FReeper Canteen ~ Hall of the Heroes: Gonville Bromhead VC ~ September 24, 2007

Linked in thread | Roddy

[StarCMC]

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~ Hall of Heroes ~

Gonville Bromhead VC
All info from this website.

           

Gonville Bromhead VC (29 August 1845-9 February 1891) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

He was a 33 years old lieutenant in the 2nd Battalion, 24th Foot (later The South Wales Borderers), British Army during the Zulu War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.

Bromhead had a profound deafness which had restricted his promotion opportunities to this point in his life. It was this disability that prompted Bromhead to defer command to Chard during the Rorke's Drift Siege.

On 22 and 23 January 1879 at Rorke's Drift, Natal, South Africa, Lieutenant Bromhead shared the command of the defenders of the post with an officer of the Royal Engineers (John Rouse Merriott Chard), setting a fine example and conducting himself with great gallantry in most trying circumstances.

After the battle he was immediately promoted to Captain and then brevet Major. His actions were reported in this way:

For gallant conduct at the Defence of Rorke's Drift, 22nd and 23rd January 1879. The Lieutenant-General reports that had it not been for the example and excellent behaviour of Lieutenants Chard, Royal Engineers, and Bromhead, 24th Regiment, the defence of Rorke's Drift would not have been conducted with the intelligence and tenacity which so eminently characterised it. The Lieutenant-General adds, that the success must in a great measure be attributable to the two young officers who exercised the chief command on the occasion in question.^[1]

He was considered to be Irish, despite being born in Versailles, France. His mother, Judith Christine Wood, was certainly Irish, being a native of Woodville, Co. Sligo. However, his father's home was Thurlby Hall, north of Bassingham, near Lincoln. He was known to be very hard of hearing.

In the 1964 film Zulu Gonville Bromhead was portrayed by Michael Caine, in his first starring role.

Bromhead died of typhoid at Camp Dabhaura, Allahabad, British India where he is buried in a military cemetery. The church at Thurlby in Lincolnshire has a stained glass window dedicated to him. His grandfather, who fought at the Battle of Waterloo, is buried in its churchyard. His Victoria Cross is displayed at the South Wales Borderers Museum (Brecon, Powys, Wales).

 

More information here.

Please remember the Canteen is here to honor, support and entertain our troops and their families.  This is a politics-free zone!  Thanks for helping us in our mission!

YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE!

I would like to do a "Hall of the Heroes" (or two or three) that include OUR military heroes -- some who haven't won a MOH or other big awards, but our heroes nonetheless.  If anyone would like to include their personal heroes, please send me a freepmail and I'll give you my email address so you can send me a picture (if you have one) and a little note about why they are your hero.  Thanks for your help!! 

[StarCMC]

New thread’s up ~ come check out this hero! I’ll be back to visit later — and a little bird told me that Ms.Behavin has a treat to share with us! :-)

[BenLurkin]

Cool!

[Old Sarge]

Present and accounted for!

[BenLurkin]

[BIGLOOK]

Aloha Star!

[HopeandGlory]

Good morning Troops, Veterans and Canteeners.

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Our Flag Flying Proudly One Nation Under God

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Lord, Please Bless Our Troops, They're fighting for our Freedom.

Prayers going up.

[Radix]

Eighth Place?

[BIGLOOK]

Rorke's Drift: defending the biscuit box wall


Rorke's Drift: the mealie bag wall; the burning hospital in the background


(I just happened to have a copy of The Washing of the Spears handy.)

[Kathy in Alaska]

Click on the pic and I'll guide you
to the start of today's thread




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[Leapofaith]

Wow! That was a way cool history lesson. Thank you so much. Leap

[Leapofaith]

Hello! Just gonna linger long enough to say hello. God Bless You All. I wish I coul make cool GIF like you guys do.

[stephenjohnbanker]

Heroes

B T T T

[stephenjohnbanker]

Thanks for the ping!

[Radix]

I have read in diverse places that the Zulu Nation had as much a claim to the South African territories as did any European Nation.

Other than certain aboriginal peoples, the area was void of any Society until well after European settlers first arrived.

[AZamericonnie]

Supporting our Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Airmen, and Coast Guardsmen
at more than 1,000 places across the U. S. and around the world.

~Tribute to Our Troops~

[Captain Rhino]

South Wales Borders Museum link in the article leads to a notional entry page in Wikipedia.

However, there is a Wikipedia link to South Wales Borderers:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Wales_Borderers

The article gives a complete history of the regiment and has links to a number of the regiment’s Victoria Cross winners (including Bromhead)

[BIGLOOK]

Aloha Radix!

When the Boers arrived in South Africa around 1650 and established Cape Town, the entire landscape was unpopulated. There were the hunter /gatherer types, the Hottentops and the Bushmen, who came and went as they pleased but no established tribal areas or centers. The Boers and later the English settled the Cape Colony, the Orange Free State, the Transvaal and the Natal over one hundred years before the Bantu from the North showed up on the northeastern fringes of the colonies. It wasn't till the early 19th century that Zululand was formed and later the wars began.

An early occurrence of immigration problems.

[Old Sarge]

Another magnificent tale of valor and renown, Star! Thank you for the thread!

[Tanniker Smith]

Good evening, everyone. Happy Monday.