William Henry Thomas Sylvester VC (16 April 1831 – 13 March 1920) was an

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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

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and

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forces.

Details

Sylvester was 24 years old, and an assistant surgeon in the

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(later The

Royal Welch Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers ( cy, Ffiwsilwyr Brenhinol Cymreig) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales' Division, that was founded in 1689; shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated ...

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during the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...

when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. On 8 September 1855, at

Sebastopol Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...

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, near the Redan, Assistant Surgeon Sylvester went with a corporal ( Robert Shields) to the aid of an officer who was mortally wounded and remained with him, dressing his wounds, in a most dangerous and exposed situation. Again, on 18 September this officer was at the front, under heavy fire, attending the wounded.

Further information

He later achieved the rank of surgeon major and was the last surviving VC holder of the Crimean War. He was reputed to have worked with

Florence Nightingale Florence Nightingale (; 12 May 1820 – 13 August 1910) was an English Reform movement, social reformer, statistician and the founder of modern nursing. Nightingale came to prominence while serving as a manager and trainer of nurses during t ...

The medal

His Victoria Cross is displayed at the

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References

* *

External links

Location of grave and VC medal
''(Devonshire)'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sylvester, William Henry Thomas 1831 births 1920 deaths Burials in Devon British recipients of the Victoria Cross Crimean War recipients of the Victoria Cross British Army personnel of the Crimean War Royal Welch Fusiliers officers British Army regimental surgeons Military personnel from Wiltshire People from Devizes Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur British military personnel of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 King's Own Scottish Borderers officers British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Alumni of the University of Edinburgh