Private Sidney Frank Godley
VC (14 August 1889 – 29 June 1957) was an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
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. He was the first
private soldier awarded the VC in World War I.
Early life
Godley was born on 14 August 1889 in
East Grinstead,
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an ...
, the son of Avis (née Newton) and Frank Godley. His mother died in 1896, and he was sent to live with his aunt and uncle in
Willesden
Willesden () is an area of northwest London, situated 5 miles (8 km) northwest of Charing Cross. It is historically a parish in the county of Middlesex that was incorporated as the Municipal Borough of Willesden in 1933, and has forme ...
,
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 ...
. He was educated at Henry Street School,
St John's Wood
St John's Wood is a district in the City of Westminster, London, lying 2.5 miles (4 km) northwest of Charing Cross. Traditionally the northern part of the ancient parish and Metropolitan Borough of Marylebone, it extends east to west from ...
and, upon moving to
Sidcup
Sidcup is an area of south-east London, England, primarily in the London Borough of Bexley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, bordering the London Boroughs of Bromley and Greenwich. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the ...
, at Sidcup National School.
From the ages of fourteen to twenty, he worked in an
ironmonger's store.
On 13 December 1909, he joined
The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment)
The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881.
The regiment served in many wa ...
of 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 ...
as a
private with the
service number
A service number is an identification code used to identify a person within a large group. Service numbers are most often associated with the military; however, they may be used in civilian organizations as well. National identification numbers may ...
13814.
Victoria Cross
![Février 2007 060 59a](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/F%C3%A9vrier_2007_060_59a.jpg)
Godley was 25 years old, and a
Fusilier in the 4th Battalion, The Royal Fusiliers, British Army, during the
Battle of Mons in 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 ...
when he performed an act for which he was awarded 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 ...
. On 23 August 1914, at
Mons,
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
on the Mons-Condé Canal, Lieutenant
Maurice Dease and Sidney Godley were manning the machine gun after the previous crews were either killed or wounded. When Lieutenant Dease had been mortally wounded and killed, and the order to retreat was issued, Private Godley offered to defend the
Nimy Railway Bridge while the rest of the section retreated. Godley held the bridge single-handed under very heavy fire and was wounded twice. A
shell fragment ("''shrapnel''") entered his back when an
artillery shell went off near him, and he was wounded in the head by a bullet. Despite his injuries he carried on the defence of the bridge while his comrades escaped. His citation read: "For coolness and gallantry in fighting his machine gun under a hot fire for two hours after he had been wounded at Mons on 23 August".
H.C. O'Neill wrote this account of Godley's actions in ''The Royal Fusiliers in the Great War''.
"The machine gun crews were constantly being knocked out. So cramped was their position that when a man was hit he had to be removed before another could take his place. The approach from the trench was across the open, and whenever a gun stopped Lieutenant Maurice Dease... went up to see what was wrong. To do this once called for no ordinary courage. To repeat it several times could only be done with real heroism. Dease was badly wounded on these journeys, but insisted on remaining at duty as long as one of his crew could fire. The third wound proved fatal, and a well deserved VC was awarded him posthumously. By this time both guns had ceased firing, and all the crew had been knocked out. In response to an inquiry whether anyone else knew how to operate the guns Private Godley came forward. He cleared the emplacement under heavy fire and brought the gun into action. But he had not been firing long before the gun was hit and put completely out of action. The water jackets of both guns were riddled with bullets, so that they were no longer of any use. Godley himself was badly wounded and later fell into the hands of the Germans.
Godley defended the bridge for two hours, until he ran out of ammunition.
His final act was to dismantle the gun and throw the pieces into the canal. He attempted to crawl to safety, but advancing German soldiers caught him and took him to a prisoner of war camp. His wounds were treated, but he remained in camp until the
Armistice with Germany
The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, sea, and air in World War I between the Entente and their last remaining opponent, Germany. Previous armistices ...
in November 1918. Originally it was thought that he had been killed, but some time later it was found that he was a
prisoner of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...
in a camp called Delotz at
Dallgow-Döberitz
Dallgow-Döberitz is a municipality in the Havelland district, in Brandenburg, Germany.
