Sergeant Thomas Edward Rendle VC (14 December 1884 – 1 June 1946) was a

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 ...

soldier and 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 ...

(VC), 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 Commonwealth forces.

Details

He was 29 years old, and a bandsman in the 1st Battalion, The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry,

during the

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 ...

when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. On 20 November 1914 near Wulverghem,

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, Bandsman Rendle attended to the wounded under very heavy rifle and shell fire and rescued men from the trenches in which they had been buried from the blowing in of the parapets by the fire of the enemy's heavy howitzers.

Later life

Rendle later achieved the rank of sergeant. Rendle was a Freemason and was initiated into Needles Lodge No. 2838 on the Isle of Wight on 2 August 1916. After the war, he emigrated to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

where he became bandmaster of the Duke of Edinburgh's Own Rifles.

The medal

His VC is displayed at the

Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry Museum The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry (DCLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1959. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, by the merger of the 32nd (Cornwall Light I ...

Victoria Barracks, Bodmin Victoria Barracks was a military installation in Bodmin, Cornwall. History The barracks originally comprised a keep, adjoining stables and a parade ground completed in 1859. In 1873 a system of recruiting areas based on counties was instituted ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

References

Bibliography

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rendle, Thomas Edward 1884 births 1946 deaths Military personnel from Bristol British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry soldiers British Army personnel of World War I English emigrants to South Africa British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross British military musicians South African Army personnel Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England Burials in South Africa Recipients of the Order of St. George of the Fourth Degree