Frederick Daniel Parslow VC (14 January 1856 – 4 July 1915) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

. He was a

Master Master, master's or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles In education: *Master (college), head of a college *Master's degree, a postgraduate or sometimes undergraduate degree in the specified discipline *Schoolmaster or master, presiding office ...

in the UK Merchant Navy. Parslow was the first member of the Merchant Navy to receive a VC, and one of only two Merchant Navy members to receive a VC for his First World War service. At 59 years old he was also the oldest person to receive the VC for his action in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Details

At 0900 hrs 4 July 1915 in the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

southwest of Queenstown, Ireland, the

U-boat U-boats are Submarine#Military, naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the World War I, First and Second World Wars. The term is an Anglicization#Loanwords, anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the G ...

attacked HM Horse Transport ''Anglo-Californian'', a cargo

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

that the UK Government had requisitioned from the Nitrate Producers' Steam Ship Company. Parslow was ''Anglo-Californian''s Master, and kept ordering changes of course to evade the enemy fire. At 1030 hrs ''U-39'' raised the flag

signal A signal is both the process and the result of transmission of data over some media accomplished by embedding some variation. Signals are important in multiple subject fields including signal processing, information theory and biology. In ...

"abandon the vessel as fast as possible". Parslow was about to obey the order when his wireless operator received a signal from a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...

to hold on as long as possible. ''Anglo-Californian'' got under way again, so ''U-39'' opened a heavy fire, concentrated on the transport ship's bridge, and doing great damage. Captain Parslow remained on the bridge throughout the attack, entirely without protection and was killed when the bridge was wrecked. Parslow's son, also Frederick Parslow, was the

Chief Officer A chief mate (C/M) or chief officer, usually also synonymous with the first mate or first officer, is a licensed mariner and head of the deck department of a merchant ship. The chief mate is customarily a watchstander and is in charge of the ship ...

and took command on the death of his father. He held out until two destroyers arrived to drive the submarine away. ''Anglo-Californian'' suffered 20 casualties, but most of the cargo of nearly a thousand military horses was saved. The younger Parslow was commissioned as a Sub-Lieutenant in the

Royal Naval Reserve The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original ...

, and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. As a merchant officer, Parslow was not eligible for the VC in 1915. However, later the Royal Navy posthumously commissioned Parslow as a

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

in the Royal Naval Reserve, and in May 1919 he was posthumously awarded the VC. Parslow lived in Balls Pond Road, Islington. On 4 July 2015 the

London Borough of Islington The London Borough of Islington ( ) is a London borough, borough in North London, England. Forming part of Inner London, Islington has an estimated population of 215,667. It was formed in 1965, under the London Government Act 1963, by the amalg ...

commemorated the centenary of Parslow's action and death by installing an inscribed memorial paving stone next to

Islington Green War Memorial The Islington Green War Memorial is a war memorial located at Islington Green in the London Borough of Islington. A "temporary" memorial was erected at the site in 1918 by Charles Frederick Higham, Charles Higham. The original memorial consi ...

References

Bibliography

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External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Parslow, Frederick Daniel 1856 births 1915 deaths British Merchant Navy officers British Merchant Service personnel of World War I British military personnel killed in World War I British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross Civilians killed in World War I Military personnel from the London Borough of Islington People from Islington (district) Royal Navy officers of World War I Royal Navy recipients of the Victoria Cross Royal Naval Reserve personnel