Lieutenant Colonel Sir John Reginald Noble Graham, 3rd Baronet, (17 September 1892 – 6 December 1980) was a British businessman,

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

officer and a recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. He received the award "for most conspicuous bravery, coolness and resource when in command of a Machine Gun Section" during the Samarra offensive in 1917, during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Early life

Graham was born at

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

, India, on 17 September 1892, the eldest son of Sir Frederick Graham, 2nd Baronet. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

First World War

Soon after the

broke out, Graham joined the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

and was posted to 9th Battalion,

The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (Princess Louise's) ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

. In 1916 he was seconded to 136 Company,

Machine Gun Corps The Machine Gun Corps (MGC) was a corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front in the First World War. The Heavy Branch of the MGC was the first to use tanks ...

, which was sent to

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

. During the Samarra offensive, Lieutenant Graham was in command of a machine gun section co-operating with the 56th Punjabi Rifles (Frontier Force) near Istabulat on the evening of 22 April 1917. He was awarded the

for his subsequent actions that night: After recovering from his severe wounds Captain Graham, as he had become, was ordered back to Mesopotamia where he continued to serve until January 1918, when his company was transferred to Palestine where he was given command of the unit with the rank of major. After the war, Graham returned to Scotland to a hero's welcome at his home village of

Cardross Cardross (Scottish Gaelic: ''Càrdainn Ros'') is a large village with a population of 2,194 (2011) in Scotland, on the north side of the Firth of Clyde, situated halfway between Dumbarton and Helensburgh. Cardross is in the historic geographical ...

Business ventures and later life

Graham later worked in India in branches of the family firm, William Graham and Company, founded by his great-great-grandfather in Glasgow. In 1920 Graham married Rachel Sprot, daughter of Sir Alexander Sprot, 1st Baronet. They had one son (who inherited the baronetcy as

Sir John Graham, 4th Baronet Sir John Alexander Noble Graham, 4th Baronet, (15 July 1926 – 11 December 2019) was a British diplomat who was ambassador to Iraq, Iran and NATO. Career Graham, born in Calcutta, British India, the only son of Sir Reginald Graham, 3rd Barone ...

) and one daughter, Lesley, who married Jock Wykeham Strang Steel. Graham succeeded to the

Baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14t ...

cy on the death of his father in 1936. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, he was given a temporary rank of lieutenant colonel and served in

Scottish Command Scottish Command or Army Headquarters Scotland (from 1972) is a command of the British Army. History Early history Great Britain was divided into military districts on the outbreak of war with France in 1793. The Scottish District was comman ...

. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the

1946 New Year Honours The 1946 New Year Honours were appointments by many of the Commonwealth Realms of King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries, and to celebrate the passing of 1945 and the beginni ...

, and awarded King Haakon VII's Cross of Liberty in 1949. From 1959 to 1979 Graham was

Usher of the Green Rod The Gentleman Usher of the Green Rod is the Gentleman Usher to the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle, established in 1687. Office holders from 1714 *1714–1761: Sir Thomas Brand *1762–1787: Robert Quarme *1787–1800: Matthew ...

to the Order of the Thistle, and participated in many state occasions including the unveiling of a memorial to King George VI in St Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh in 1962. He died aged 88 in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

. He was cremated at

Mortonhall Crematorium The Mortonhall Crematorium is a multi-denominational crematorium in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is an example of Basil Spence's post-war expressionist style. Opened in 1967, the crematorium is set in mature woodland and is a Category A listed buildi ...

. Lady Graham died in 1984.

Memorials

Graham's medals are held by the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Museum in Stirling Castle on loan from the family. Reginald Graham's Commemorative Memorial Stone was unveiled at the Cardross War Memorial on 22 April 2017, the 100th anniversary of his gallant action. There is a second Commemorative Memorial Stone to him in the National Memorial Arboretum along with Memorial Stones for all the other VCs who were born abroad.

Honours

Order of the British Empire (Military) Ribbon

UK King George V Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon

UK King George VI Coronation Medal ribbon

UK Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon

References

External links

Location of grave and VC medal
''(Edinburgh)''
Private Papers of Lieutenant Colonel Sir Reginald Graham Bt VC OBE
– Imperial War Museum *Graham, Sir (John) Reginald Noble
''Burke's peerage, baronetage & knightage, clan chiefs, Scottish feudal barons''
107th edition, volume 2, ed. Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage & Gentry (UK) Limited, 2003
GRAHAM, Sir (John) Reginald (Noble)
Who Was Who, A & C Black, 1920–2008; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2007, retrieved 21 Aug 2012]
Lt.-Col. Sir John Reginald Noble Graham, 3rd Bt., V.C.
– thepeerage.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Graham, Reginald 1892 births 1980 deaths Military personnel from Kolkata People educated at Eton College Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Graham, Reginald, 3rd Baronet Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders officers British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross Officers of the Order of the British Empire British Army personnel of World War II British Army personnel of World War I Machine Gun Corps officers Recipients of the King Haakon VII Freedom Cross British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Military personnel of British India