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David Russell (GC)
David Russell (30 March 1911 – February 1945) was a lance corporal with the 22nd (Motor) Battalion, New Zealand Infantry, 2nd NZEF, who was awarded the George Cross posthumously after being executed by German forces in Italy. Russell was born in Ayr, Scotland, son of James and Jessie Russell, of Corsehill, Ayrshire, but the family emigrated to New Zealand. He worked as an orderly at Napier Hospital in Hawke's Bay before enlisting in the New Zealand Army in September 1939. He was captured at Reweisat Ridge in Egypt in 1942 and taken to a POW camp in Italy. He escaped and helped Italians who were assisting other Allied POWs to escape. He was particularly active in the Ponte di Piave township and district between 22 and 28 February 1945 but was recaptured. Russell refused to name the Italians he had assisted, and was shot by firing squad. A German officer who witnessed the execution said he died very bravely. His George Cross is displayed at the QEII Army Memorial Museum ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Executed
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence (law), sentence ordering that an offender be punished in such a manner is called a death sentence, and the act of carrying out the sentence is an execution. A prisoner who has been sentenced to death and awaits execution is ''condemned'' and is commonly referred to as being "on death row". Etymologically, the term ''capital'' (, derived via the Latin ' from ', "head") refers to execution by Decapitation, beheading, but executions are carried out by List of methods of capital punishment, many methods, including hanging, Execution by shooting, shooting, lethal injection, stoning, Electric chair, electrocution, and Gas chamber, gassing. Crimes that are punishable by death are known as ''capital crimes'', ''capital offences'', or ''capital felonies'', and vary depending on the jurisdic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
