- Edmund O'Toole
Edmund O'Toole VC was a
South African 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 is believed to have been born at
Grahamstown in South Africa but the date is not known. Several sources report his death as 1891 [Pioneers of Mashonaland, Darter] inSalisbury ,Rhodesia but there is a reference to him being a resident of the "Cape" in 1900. [Black and White Budget, 4th August 1900 Pages 564 and 565] and Tanser states the Darter's claim that he died in 1891 is incorrect.A Scantling of Time - The Story of Salisbury, Rhodesia, G.H.Tanser, Stuart Manning 1965] He was always known as Pat or Paddy O'Toole.A Scantling of Time - The Story of Salisbury, Rhodesia, G.H.Tanser, Stuart Manning 1965]Details
He was a
Sergeant in theCape Frontier Light Horse ,South African Forces during theZulu War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. [ [http://www.gazettes-online.co.uk London Gazette Issue 24769 published on the 10 October 1879. Page 2 of 46] ]On
3 July 1879 atUlundi , Zululand,South Africa , during the retirement of a reconnoitering party, a captain (Lord William Leslie de la Poer Beresford ) of the 9th Lancers went to the assistance of Sergeant Fitzmaurice [The Victorians At War, Ian F. W. Beckett, Continuum InternationalPublishing Group 2006, ISBN 185285510X] of the 24th Regiment whose horse had fallen and rolled on him. The Zulus were coming up quickly in great numbers, but the officer, with help from Sergeant O'Toole, managed to mount the injured man behind him. He was, however, so dizzy that the sergeant, who had been keeping back the enemy, gave up his carbine and rode alongside to hold him on. They all finally reached safety.First South African-born man serving with a South African unit under British Command to win the VC. He later achieved the rank of
Captain .References
External links
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=7767889 Find-A-Grave profile for Edmund O'Toole]
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