Theodore Bayley Hardy, (20 October 1863 – 18 October 1918) was a

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 ...

chaplain and 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 ...

, the highest 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. In addition to the VC, Hardy had been awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typ ...

and

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

, making him one of the most decorated non-combatants of the First World War.

Early life

Hardy was born 20 October 1863 to George and Sarah Richards Hardy of

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

. Hardy was educated at the Royal Commercial Travellers School,

Pinner Pinner is a London suburb in the London borough of Harrow, Greater London, England, northwest of Charing Cross, close to the border with Hillingdon, historically in the county of Middlesex. The population was 31,130 in 2011. Originally a med ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

from 1872 to 1879,

City of London School , established = , closed = , type = Public school Boys' independent day school , president = , head_label = Headmaster , head = Alan Bird , chair_label = Chair of Governors , chair = Ian Seaton , founder = John Carpenter , speciali ...

from 1879 to 1882 and at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

. He was ordained in 1898. He was an Assistant Master at

Nottingham High School , motto_translation = Praise to the end , address = Waverley Mount , city = Nottingham , county = Nottinghamshire , postcode = NG7 4ED , country = England , coordinates = , type = Independent day school , established = , closed = , religious ...

from 1891 to 1907, teaching

D. H. Lawrence David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English writer, novelist, poet and essayist. His works reflect on modernity, industrialization, sexuality, emotional health, vitality, spontaneity and instinct. His best-k ...

; a Junior School

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

there is named in his honour. From 1907 to 1913, Hardy was headmaster of

Bentham Grammar School Bentham Grammar School was an independent school in Bentham, North Yorkshire, England. The school was founded in 1726 but closed in 2002 due to dwindling pupil numbers. History Bentham Grammar School was founded as a charity in 1726 in the vil ...

in West Yorkshire. He was married to Florence Elizabeth Hastings, with whom he had a son and daughter. Mrs Hardy died after a year of illness in 1914.Hardy, Theodore Bayley

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

Theodore Hardy was

teetotal Teetotalism is the practice or promotion of total personal abstinence from the psychoactive drug alcohol, specifically in alcoholic drinks. A person who practices (and possibly advocates) teetotalism is called a teetotaler or teetotaller, or is ...

and a vegetarian.

First World War

Hardy was aged 51 when war broke out, and was priest at Hutton Roof in the

Lake District The Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous for its lakes, forests, and mountains (or ''fells''), and its associations with William Wordswor ...

. He volunteered at once but was turned down as being too old. Eventually, in August 1916, he was accepted for army service as a Temporary Chaplain to the Forces, 4th Class and attached to 8th Battalion,

The Lincolnshire Regiment The Royal Lincolnshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army raised on 20 June 1685 as the Earl of Bath's Regiment for its first Colonel, John Granville, 1st Earl of Bath. In 1751, it was numbered like most other Army regimen ...

. He carried out the following deeds for which he was awarded a series of decorations. First he was awarded the

(DSO) on 18 October 1917, the full citation was published on 7 March 1918: This was followed by the

(MC) on 17 December 1917, the citation following on 23 April 1918: Finally came the VC on 7 July 1918: Hardy was appointed to the honorary position of Chaplain to His Majesty on 17 September 1918.

Death

He was wounded in action when again trying to tend to the wounded and died a week later in

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...

, France, on 18 October 1918, two days before his 55th birthday. He was buried at St. Sever Cemetery Extension, Rouen, France, in block S, plot V, row J, grave 1. There are memorials to Hardy at

Carlisle Cathedral Carlisle Cathedral is a grade-I listed Anglican cathedral in the city of Carlisle, Cumbria, England. It was founded as an Augustinian priory and became a cathedral in 1133. It is also the seat of the Bishop of Carlisle.Tim Tatton-Brown and John ...

, at the former Royal Commercial Travellers School, Pinner, Middlesex (now the Harrow Arts Centre),

and in his old church at Hutton Roof in Cumbria. His medals are displayed at

The Museum of Army Chaplaincy ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

in Amport, Hampshire.

References

;Footnotes ;Bibliography * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hardy, Theodore Bayley 1863 births 1918 deaths Alumni of the University of London British Army personnel of World War I British military personnel killed in World War I British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross Companions of the Distinguished Service Order People educated at the City of London School Clergy from Exeter Recipients of the Military Cross Royal Army Chaplains' Department officers World War I chaplains English military chaplains People educated at Nottingham High School British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Military personnel from Exeter