Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non- ...

Sidney Bates VC (14 June 1921 – 8 August 1944) 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 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 forces.

Early life

Sidney Bates was born in Camberwell,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

on 14 June 1921 to Frederick, a

rag and bone man A rag-and-bone man or ragpicker (UK English) or ragman, old-clothesman, junkman, or junk dealer (US English), also called a bone-grubber, bone-picker, chiffonnier, rag-gatherer, bag board, or totter, collects unwanted household items and sells t ...

, and Gladys May Bates. At the outbreak of

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 opposing ...

, Bates was working as a carpenter's labourer. He 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 ...

and served with the 1st Battalion of the

Royal Norfolk Regiment The Royal Norfolk Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army until 1959. Its predecessor regiment was raised in 1685 as Henry Cornwall's Regiment of Foot. In 1751, it was numbered like most other British Army regiments and named ...

in June 1940 shortly after it returned from being stationed in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

. By 1944, the battalion was part of the 185th Infantry Brigade, itself one of three brigades forming part of the 3rd Infantry Division. The battalion landed in Normandy on 6 June 1944 as part of Operation Overlord.

Military service

Bates was 23 years old, and a

corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non- ...

in the 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment,

British Army during the Second World War At the start of 1939, the British Army was, as it traditionally always had been, a small volunteer professional army. At the beginning of the Second World War on 1 September 1939, the British Army was small in comparison with those of its enem ...

, when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross. On 6 August 1944 near

Sourdeval Sourdeval () is a commune in the Manche department in Normandy in north-western France. On 1 January 2016, the former commune of Vengeons was merged into Sourdeval.France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, Bates was commanding a

section Section, Sectioning or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...

. Upon discovering that the enemy had penetrated deeply in the area occupied by his section, Bates seized a light machine-gun and charged, moving forward through a hail of bullets. Although twice wounded, he was undaunted and continued firing until the enemy started to withdraw from his fire. At that moment he was wounded for a third time — mortally. He still however continued to fire until his strength failed him. By this time the enemy had withdrawn and the situation had been restored, and the immediate threat to his platoon subsided. He died in hospital two days later. The Norfolks' position was under attack by the 10th SS Panzer Division. The final costs of fighting around Sourdeval for the Norfolks was 160 casualties out of 550. The recommendation for the award was made by Major Cooper-Key, the commanding officer of B Company of the 1st Battalion. The recommendation was turned down initially but Cooper-Key persevered. According to Sergeant George Smith the battalion had been on the march when they had come under fire. A Bren gunner had been killed next to Corporal Bates, who had immediately seized the machine gun and started firing on the enemy.

Victoria Cross citation

The announcement and accompanying citation for the decoration was published in supplement to the London Gazette on 2 November 1945, reading His Victoria Cross is displayed at The Royal Norfolk Regiment Museum,

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

, England. The museum trustees purchased it for £20,000 in the 1980s. His was one of five VCs won by members of the

during the Second World War. Although the VC citation gives the hamlet Sourdeval as the location (not to be confused with the market town of Sourdeval about away), it is actually at Pavée. There is a fitting memorial to Bates at Pavée.

Grave

The grave of Sidney Bates can be found in the

Bayeux Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery The Bayeux War Cemetery is the largest Second World War cemetery of Commonwealth soldiers in France, located in Bayeux, Normandy. The cemetery contains 4,648 burials, mostly of the Invasion of Normandy. Opposite this cemetery stands the Bayeux ...

Calvados Calvados (, , ) is a brandy from Normandy in France, made from apples or pears, or from apples with pears. History In France Apple orchards and brewers are mentioned as far back as the 8th century by Charlemagne. The first known record of Nor ...

, France. (Reference 20E)CWGC entry
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References

* British VCs of World War 2 (John Laffin, 1997) *

Monuments to Courage David Charles Harvey (29 July 1946 – 4 March 2004) was a historian and author. He is notable for his seminal work, ''Monuments To Courage'', which documents the graves of almost all recipients of the Victoria Cross, a task that took him over 3 ...

(David Harvey, 1999) *

The Register of the Victoria Cross ''The Register of the Victoria Cross'' is a reference work that provides brief information on every Victoria Cross awarded until the publication date. Each entry provides a summary of the deed, along with a photograph of the recipient and the fo ...

(This England, 1997) {{DEFAULTSORT:Bates, Sidney 1921 births 1944 deaths British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross British Army personnel killed in World War II British World War II recipients of the Victoria Cross People from Camberwell Royal Norfolk Regiment soldiers Burials at Bayeux war cemetery Military personnel from London British Battle of Normandy recipients of the Victoria Cross