John Vallentin

John Franks Vallentin VC
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Born	(1882-05-14)14 May 1882 Lambeth, London, England
Died	Zillebeke, Belgium
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1899 - 1914
Rank	Captain
Unit	Rifle Brigade Royal Sussex Regiment The South Staffordshire Regiment
Battles/wars	Second Boer War World War I
Awards	Victoria Cross

John Franks Vallentin VC (14 May 1882 – 7 November 1914) 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 British and Commonwealth forces.

Vallentin was the nephew of Brevet-Major John Maximilian Vallentin (1865–1901) and of the noted naturalist Rupert Vallentin (1859–1934). His grandfather Sir James Vallentin (1814–1870) was Knight Sheriff of London, and his cousin Archibald Thomas Pechey, the lyricist and author, adapted the family name for his nom de plume 'Valentine'.

He was commissioned into the 6th (Militia) Battalion, Rifle Brigade in 1899. He later transferred to a Territorial Force battalion of the South Staffordshire Regiment, and then to the Regular Army.

Vallentin was 32 years old, and a captain in the 1st Battalion, The South Staffordshire Regiment, British Army during the First World War when the following deed took place at the first Battle of Ypres for which he was awarded the VC.

On 7 November 1914 at Zillebeke, Belgium, when leading an attack against the Germans under very heavy fire, Captain Vallentin was struck down and on rising to continue the attack, was immediately killed. The capture of the enemy's trenches which immediately followed was in a great measure due to the confidence which the men had in their captain, arising from his many previous acts of great bravery and ability.

File:John Franks Vallentin memorial plaque.jpg

A memorial plaque to Vallentin in St Leonards Church, Hythe, Kent

References

• Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
• The Register of the Victoria Cross (This England, 1997)
• VCs of the First World War - 1914 (Gerald Gliddon, 1994)