Second Lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until 1 ...

Edward Felix Baxter VC (18 September 1885 – 18 April 1916) was a

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 Gur ...

soldier and an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...

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 ...

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

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English ...

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 th ...

forces.

Early life

Felix Baxter was born in

Oldswinford The name Oldswinford is now used for a small area of Stourbridge, close to the parish church. History Originally, it was an extensive ancient parish, covering the whole of the former Municipal Borough of Stourbridge, except Pedmore. This included ...

near

Stourbridge Stourbridge is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands, England, situated on the River Stour. Historically in Worcestershire, it was the centre of British glass making during the Industrial Revolution. The ...

in Worcestershire, the son of Charles and Beatrice (née Sparrow). He worked as a tutor. He competed in the

1910 Isle of Man TT The 1910 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy races took place on the Short Course ( St John's, Ballacraine, Kirk Michael, Peel, St John's). 500cc Single & 670cc Twin Results Open Class final standings Thursday 26 May 1910 – 10 laps (158 ⅛ miles) S ...

Races and crashed on lap 4 at

Ballacraine __NOTOC__ Ballacraine (, "McCrayne" or "Craine's farm"; archaic ) is located between the 7th and 8th milestones of the TT course, at the junction of the A1 Douglas to Peel and A3 Castletown to Ramsey primary roads in the parish of German in t ...

. The resulting damage to the front forks of his motor-cycle caused his retirement from the race.

First World War

Baxter was a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until 1 ...

in the 1/8th Battalion,

The King's (Liverpool) Regiment The King's Regiment (Liverpool) was one of the oldest line infantry regiments of the British Army, having been formed in 1685 and numbered as the 8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot in 1751. Unlike most British Army infantry regiments, which were ...

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 fig ...

when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. The citation appeared in a supplement to

the London Gazette ''The London Gazette'' is one of the official journals of record or government gazettes of the Government of the United Kingdom, and the most important among such official journals in the United Kingdom, in which certain statutory notices are ...

of 26 September 1916: He is buried at Row A, Grave 10, in the Fillievres British Cemetery, France, located 8 miles south west of Hesdin. His Victoria Cross is displayed in the Lord Ashcroft Gallery in 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 ...

in London.

References

External links

Biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baxter, Edward Felix 1885 births 1916 deaths Burials in France People from Stourbridge British Army personnel of World War I British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross British military personnel killed in World War I King's Regiment (Liverpool) officers Isle of Man TT riders People educated at Christ's Hospital English motorcycle racers British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Military personnel from Worcestershire