The Anzacs

The highest award for valour · 1915 – 1918

Eleven Crosses
Eleven Heroes

Eleven men of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force won the Victoria Cross in the First World War, the highest award for bravery in the face of the enemy. Four of them did not live to see the war’s end. Each one is in the Online Cenotaph, the same archive our soldier search draws on.

No. 1 · 8 August 1915 · Chunuk Bair, Gallipoli

Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett VC

He laid and repaired telephone lines from brigade headquarters to the front line, over and over, under continuous fire. He is the only New Zealander to win the Victoria Cross at Gallipoli. His citation gives 7 August, but the fight for Chunuk Bair was on 8 August.

Rank at the time
Corporal
Unit
New Zealand Divisional Signal Company
Regimental number
4/515
Born
3 January 1892, Mount Eden, Auckland
Died
9 January 1983, Auckland

Survived the war.

In the Cenotaph: Sapper, New Zealand Field Engineers. Embarked 16 October 1914 on the Maunganui (HMNZT 3). Read the record.

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Corporal2 chevrons on the upper sleeve

Age 23

No. 2 · 15 September 1916 · Near High Wood, the Somme, France

Donald Forrester Brown VC

With his company thinned by heavy fire, he attacked German machine-gun positions, killing crews and capturing guns, and his coolness kept his men going.

Rank at the time
Sergeant
Unit
2nd Battalion, Otago Infantry Regiment
Regimental number
8/3504
Born
23 February 1890, Dunedin
Died
1 October 1916, near Eaucourt l’Abbaye, France

Killed by a sniper about two weeks later.

In the Cenotaph: Private, 9th Reinforcements, Otago Infantry Battalion. Embarked 8 January 1916 on the Maunganui (HMNZT 37). Read the record.

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Sergeant3 chevrons on the upper sleeve

Age 26

No. 3 · 7 June 1917 · Messines, Belgium

Samuel Frickleton VC

Wounded in the arm, he still ran forward at the head of his section and destroyed two machine-gun posts that were holding up the battalion, using grenades and the bayonet.

Rank at the time
Lance Corporal
Unit
3rd Battalion, New Zealand Rifle Brigade
Regimental number
6/2133
Born
1 April 1891, Slamannan, Stirlingshire, Scotland
Died
1 September 1971, Wellington

Survived the war.

In the Cenotaph: Corporal, Canterbury Infantry Battalion. Embarked 13 June 1915 on the Tahiti (HMNZT 25). Read the record.

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Lance Corporal1 chevron on the upper sleeve

Age 26

No. 4 · 31 July 1917 · La Basse-Ville, Belgium

Leslie Wilton Andrew VC

Leading a small party, he found an unexpected machine-gun post holding up another company, attacked and captured it, then went on to his own objective and took a second post, with what the citation calls cool daring, initiative and fine leadership.

Rank at the time
Corporal
Unit
2nd Battalion, Wellington Infantry Regiment
Regimental number
11795
Born
23 March 1897, Ashhurst, Manawatū
Died
8 January 1969, Palmerston North

Survived the war.

In the Cenotaph: Corporal, 12th Reinforcements, Wellington Infantry Battalion. Embarked 1 May 1916 on the Ulimaroa (HMNZT 51). Read the record.

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Corporal2 chevrons on the upper sleeve

Age 20

No. 5 · 3 December 1917 · Polderhoek Chateau, Belgium

Henry James Nicholas VC

He attacked a German strong-point single-handed, killing and capturing its defenders and clearing the way for the men behind him.

Rank at the time
Private
Unit
1st Battalion, Canterbury Infantry Regiment
Regimental number
24213
Born
11 June 1891, Lincoln, Canterbury
Died
23 October 1918, near Le Quesnoy, France

Killed in action 19 days before the Armistice.

In the Cenotaph: Private, 13th Reinforcements, Canterbury Infantry Battalion. Embarked 27 May 1916 on the Willochra or Tofua (HMNZT 54 or 55). Read the record.

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PrivateNew Zealand Expeditionary Force hat badgeA private wore no rank badge. The NZEF hat badge

Age 26

No. 6 · 24 July 1918 · Rossignol Wood, France

Richard Charles Travis VC

He destroyed a wire obstacle blocking his battalion, then went on alone against two machine-gun posts that threatened the whole operation.

Rank at the time
Sergeant
Unit
2nd Battalion, Otago Infantry Regiment
Regimental number
9/523
Born
6 April 1884, Ōpōtiki
Died
25 July 1918, Rossignol Wood, France

Killed by a shell the next day.

