William Vousden
William Vousden
VC, CB
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Born | Perth, Scotland |
20 September 1848
Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. Lahore, British India |
Buried |
Lahore Cemetery, Pakistan
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Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service/ |
British Indian Army |
Years of service | 1864 - 1902 |
Rank | Major General |
Unit | <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> |
Commands held | Inspector-General of Cavalry in India |
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Awards | <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/> |
Major General William John Vousden VC CB (20 September 1848 – 12 November 1902) was a Scottish 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.
Military career
Vousden was born in Perth, Scotland and trained at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He was 34 years old, and a captain in the 5th Punjab Cavalry, Bengal Staff Corps, and British Indian Army during the Second Afghan War when the following deed took place on 14 December 1879 on the Koh Asmai Heights, near Kabul, Afghanistan, for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross:
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For the exceptional gallantry displayed by him on the 14th December, 1879, on the Koh Asmai Heights, near Kabul, in charging, with a small party, into the centre of the line of the retreating Kohistani force, by whom they were greatly outnumbered, and who did their utmost to close round them. After rapidly charging through and through the enemy, backwards and forwards, several times, they swept off round the opposite side of the village and joined the rest of the Troop.[1]
He continued to serve in the 5th Punjab Cavalry, was mentioned in despatches 8 June 1891 and 26 January 1898,[2][3] promoted to Brevet Colonel in July 1894[4] and substantive Colonel of the Indian Staff Corps in January 1899.[5]
In April 1901 he took a command in the Punjab Frontier Force with the temporary rank of Brigadier-General,[6] and shortly thereafter he was granted the local rank of major general.[7]
He was appointed Inspector General of Cavalry in India in October 1901,[8] with the temporary rank of Major General while officiating as such,[9] and died of dysentery the following year, at the age of 54.
References
- Notes
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 25027. p. 5140. 18 October 1881. Retrieved 18 October 2009.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 26201. p. 4888. 15 September 1891.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 26954. p. 2182. 5 April 1898.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 26591. p. 416. 22 January 1895.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 27066. p. 2082. 28 March 1899.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 27335. p. 4782. 19 July 1901.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 27308. p. 2860. 26 April 1901.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 27469. p. 5611. 29 August 1902.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 27377. p. 7397. 15 November 1901.
- Sources
- Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
- The Register of the Victoria Cross (This England, 1997)
- Scotland's Forgotten Valour (Graham Ross, 1995)
External links
- Use British English from October 2013
- Use dmy dates from April 2012
- Pages with broken file links
- 1845 births
- 1902 deaths
- People educated at The King's School, Canterbury
- Deaths from dysentery
- British recipients of the Victoria Cross
- British Indian Army generals
- Companions of the Order of the Bath
- Infectious disease deaths in India
- Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst
- People from Perth, Scotland
- Second Anglo-Afghan War recipients of the Victoria Cross
- Bengal Staff Corps officers
- British military personnel of the Tirah Campaign
- Indian Staff Corps officers