Geography
It consists of the villages of Dallgow-Döberitz, Rohrbeck and Seeburg. To the east it shares border with the Spandau borough of Berlin. Neighbour ...
. It was in the camp that he was informed that he had been awarded the Victoria Cross. Godley left the camp in 1918 after the guards fled their posts. He received the actual medal from
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 Qu ...
, at
Buckingham Palace, on 15 February 1919.
On 19 July 2012 his medals were sold at auction for £276,000.
Post-war life
On 2 August 1919, Godley married Ellen Eliza Norman.
He worked as a
school caretaker in
Tower Hamlets
The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London borough covering much of the traditional East End. It was formed in 1965 from the merger of the former metropolitan boroughs of Stepney, Poplar, and Bethnal Green. 'Tower Hamlets' was originally ...
,
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 ...
.
He died in Epping Hospital on 29 June 1957.
He was buried with
full military honours in the town cemetery at
Loughton
Loughton () is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. Part of the metropolitan and urban area of London, the town borders Chingford, Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell and Buckhurst Hill, and is northeast of Chari ...
,
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...
, where he latterly resided.
![Sidney Godley grave](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Sidney_Godley_grave.jpg)
He was portrayed in the
BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes targeting 16 to 34-year-olds, covering all genres including animation, comedy, cur ...
series
''Our World War'' (2014) by
Theo Barklem-Biggs
Theo Barklem-Biggs (born 21 March 1990) is a British television and film actor from London. He has performed both comedic and dramatic roles.
Career
He made his debut television appearance in ''The Bill '' in 2008. He appeared in '' EastEnders, ...
.
Memorials
* East Grinstead Town Council mounted a Blue Plaque on their offices.
*
Loughton
Loughton () is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. Part of the metropolitan and urban area of London, the town borders Chingford, Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell and Buckhurst Hill, and is northeast of Chari ...
Town Council placed a Blue Plaque at 164 Torrington Drive to commemorate its famous former resident. On 23 August 2014, exactly 100 years to the hour from when he defended the bridge at Mons, a commemorative service was held at his graveside.
* in 1976 a new housing estate in
Bexley
Bexley is an area of south-eastern Greater London, England and part of the London Borough of Bexley. It is sometimes known as Bexley Village or Old Bexley to differentiate the area from the wider borough. It is located east-southeast of Ch ...
, Greater London, was named after him.
* In 1992
Tower Hamlets
The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London borough covering much of the traditional East End. It was formed in 1965 from the merger of the former metropolitan boroughs of Stepney, Poplar, and Bethnal Green. 'Tower Hamlets' was originally ...
Council named a block of flats "Godley VC House" (Digby Street, E2). A plaque attached to the flats also commemorates him.
* In 2014 the
Department of Communities and Local Government
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), formerly the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for housing, communities, local government i ...
gave each birth town of a World War I VC winner a paving stone to commemorate their deed. The paving stone in East Grinstead was unveiled by the Town Mayor with Communities Secretary
Eric Pickles
Eric Jack Pickles, Baron Pickles, (born 20 April 1952) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Brentwood and Ongar from 1992 to 2017. He served in David Cameron's Cabinet as Secretary of State for ...
MP in attendance, at 11.00 am on 23 August 2014. This was the first day of unveilings. The paving stone is set at the base of the war memorial in East Grinstead High Street, as the original wish that they be incorporated in the pavement in front of the former home was not possible as the exact address of his home is not known.
* A small residential area in ''rue des Victoria Cross'' ("''Victoria Crosses street''") in
Saint-Symphorien near
Mons,
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
is named ''Clos Sidney Godley'' ("''Sidney Godley Enclosed Field''").
References
*
External links
East Grinstead Council
{{DEFAULTSORT:Godley, Sidney Frank
Military personnel from Sussex
Burials in Essex
British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross
Royal Fusiliers soldiers
British Army personnel of World War I
People from East Grinstead
People from Loughton
People from Willesden
People from Sidcup
1889 births
1957 deaths
British World War I prisoners of war
World War I prisoners of war held by Germany
British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross