Keith Elliott
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Keith Elliott, VC (25 April 1916 – 7 October 1989) was a New Zealand soldier who served with the New Zealand Military Forces during the Second World War. He was awarded the Victoria Cross, 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, for his actions in the First Battle of El Alamein. Born in
Āpiti Āpiti is a small township in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located to the northeast of the small town of Kimbolton, New Zealand, Kimbolton in the Manawatū-Whanganui region. It is located on a small plain, the Apiti Flats, close to the va ...
, near
Kimbolton, New Zealand Kimbolton is a rural village north of Feilding in the Manawatū District of the North Island of New Zealand. Kimbolton is named after Kimbolton, Cambridgeshire, a village in England which is the site of Kimbolton Castle, once the home of the D ...
in the Manawatu, Elliott was a farm manager when the Second World War began. He volunteered for service abroad with the
Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force The New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was the title of the military forces sent from New Zealand to fight alongside other British Empire and Dominion troops during World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). Ultimately, the NZE ...
(2NZEF) and was posted to the 22nd Battalion. He saw action during the Battles of Greece and Crete and then in North Africa. By now 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 ...
, during Operation ''Crusader'' in November 1941, he was one of 700 New Zealanders made prisoners of war when their position was overrun by the Germans. Freed two months later, he was serving as a platoon commander during the First Battle of El Alamein. After he was awarded his VC, he was promoted to
second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...
, sent home to New Zealand and discharged from the 2NZEF. Returning to civilian life, he resumed his farming career, but in 1948 became a priest. He shifted around the lower half of the
North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...
for the next several years, serving in a number of churches. He was also a chaplain in the Territorial Force. He retired from the priesthood in 1981 and died eight years later at the age of 73.


Early life

Keith Elliott was born on 25 April 1916 in
Āpiti Āpiti is a small township in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located to the northeast of the small town of Kimbolton, New Zealand, Kimbolton in the Manawatū-Whanganui region. It is located on a small plain, the Apiti Flats, close to the va ...
, New Zealand, one of nine children of a farmer and his wife. He was educated in nearby Feilding, firstly at Lytton Street School and then at Feilding Agricultural High School. He was unable to complete his formal schooling because in 1933, he had to drop out to work on the family farm. Two years later, he began managing a large farm at Marima.


Second World War

Elliott tried to enlist in the New Zealand Military Forces on hearing of the outbreak of the Second World War but was initially declined due to the poor state of his teeth. He was successful on a later attempt and in January 1940 he joined the
Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force The New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was the title of the military forces sent from New Zealand to fight alongside other British Empire and Dominion troops during World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). Ultimately, the NZE ...
(2NZEF) that was raised for service overseas. He was posted to 22nd Battalion, commanded by a Victoria Cross winner of the First World War, Lieutenant Colonel Leslie Andrew. The battalion embarked for the Middle East as part of the Second Echelon of the 2NZEF but was diverted to England during transit. It arrived in England in June 1940, where it remained for the rest of the year on garrison duty. While in England, Elliott was promoted to lance corporal. In early 1941, the Second Echelon was redesignated the 5th Infantry Brigade,
2nd New Zealand Division The 2nd New Zealand Division, initially the New Zealand Division, was an infantry Division (military), division of the New Zealand Army, New Zealand Military Forces (New Zealand's army) during the World War II, Second World War. The division was ...
, and was sent to Greece as part of an Allied contingent set to counter a likely invasion by the Germans. His battalion was positioned at the Olympus Pass, and shortly after the invasion commenced, engaged advancing German tanks. The New Zealanders withdrew after a day, beginning a gradual retreat from the country. Evacuated to Crete on 25 April, 22nd Battalion was defending Maleme airfield when German paratroopers attacked on 20 May. The airfield was abandoned that evening much to Elliott's displeasure as his platoon was holding their positions. The Allies were eventually evacuated to Egypt a week later, but not before Elliott was wounded in the arm in a skirmish with enemy paratroopers.


