Thomas Orde Lawder Wilkinson VC (29 June 1894 – 5 July 1916), was an

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-born

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and

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officer who was a 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 ...

(VC), the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to

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and Commonwealth forces. A soldier with the

Loyal North Lancashire Regiment The Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) (until 1921 known as the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1970. In 1970, the regiment was amalgamated with the Lancashire Reg ...

during the First World War, he was

posthumous Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ''Posthumous'' ...

ly awarded the VC for his actions on 10 July 1916, during the Battle of the Somme.

Early life

Wilkinson was born on 29 June 1894, the second son of Charles Orde Wilkinson and his wife, Edith, at Lodge Farm on Dudmaston estate near

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, England. He attended Parkside School in Surrey and then

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: *Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin * Wellington College, Wellington, Ne ...

where he showed both academic and athletic prowess. He graduated in November 1912 by which time the Wilkinson family had emigrated to

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, Canada, where his father had been working at the time of his birth.

First World War

Shortly after the outbreak of the First World War, Wilkinson joined the 16th Battalion (Canadian Scottish) at Vancouver. He had been working as a surveyor at the time of his enlistment. He was soon commissioned as a lieutenant. After the regiment arrived in England he transferred to the 7th Battalion,

and by the start of 1916 was serving on the Western Front as a gunnery officer. Wilkson's battalion was part of the

56th Infantry Brigade The 56th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in both the First and the Second World Wars. History First World War The 56th Brigade was raised soon after the outbreak of the First World War in Septem ...

, 19th Division, which was involved in the opening stages of the Battle of the Somme. During the battle, on 4 July 1916, his battalion was attacking the village of La Boisselle. A neighbouring unit had conceded ground and Wilkinson's battalion was ordered to retake the position. A machine-gun had been left behind, which Wilkinson put into operation on reaching the position. He was able to hold off an attacking party of Germans until reinforcements arrived. He was killed shortly afterwards trying to bring a wounded soldier into cover. For his actions, he was

ly 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

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. The citation for Wilkinson's VC read: As his body was never recovered, Wilkinson is commemorated with thousands of other British and Commonwealth soldiers on the British Memorial to the Missing at

Thiepval Thiepval (; pcd, Tièbvo) is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Thiepval is located north of Albert at the crossroads of the D73 and D151 and approximately northeast of Amiens. Population First Wo ...

. His name is also on the Sandwick War Memorial, in British Columbia. In 2004 a plaque to his memory was unveiled at the church in

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, near his place of birth. The plaque was commissioned by the Shropshire War Memorials Association after unsuccessful attempts to locate relatives of Wilkinson.

Victoria Cross

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 ...

presented Wilkinson's VC to his father on 26 November 1916, in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace. He was also entitled to 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. His VC and other medals are displayed at the Imperial War Museum in London.

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