Major John Simpson VC (29 January 1826 – 27 October 1884) was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

recipient of the Victoria Cross, 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. Simpson, 32 years old, was a

quartermaster-sergeant Quartermaster sergeant (QMS) is a class of rank or appointment in some armed forces, especially those of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth, and formerly also in the United States. Ireland Quartermaster sergeant () appointments in the Irish ...

in the 42nd Regiment of Foot, British Army, later the Black Watch (Royal Highlanders), during the

Indian Mutiny The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the fo ...

on 15 April 1858. During the attack on

Fort Ruhya Fort Ruhya was a fort in Awadh, India (Called Oudh in historical British texts). It was the site of conflict during the Indian rebellion of 1857, during which 4 soldiers of the British Army were awarded the Victoria Cross. Today, there is a cemete ...

, British India, Simpson volunteered to go to an exposed point within of the parapet of the fort under heavy fire and carried back a lieutenant and a private, both of whom were seriously wounded. Simpson was later commissioned as a quartermaster and in 1878 he transferred to the Militia. In 1881 he was granted the honorary rank of

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 ...

and in 1883 he was promoted

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 ...

. His grave and memorial are at Balbeggie Churchyard, St. Martin's, near

Perth, Scotland Perth (Scottish English, locally: ; gd, Peairt ) is a city in central Scotland, on the banks of the River Tay. It is the administrative centre of Perth and Kinross council area and the historic county town of Perthshire. It had a population o ...

. His medal is on display in the United States at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, in Los Angeles.

References

*'' Monuments to Courage'' (David Harvey, 1999) *'' The Register of the Victoria Cross'' (This England, 1997) *''

Scotland's Forgotten Valour ''Scotland's Forgotten Valour'' is a 1995 book by Graham Ross, published by MacLean Press under . (The typography of the title on the book uses capitalisation to contrast emphasis ("SCOTLAND'S FORgotten VALOUR"), to communicate additional meanin ...

'' (Graham Ross, 1995)

External links

Location of grave and VC medal
''(Tayside)'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Simpson, John 1826 births 1884 deaths Military personnel from Edinburgh Black Watch soldiers British Militia officers Black Watch officers British recipients of the Victoria Cross Indian Rebellion of 1857 recipients of the Victoria Cross British Army personnel of the Crimean War British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross