William Robert Fountaine Addison VC (18 September 1883 – 7 January 1962) 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

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forces.

Early life

The Reverend The Reverend is an style (manner of address), honorific style most often placed before the names of Christian clergy and Minister of religion, ministers. There are sometimes differences in the way the style is used in different countries and c ...

William Addison was educated at Robert Mays School, Odiham, Hants, and as a young man worked as a lumberjack in Canada. After studying at

Salisbury Theological College Sarum College is a centre of theological learning in Salisbury, England. The college was established in 1995 and sits within the cathedral close on the north side of Salisbury Cathedral. The Sarum College education programme ranges from sh ...

, he was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

in 1913 and became

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

of St Edmund's Church, Salisbury (now closed).

First World War

Upon the outbreak of

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 volunteered for the Army Chaplain's Department. He became a Temporary Chaplain of the Forces, 4th Class in the Army Chaplain's Department,

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 ...

, when the following deed took place on 9 April 1916 at Sanna-i-Yat,

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...

, for which he was awarded the VC "for most conspicuous bravery": :He carried a wounded man to the cover of a trench, and assisted several others to the same cover, after binding up their wounds under heavy rifle and machine gun fire. :In addition to these unaided efforts, by his splendid example and utter disregard of personal danger, he encouraged the stretcher-bearers to go forward under heavy fire and collect the wounded. William Addison VC Grave

Later life

Addison was a

Freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

and was initiated into Aldershot Camp Lodge No. 1331 on 14 November 1923. After the war, he continued as an army chaplain and served at

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

Khartoum Khartoum or Khartum ( ; ar, الخرطوم, Al-Khurṭūm, din, Kaartuɔ̈m) is the capital of Sudan. With a population of 5,274,321, its metropolitan area is the largest in Sudan. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile, flowing n ...

and

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

and at army bases in England. He was Senior Chaplain to the Forces from 1934 to 1938 when he left the army and became a parish priest. He was

Rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

Coltishall Coltishall is a village on the River Bure, west of Wroxham, in the English county of Norfolk. The village is located within the Norfolk Broads. History Coltishall's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for Cohhede's lan ...

with Great Hautbois in Norfolk from 1938 to 1958. However, on 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 opposin ...

he returned to the army and again served as Senior Chaplain to the Forces. He died in St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex, and is buried in

Brookwood Cemetery Brookwood Cemetery, also known as the London Necropolis, is a burial ground in Brookwood, Surrey, England. It is the largest cemetery in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in Europe. The cemetery is listed a Grade I site in the Regist ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

. A replica set of Addison's medals is on display at the

Museum of Army Chaplaincy The Royal Army Chaplains' Museum (formerly the Museum of Army Chaplaincy) tells the story of British Army chaplaincy from earliest times to the present day, with the help of archive material and historical relics from several centuries. Its coll ...

, and at

Sarum College Sarum College is a centre of theological learning in Salisbury, England. The college was established in 1995 and sits within the cathedral close on the north side of Salisbury Cathedral. The Sarum College education programme ranges from sho ...

in Salisbury.

References

ADDISON, Rev. William Robert Fountaine
Who Was Who, A & C Black, 1920–2008; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2007, accessed 19 Nov 2012

External links

''(Brookwood Cemetery)''
The Brookwood Cemetery Society
''(Holders of the Victoria Cross Commemorated in Brookwood Cemetery)'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Addison, William Robert Fountaine 1883 births 1962 deaths British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross British Army personnel of World War I British Army personnel of World War II Royal Army Chaplains' Department officers World War I chaplains World War II chaplains Military personnel from Hampshire Burials at Brookwood Cemetery People from Cranbrook, Kent British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross People from Coltishall Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England Alumni of Salisbury Theological College