Wallace Lloyd Algie, (10 June 1891 – 11 October 1918) was a

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) was the expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed following Britain’s declaration of war on Germany on 15 August 1914, with an initial strength of one infantry divisi ...

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 previousl ...

(VC), the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

forces. A soldier with the

during the First World War, he was posthumously awarded the VC for his actions on 11 October 1918, during the

Hundred Days Offensive The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allies of World War I, Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (1918), Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Wester ...

Early life

Wallace Lloyd Algie was born on 10 June 1891 at

Alton Alton may refer to: People *Alton (given name) *Alton (surname) Places Australia *Alton National Park, Queensland * Alton, Queensland, a town in the Shire of Balonne Canada * Alton, Ontario *Alton, Nova Scotia New Zealand * Alton, New Zealand, ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada, the son of James and Rachel Algie. His father was a medical doctor whose practice covered Peel County, near

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

. The family later moved to Toronto itself. Algie was educated at Alton Public School and when his schooling was completed, he worked in banking before entering the

Royal Military College of Canada '') , established = 1876 , type = Military academy , chancellor = Anita Anand ('' la, ex officio, label=none'' as Defence Minister) , principal = Harry Kowal , head_label ...

. After graduating as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

, he served initially in The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada and then the 40th Regiment. He was known to play the

euphonium The euphonium is a medium-sized, 3 or 4-valve, often compensating, conical-bore, tenor-voiced brass instrument that derives its name from the Ancient Greek word ''euphōnos'', meaning "well-sounding" or "sweet-voiced" ( ''eu'' means "well" o ...

in the regimental band which was quite common at that time for officers and men of musical inclination.

First World War

In April 1916, Algie enlisted in the

, a brother having already volunteered to serve in the First World War. Initially posted to the 95th Battalion, he was later transferred to the 20th Battalion, which arrived in France the following year to join the

4th Canadian Infantry Brigade The 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the Canadian Army active during World War I and World War II. Raised in 1915, the brigade formed part of the 2nd Canadian Division and fought on the Western Front between 1916 an ...

on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers * Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a maj ...

. He took part in the

Battle of Hill 70 The Battle of Hill 70 took place in the First World War between the Canadian Corps and five divisions of the German 6th Army. The battle took place along the Western Front on the outskirts of Lens in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France be ...

and in the subsequent operations around

Lens A lens is a transmissive optical device which focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements ...

. On 11 October 1918, during the

, the 4th Brigade was supporting the 6th Infantry Brigade in an attack on the German-held village of

Iwuy Iwuy () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Heraldry See also *Communes of the Nord department The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord department of the French Republic. The communes cooperate in the f ...

, north east of

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the ...

in France. Aware that German soldiers were bringing up more machine-guns, Algie led a group of volunteers past the battalion's designated area of operations and captured two machine-guns, which were brought to bear on the Germans. In doing so he secured the east end of Iwuy and returned to his lines for reinforcements. He was killed when leading them back to the area under the control of his men. His actions on 11 October contributed to the capture of the entire village later that day, for which he was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross (VC). The VC, instituted in 1856, was the highest award for valour that could be bestowed on a soldier of the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...

. The citation that was published in the ''

London Gazette London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major se ...

'' for his VC read: Iwuy Niagara cemetery-2-3

Algie's body was retrieved and he was buried at the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations m ...

's Niagara Cemetery at Iwuy, north east of Cambrai.

Victoria Cross

On 28 March 1919, Algie's father was presented with his son's posthumous VC by the Lieutenant Governor of Toronto. The VC was later sold at auction to Lord Ashcroft in 1995 for £17,800, and is on display in the Lord Ashcroft Gallery at the

Imperial War Museum Imperial War Museums (IWM) is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, the museum was intended to record the civil and military ...

. The exact whereabouts of the other medals that Algie was entitled to, the

British War Medal The British War Medal is a campaign medal of the United Kingdom which was awarded to officers and men of British and Imperial forces for service in the First World War. Two versions of the medal were produced. About 6.5 million were struck in ...

and the Victory Medal, are not known but they are most likely in the possession of a collector.

Footnotes

References

* * *

External links

Wallace Lloyd Algie's digitized service file
Library and Archive Canada. *
In memory of: Lieutenant Wallace Lloyd Algie, October 11, 1918
, The Canadian Virtual War Memorial, last modified 25 February 2020.

Victoria Cross Recipients, Veterans Affairs Canada, last modified 7 March 2019. * Arthur Bishop,
Securing Victory
, ''Legion Magazine'', 2006. {{DEFAULTSORT:Algie, Wallace Lloyd Royal Military College of Canada alumni 1891 births 1918 deaths Canadian World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross Canadian military personnel killed in World War I People from Caledon, Ontario The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada officers Canadian Expeditionary Force officers Queen's York Rangers (1st American Regiment)