North Africa

While the division was refitting and rearming following the fighting in Greece and Crete, Elliott was promoted to
lance sergeant Lance sergeant (LSgt or L/Sgt) is an appointment in the armies of the Commonwealth and formerly also a rank in the United States Army. Commonwealth Lance-sergeant in the armies of the Commonwealth was an appointment given to a corporal so they ...
, then platoon
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 November 1941, during
Operation Crusader Operation Crusader (18 November – 30 December 1941) was a military operation of the Western Desert Campaign during the Second World War by the British Eighth Army (United Kingdom), Eighth Army (with Commonwealth, Indian and Allied contingents) ...
, his platoon was attached to the headquarters of the 5th Infantry Brigade for security. On 27 November, he, along with 700 other men, were captured when the headquarters was overrun by elements of '' Generalleutnant'' (Lieutenant General)
Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel () (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944) was a German field marshal during World War II. Popularly known as the Desert Fox (, ), he served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of Nazi Germany, as well as servi ...
's Afrika Corps, which had outflanked the Allies. He spent two months under harsh conditions in captivity before being liberated by South African troops. He lost a considerable amount of weight during his time as a prisoner of war. He rejoined the 2nd New Zealand Division which was refitting in Syria, but then contracted malaria and missed out on its hasty recall to Egypt and the subsequent fighting at Minqar Qaim. On his recovery, Elliott rejoined the 22nd Battalion on 13 July 1942, in time for the
First Battle of Alamein The First Battle of El Alamein (1–27 July 1942) was a battle of the Western Desert campaign of the Second World War, fought in Egypt between Axis (German and Italian) forces of the Panzer Army Africa—which included the under Field Marshal ...
. The battalion was short of commissioned officers, and he found himself acting platoon commander for the forthcoming operation to capture
Ruweisat Ridge Ruweisat Ridge is a geographical feature in the Western Egyptian desert, midway between the Mediterranean Sea and the Qattara Depression. During World War II was a prominent part of the defence line in the First and Second Battle of El Alamein ...
. After commencing the attack early in the morning of 15 July, the battalion reached the ridge and began digging in. At daybreak, it was discovered that the New Zealanders had passed several German tanks during their advance the previous evening. Elliott spotted the tanks when they began advancing towards the 22nd Battalion's position at dawn and notified the commanders of nearby platoons. However, they believed the tanks to be British and disregarded Elliott's warning until the German tanks began attacking the battalion's positions. It was then that Elliott performed the actions that led to the award of the Victoria Cross (VC). The citation for his VC read: All of the 22nd Battalion, bar Elliott's platoon, were killed or captured during the fighting at Ruweisat Ridge. Some of the other battalions that participated in the battle also incurred heavy losses. Elliott managed to link up with elements of the 21st Battalion, the commander of which recommended him for the VC. Elliott was evacuated to hospital where he spent three months recovering from his various wounds before he returned to his battalion in September. His VC was gazetted on 24 September 1942, but Elliott had learnt of his award the previous day. His divisional commander, Major General
Bernard Freyberg Lieutenant-General Bernard Cyril Freyberg, 1st Baron Freyberg, (21 March 1889 – 4 July 1963) was a British-born New Zealand soldier and Victoria Cross recipient, who served as the 7th Governor-General of New Zealand from 1946 to 1952. Freyb ...
, commissioned Elliott in the field as a
second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...
shortly afterwards. He was presented with his VC ribbon by Lieutenant General
Bernard Montgomery Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, (; 17 November 1887 – 24 March 1976), nicknamed "Monty", was a senior British Army officer who served in the First World War, the Irish War of Independence and t ...
and was ordered to return to New Zealand. It is likely that this was due to the desire of military authorities to keep him out of harm's way following the recent capture of the division's other VC winner, Charles Upham, at Ruweisat. Elliott was unhappy at being sent home while his friends remained in the field. He was also uncomfortable with the attention he received from the public when he arrived back in New Zealand and remained modest about his achievements. He was discharged from the 2NZEF in December 1943 and resumed farming.


Later life

In February 1944, Elliott married Margaret Rachel Markham. The couple had first met before the war and would go on to have five children. Although he continued farming, he became interested in a career in the Anglican Church. Encouraged by a friend who had been a
chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...
in the military, he began training for the priesthood in February 1946. He became a priest in 1948 and took up a curacy in Palmerston North, before becoming chaplain at the nearby Linton Military Camp. This entailed him joining the New Zealand Territorial Force with the rank of chaplain, 4th class. For the next several years, Elliott moved around a number of parishes in the lower
North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...
. He also spent periods of time at the City Mission in Wellington. He was present at the unveiling of the
Alamein Memorial The Alamein Memorial is a Commonwealth War Graves Commission war memorial in the El Alamein War Cemetery, El Alamein, Egypt. The memorial commemorates 11,866 Commonwealth forces members who died during World War II. The memorial was designed by H ...
in Egypt in 1954, and two years later attended VC centenary celebrations in London. In 1967, he co-authored a book of his life, ''From Cowshed to Dog Collar''. He retired from the priesthood in April 1981 and moved to
Raumati Raumati is a New Zealand place name and may refer to: *Raumati Beach, Kapiti Coast, New Zealand *Raumati South, Kapiti Coast, New Zealand * Raumati Hearts, a former name of Kapiti Coast United, a New Zealand association football club * Raumati rail ...
. In 1953, Elliott was awarded the
Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du couronnement de la Reine Élizabeth II) is a commemorative medal instituted to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II on 2 June 1953. Award This medal was awarded a ...
, and in 1977 he received the
Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du jubilé d'argent de la reine Elizabeth II) is a commemorative medal created in 1977 to mark the 25th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. The medal is p ...
. He died of cancer on 7 October 1989, survived by his wife and five children. He was buried with full military honours at Paraparaumu Cemetery. Elliott donated his Victoria Cross to his former school, Feilding Agricultural High School, in 1972. It was later loaned to the
QEII Army Memorial Museum The National Army Museum ( mi, Te Mata Toa) is the museum of the New Zealand Army. It was formerly known as the Queen Elizabeth II Army Memorial Museum.
in Waiouru for display. It was one of nine Victoria Crosses among 96 medals stolen from the museum on 2 December 2007. On 16 February 2008, the New Zealand Police announced all the medals had been recovered as a result of a NZ$300,000 reward offered by Michael Ashcroft and Tom Sturgess.


Notes


References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Elliott, Keith New Zealand World War II recipients of the Victoria Cross New Zealand Army officers 1916 births 1989 deaths People from Manawatū-Whanganui New Zealand Anglican priests New Zealand military chaplains Deaths from cancer in New Zealand Burials at Paraparaumu Cemetery New Zealand prisoners of war in World War II World War II prisoners of war held by Germany