William Henry Johnson (VC)
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William Henry Johnson (15 October 1890 – 25 April 1945) was an English 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 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 was 27 years old, and on 3 October 1918 at
Ramicourt Ramicourt () is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Population See also *Communes of the Aisne department The following is a list of the 799 communes in the French department of Aisne. The commu ...
, France, he performed the gallant act, for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross.


Details

Johnston was a
sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...
in 1/5th Battalion,
The Sherwood Foresters (The Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) The Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for just under 90 years, from 1881 to 1970. In 1970, the regiment was amalgamated with the Worcestershire Regiment to ...
,
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 ...
during the First World War. His VC was
gazetted A gazette is an official journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper. In English and French speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name ''Gazette'' since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers ...
on 14 December 1918 with the following citation: He was also awarded the French
Médaille militaire The ''Médaille militaire'' ( en, Military Medal) is a military decoration of the French Republic for other ranks for meritorious service and acts of bravery in action against an enemy force. It is the third highest award of the French Republic, ...
. He was in the
Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting wi ...
during World War II, but had to resign due to ill-health.


Medal

His Victoria Cross is displayed at the
Sherwood Foresters Museum Nottingham Castle is a Stuart Restoration-era ducal mansion in Nottingham, England, built on the site of a Norman castle built starting in 1068, and added to extensively through the medieval period, when it was an important royal fortress and ...
, Nottingham Castle, England.


References


Sources

*
Monuments to Courage David Charles Harvey (29 July 1946 – 4 March 2004) was a historian and author. He is notable for his seminal work, ''Monuments To Courage'', which documents the graves of almost all recipients of the Victoria Cross, a task that took him over 36 ...
(David Harvey, 1999) *
The Register of the Victoria Cross ''The Register of the Victoria Cross'' is a reference work that provides brief information on every Victoria Cross awarded until the publication date. Each entry provides a summary of the deed, along with a photograph of the recipient and the fol ...
(This England, 1997) *


Further reading

* Major R. E. Priestley,
Breaking the Hindenburg Line: The Story of the 46th Division
', London: T.F. Unwin, 1919 (''at archive.org'')


Citation links



''(Nottinghamshire)''

''(photos, site includes other articles on SF)'' * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, William Henry 1890 births 1945 deaths Burials in Nottinghamshire People from Worksop Sherwood Foresters soldiers British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross British Army personnel of World War I British Home Guard soldiers British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Military personnel from Nottinghamshire