In the Cenotaph: Trooper, Otago Mounted Rifles. Embarked 16 October 1914 on the Ruapehu or Hawkes Bay (HMNZT 5 or 9). Born Dickson Cornelius Savage; he served under the name Travis. Read the record.

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Sergeant3 chevrons on the upper sleeve

Age 34

No. 7 · 24 August 1918 · Grévillers, France

Samuel Forsyth VC

Under heavy machine-gun fire he guided tanks forward and led a flanking attack that forced the German guns to withdraw, so the advance could go on.

Rank at the time
Sergeant
Unit
New Zealand Engineers, serving with the 2nd Battalion, Auckland Infantry Regiment
Regimental number
4/400
Born
3 April 1892, Wellington
Died
24 August 1918, Grévillers, France

Killed by a sniper the same day.

In the Cenotaph: Sapper, New Zealand Field Engineers. Embarked 16 October 1914 on the Maunganui (HMNZT 3). Read the record.

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Sergeant3 chevrons on the upper sleeve

Age 26

No. 8 · 26 August 1918 · Bapaume, France

Reginald Stanley Judson VC

He led a bombing party under heavy fire and captured a machine gun, then went up a sap alone and bombed three more crews, and jumped into a trench and killed two soldiers, which let his unit advance.

Rank at the time
Sergeant
Unit
1st Battalion, Auckland Infantry Regiment
Regimental number
24/1699
Born
29 September 1881, Wharehine, Auckland
Died
26 August 1972, Auckland

Survived the war.

In the Cenotaph: Rifleman, 3rd Reinforcements, 2nd Battalion. Embarked 8 January 1916 on the Tahiti or Warrimoo (HMNZT 38 or 39). Read the record.

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Sergeant3 chevrons on the upper sleeve

Age 36

No. 9 · 1 September 1918 · Bancourt, France

John Gildroy Grant VC

Under heavy fire he attacked two German machine-gun posts, and the demoralised garrisons let his platoon capture them. His citation praises his coolness, determination and valour of the highest order.

Rank at the time
Sergeant
Unit
1st Battalion, Wellington Infantry Regiment
Regimental number
10/2950
Born
26 August 1889, Hāwera
Died
25 November 1970, Auckland

Survived the war.

In the Cenotaph: Private, Wellington Infantry Battalion. Embarked 9 October 1915 on the Aparima (HMNZT 32). Read the record.

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Sergeant3 chevrons on the upper sleeve

Age 29

No. 10 · 12 September 1918 · Gouzeaucourt Wood, France

Harry John Laurent VC

In charge of an advance party of twelve, he led hand-to-hand fighting in which his men killed a number of the enemy and took an officer and 111 other ranks prisoner, at a cost of four casualties.

Rank at the time
Sergeant
Unit
2nd Battalion, New Zealand Rifle Brigade
Regimental number
24/213
Born
15 April 1895, Tarata, Taranaki
Died
9 December 1987

Survived the war.

In the Cenotaph: Rifleman, A Company. Embarked 9 October 1915 on the Tahiti (HMNZT 31). Read the record.

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Sergeant3 chevrons on the upper sleeve

Age 23

No. 11 · 30 September 1918 · Crèvecoeur, France

James Crichton VC

His platoon was trapped on an island in the Scheldt. Wounded in the foot, he swam the river under machine-gun fire to report, and later removed the fuses and detonators from the demolition charges on the bridge while snipers fired on him.

Rank at the time
Private
Unit
2nd Battalion, Auckland Infantry Regiment
Regimental number
14/131
Born
15 July 1879, Carrickfergus, County Antrim, Ireland
Died
22 September 1961, Auckland

Survived the war.

In the Cenotaph: Driver, New Zealand Army Service Corps, a baker. Embarked 16 October 1914 on the Waimana (HMNZT 12). He moved to the 2nd Battalion, Auckland Regiment in May 1918. Read the record.

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PrivateNew Zealand Expeditionary Force hat badgeA private wore no rank badge. The NZEF hat badge

Age 39

About this roll

The men are listed in the order of their actions. Ranks, units and dates of the actions are as given for the Victoria Cross awards; the embarkation details, regimental numbers where shown and the dates of death of the men who were killed are as recorded in the Auckland Museum Online Cenotaph (CC BY). A man’s rank and unit at the time of the award can differ from the rank he embarked with.

The summaries are ours, written from the published citations and from general histories, and are worth checking against the official record. Sources include:

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