Private James Henry Finn (sometimes Fynn) VC (24 November 1893 – 30 March 1917) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

soldier and 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 ...

, 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. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

and

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

forces. He was also awarded the Order of Karageorge, which is Serbia's equivalent to the Victoria Cross.

Early life

Finn was born in St Clement near

Truro Truro (; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England; it is the southernmost city in the United Kingdom, just under west-south-west of Charing Cross in London. It is Cornwall's county town, s ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

. His father, John Finn, served in the

Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry (DCLI) was a Light infantry, light infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1959. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, by the merger of the 32nd ( ...

(DCLI) in the Boer War, and again in the Special Reserve during the

First World War 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 ...

. James Finn served as a

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry in ...

soldier with the 5th Battalion, DCLI before moving to the

South Wales Valleys The South Wales Valleys () are a group of industrialised peri-urban valleys in South Wales. Most of the valleys run northsouth, roughly parallel to each other. Commonly referred to as "The Valleys" (), they stretch from Carmarthenshire in the ...

looking for work. He eventually found employment at the colliery at Cwmtillery near

Abertillery Abertillery (; ) is a town and community (Wales), community in Blaenau Gwent County Borough, Wales. It is located in the Ebbw Fach Valley, Ebbw Fach valley, and the Monmouthshire (historic), historic county of Monmouthshire. The surrounding lan ...

Military service

On the outbreak of war in the summer of 1914, he immediately enlisted with the local regiment, the

South Wales Borderers The South Wales Borderers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for 280 years. It came into existence in England in 1689, as Sir Edward Dering's Regiment of Foot, and afterwards had a variety of names and headquarters. In ...

, and was duly posted to their 4th (Service) Battalion. On enlistment, his surname was incorrectly recorded as "Fynn". On 15 July 1915, the battalion landed at Gallipoli. Fynn was wounded in the knee and chest, and invalided back to Britain. After the withdrawal from Gallipoli, the battalion had moved to Mesopotamia, and Fynn rejoined them there. He acted as orderly to the battalion's

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or commander, or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually give ...

, Lieutenant Colonel G. E. Kitchen. It was on 9 April 1916 at Sanna-i-Yat,

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

(now

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

), that 22-year-old Private Fynn earned the Victoria Cross for his bravery. Fynn was decorated with the ribbon of the VC by Lt Gen Sir

Frederick Stanley Maude Lieutenant-general (United Kingdom), Lieutenant-General Sir Frederick Stanley Maude Order of the Bath, KCB Order of St Michael and St George, CMG Distinguished Service Order, DSO (24 June 1864 – 18 November 1917) was a British Army officer. He ...

at Amara on 5 November 1916. On 29 March 1917 he was wounded in the leg in an engagement at Marl Plain, 50 miles north of Baghdad. He was taken by stretcher to the field ambulance the next day, but on the way he was struck in the side by another bullet, which proved fatal. The VC was presented to his father at a public investiture in Hyde Park on 2 June 1917 by King George V. Fynn was also mentioned in dispatches (London Gazette, 19 October 1916). He was awarded the Serbian Cross of the Karageorge (1st Class) with swords (London Gazette, 15 February 1917).Finn, James Henry
Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Legacy

His memorial at

Basra Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...

can be found at panel numbers 16 and 32 on the

Basra Memorial The Basra Memorial is a Commonwealth War Graves Commission war memorial near Zubayr, Iraq. The memorial commemorates 40,682 Commonwealth forces (99% Indians) members who died during the Mesopotamian Campaign, from the Autumn of 1914 to the end of ...

which was originally sited within

Basra War Cemetery The Basra War Cemetery is a military cemetery in Basra, Iraq, built for soldiers killed during the Mesopotamian campaign in the First World War. In 1935 the site was cleared of gravestones due to their deterioration and a Memorial Scr ...

. In 1966, Fynn was also remembered at his home town of Bodmin when an estate was named ''"Finn VC Estate"'' in his honour. A plaque commemorating the event was unveiled, and can be seen opposite the old library in Bodmin. His VC was donated to the town council but is not on public display. Whilst his body was never returned to Cornwall he is remembered on his father's headstone in Bodmin Cemetery. In March, 2016 a commemorative paving stone was unveiled at Mount Folly in Bodmin There are memorials also at Havard Chapel, Brecon Cathedral; St Michael's Church, Abertillery; Town War Memorial, Abertillery. There is a painting of the action which was published in ''The Sphere'', ''Tatler'', and also ''The Times Illustrated History of the Great War''. The original artwork was by

Ugo Matania Ugo Matania (18881979) was an Italian artist and illustrator active in Britain during the First World War, particularly noted for his works for '' The Sphere'' and ''The London Magazine''. Three of his oil paintings and one of his watercolours are ...

and is held at the

Wellcome Library The Wellcome Library is a free library and Museum based in central London. It was developed from the collection formed by Sir Henry Wellcome (1853–1936), whose personal wealth allowed him to create one of the most ambitious collections of the ...

, London.

References

Bibliography

External links

Victoria Cross details
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fynn, James South Wales Borderers soldiers British Army personnel of World War I British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross British military personnel killed in World War I 1893 births 1917 deaths People from Truro People from Bodmin Burials at Basra War Cemetery Military personnel from Cornwall Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry soldiers Territorial Force soldiers