Lieutenant Colonel Leslie Cecil Maygar, (27 May 1868 – 1 November 1917) was an Australian 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 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. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

forces. He was awarded the VC for facilitating the rescue of a dismounted man while under severe rifle fire in 1902 during the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

. He later served at

Gallipoli The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...

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 ...

, and died of wounds after being strafed during the Battle of Beersheba as part of the

Sinai and Palestine campaign The Sinai and Palestine campaign was part of the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I, taking place between January 1915 and October 1918. The British Empire, the French Third Republic, and the Kingdom of Italy fought alongside the Arab Revol ...

Early life

He was born on 27 May 1868, at Dean Station, near

Kilmore, Victoria Kilmore () is a town in the Australian state of Victoria. Located north of Melbourne, it is the oldest inland town in Victoria by the combination of age and physical occupation, and because it had unique agricultural attributes to drive that ...

.Although officially his birth date was recorded as 26 May 1872, see The seventh child of Edwin Willis and Helen Maygar (née Grimshaw), his full name was Edgar Leslie Cecil Willis Walker Maygar. The Victorian birth certificate is recorded as Edgar Leslie Cecil W. MAYGER, registered at Greensborough, Victoria. Both of his parents were originally from

Bristol, England Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

and the Maygar family tree has been traced to Wells, