William Johnstone VC (6 August 1823 – 20 August 1857) was a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

sailor 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. He enlisted and served as John Johnstone. He is listed as being born in Hanover and served on four ships; the St. Vincent, a ship transporting people to Australia and Tasmania (1845-1849), HMS Reynard (1849-1852) which operated in the China Seas, fighting pirates and was shipwrecked near Pratas Island in the South China Sea on 31 May 1851. The whole crew survived the sinking when HMS Pilot rescued them. There was no hope for the Reynard. After that, he moved on to HMS Arrogant and then HMS Brunswick.

Victoria Cross

He was 31 years old, and a stoker in the Royal Navy 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 9 August 1854 in the Baltic, Leading Stoker Johnstone and a Lieutenant (

John Bythesea Rear-Admiral John Bythesea (15 June 1827 – 18 May 1906) was an officer of the Royal Navy. He was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to ...

) from HMS ''Arrogant'', landed on the island of

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off

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in order to intercept important despatches from the tsar which were being sent via Vårdö to Bomarsund. The two men spent two nights reconnoitring the island, being helped by a local farmer and his daughter to evade capture by the Russians and on 12 August when the despatches arrived, they ambushed the five Russians carrying them. Two of the carriers dropped their mail bags and ran, but the other three surrendered and were taken to the ''Arrogant''. In this action the Officer and Leading Stoker were armed with just one pistol and a knife. Upon their return, the Commanders of both the English and French ships in the fleet were delighted, with the French being involved in suggesting they both be awarded the Victoria Cross. His RN records in the UK National Archives show he was a Leading Stoker until May 24th, 1856 when he was demoted to Ship's Cook until his demise. The reason for the demotion is not given, but given his good character throughout his career at sea, it is assumed by his descendants that there was cause to place him in such a lowly position on board.

Death

He died on 20 August 1857 from self-inflicted wounds while serving aboard in the West Indies. He cut his own throat after attacking another man with a knife and felt the remorse of his actions, taking his own life by the same knife. He was then buried at sea in the St Vincent Passage, West Indies. William Johnstone's medal was sold after his death and became part of a collection which on the death of the new owner, was gifted to and displayed in the

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County is the largest natural and historical museum in the western United States. Its collections include nearly 35 million specimens and artifacts and cover 4.5 billion years of history. This large coll ...

. Upon his death, his wife, Caroline, was "looked after by the Patriotic Fund," which was set up to cater for the needs of War Widows. He left a wife and a young son, Richard John. The family lived in St. Germans, Cornwall. UK. A pencil sketch exists in the Imperial War Museum's catalogues pertaining to information on Victoria Cross winners.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnstone, William 1823 births 1857 deaths Crimean War recipients of the Victoria Cross Royal Navy personnel of the Crimean War Royal Navy sailors Burials at sea Royal Navy recipients of the Victoria Cross Suicides by sharp instrument