Eric Anderson (VC)
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Private Eric Anderson VC (15 September 19156 April 1943) 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 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 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

He was born in Fagley in Bradford,
West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exis ...
, the only son of George and Mary Anderson. He became a driver for a building and contracting firm in
Idle, West Yorkshire Idle is a residential suburban area in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, in England and was a separate village, and before that it was the Manor of Idle. Idle is loosely bordered by the areas of Eccleshill, Wrose, Thackley, Apperley B ...
.


Service

Anderson was 27 years old, and a Private in the 5th Battalion, East Yorkshire Regiment,
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 ...
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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. On 6 April 1943 on the Wadi Akarit,
Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...
, when a company of the East Yorkshire Regiment had to withdraw temporarily behind the crest of a hill, Private Anderson, a stretcher-bearer, went forward alone through heavy fire to rescue the wounded. Three times he brought in wounded comrades, and was rendering first aid to a fourth when he was mortally wounded. He is buried in
Sfax War Cemetery Sfax War Cemetery is a war cemetery located near Sfax, Sfax, Tunisia, currently maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. It contains a single Commonwealth burial from World War I, 1253 Commonwealth burials from World War II (52 of ...
in southern
Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...
. His Victoria Cross is displayed at
The Prince of Wales Own Regiment of Yorkshire The Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the King's Division. It was created in 1958 by the amalgamation of the West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own) (14th Foot) and the ...
Museum in
York York is a cathedral city with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many hist ...
.


See also

*
List of Second World War Victoria Cross recipients The Victoria Cross (VC) is a military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of armed forces of some Commonwealth countries and previous British Empire territories. It takes precedence over all other Orders, decora ...


References


Further reading

* Harvey, David (1999).
Monuments to Courage David Charles Harvey (29 July 1946 – 4 March 2004) was a historian and author. He is notable for his seminal work, ''Monuments To Courage'', which documents the graves of almost all recipients of the Victoria Cross, a task that took him over 36 ...
: Victoria Cross Headstones and Memorials. Vol. 1, 1854–1916 * Buzzell, Nora (1997), This England, 3rd Edn., 352pp,


External links

* Flickr images
Memorial to Eric Anderson and others
at the Victoria Memorial, Bradford. {{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Eric 1915 births 1943 deaths British World War II recipients of the Victoria Cross Military personnel from Bradford British Army personnel killed in World War II East Yorkshire Regiment soldiers British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Burials at Sfax War Cemetery People from Bradford