. At the onset of 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 ...

he was one of the first volunteers and joined the Scots Guards on 9 September 1914.

Details

He was 28 years old, and a

sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

in the 1st Battalion, Scots Guards,

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 ...

during the

when the following deed took place at the Battle of Cambrai for which he was awarded the VC. On 27 November 1917 at Fontaine Notre Dame, France, when all his officers had become casualties, Sergeant McAulay assumed command of the company and under shell and machine-gun fire successfully held and consolidated the objectives gained. He reorganised the company and noticing a counter-attack developing, repulsed it by the skilful and bold use of machine-guns, causing heavy enemy casualties. The sergeant also carried his company commander, who was mortally wounded, to a place of safety. After the war he resumed his career in the Glasgow Police, serving in the Maryhill district, rising to the rank of Inspector before retiring in 1948. He died at home, 915 Aikenhead Road, Burnside, Glasgow on 14 January 1956 and is buried in New Eastwood Cemetery in Glasgow (section L-VII lair 139.

Family

He was married to Catherine Thomson (1890-1963).

Freemasonry

He was Initiated into Freemasonry in Lodge Greyfriars No.1221, (Glasgow, Scotland) on 13 May 1924.The Great War 1914-1918 Victoria Cross Freemasons. Granville Angell. 2014. pp.319 - 322.

Medal

His Victoria Cross is displayed at The Guards Regimental Headquarters (Scots Guards RHQ), London.

References

External links

Location of grave and VC medal
''(Glasgow)''

''(photo)'' {{DEFAULTSORT:McAulay, John 1888 births 1956 deaths People from Kinghorn British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross Scots Guards soldiers British Army personnel of World War I Recipients of the Distinguished Conduct Medal Scottish police officers British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross category:Officers in Scottish police forces