- John Farrell (VC)
John Farrell VC (b. March 1826 in Dublin, d.
31 August 1865 ) was asoldier and Irish recipient of theVictoria Cross , the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.He was a
Sergeant in the17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own) ,British Army during theCrimean War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC::On
25 October 1854 atBalaclava ,Crimea (Charge of the Light Brigade ), Sergeant Farrell, whose horse had been killed under him, stopped on the field and amidst a storm of shot and shell helped a troop sergeant major (John Berryman ) and another sergeant (Joseph Malone ) to move a severely wounded officer (who subsequently died) out of range of the guns.He later achieved the rank of
Quartermaster-Sergeant .He was killed in action,
Secunderabad ,India , on31 August 1865 .References
*
The Register of the Victoria Cross (1981, 1988 and 1997)
*The Irish Sword (Brian Clarke 1986)
*Irelands VCs (Dept of Economic Development 1995)
*Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
*Irish Winners of the Victoria Cross (Richard Doherty & David Truesdale, 2000)
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