Louis McGuffie VC (15 March 1893 – 4 October 1918) was a Scottish 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 British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

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. A soldier with

The King's Own Scottish Borderers The King's Own Scottish Borderers (KOSBs) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. On 28 March 2006 the regiment was amalgamated with the Royal Scots, the Royal Highland Fusiliers (Princess Margaret's Own ...

, he was awarded the VC for his actions in late September 1918, during the

Hundred Days Offensive The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allies of World War I, Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (1918), Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Wester ...

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 killed in action a few days later.

Early life

Louis McGuffie was born on 15 March 1893 in

Wigtown Wigtown ( (both used locally); gd, Baile na h-Ùige) is a town and former royal burgh in Wigtownshire, of which it is the county town, within the Dumfries and Galloway region in Scotland. It lies east of Stranraer and south of Newton Stewart. I ...

, a town in Galloway, Scotland, one of four sons born to Edward McGuffie and Catherine . He attended Wigtown Public School and then joined the

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 ...

, enlisting in the 1/5th Battalion of

. He had three brothers who also enlisted.

First World War

McGuffie served with the 1/5th Battalion in the Gallipoli Campaign as part of the 52nd Division. After the evacuation from Gallipoli, he participated with the battalion in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign before it was transferred to the Western Front in France. By the time of the

, he was 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 ...

. With the battalion part of 103rd Brigade, 34th Division, on 28 September 1918 it was involved in attacks on Wytschaete Ridge, near

Ypres Ypres ( , ; nl, Ieper ; vls, Yper; german: Ypern ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality co ...

, as part of the

Fifth Battle of Ypres The Fifth Battle of Ypres, also called the Advance in Flanders and the Battle of the Peaks of Flanders (french: Bataille des Crêtes de Flandres) is an informal name used to identify a series of World War I battles in northern France and southe ...

. McGuffie had taken command of a platoon due to its officers becoming casualties and helped deal with a strongpoint known as Picadilly Farm, as well as several other German-occupied posts that were delaying the advance. Wytschaete Ridge was captured the following day. However McGuffie was killed in action a few days later on 4 October 1918. For his actions on 28 September 1918, he was awarded the Victoria Cross (VC). The VC, instituted in 1856, was the highest award for valour that could be bestowed on a soldier of the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...

. The citation read as follows:

McGuffie is buried in

Zantvoorde British Cemetery Zantvoorde British Cemetery is a Commonwealth War Graves Commission burial ground for the dead of the First World War located in the Ypres Salient in Belgium on the Western Front. It also contains the remains of a British airman killed during the ...

, near

, in Belgium.

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...

presented McGuffie's VC to his mother in a ceremony at

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality. It ...

on 17 May 1919. In his memory, a tablet was laid into the wall of the Wigtown County building in late 1919. His name is also listed on the Wigtown War Memorial. One hundred years to the day after the events which earned Sgt McGuffie his Victoria Cross, on 28 September 2018 a paving stone and commemorative archway, commissioned by Wigtown Community Council, were unveiled at the entrance to Wigtown's Louis McGuffie VC Memorial Gardens, which includes the town's lawn bowling green and lawns.

The medal

In 1971, a family member donated McGuffie's VC and other campaign medals, which included the 1914-15 Star, the

British War Medal The British War Medal is a campaign medal of the United Kingdom which was awarded to officers and men of British and Imperial forces for service in the First World War. Two versions of the medal were produced. About 6.5 million were struck in si ...

, and the Victory Medal, to the Regimental Museum of The Kings Own Scottish Borderers,

Berwick upon Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census reco ...

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:McGuffie, Louis 1893 births 1918 deaths People from Wigtown Military personnel from Dumfries and Galloway British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross British Army personnel of World War I King's Own Scottish Borderers soldiers British military personnel killed in World War I British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Scottish military personnel killed in action Burials in Belgium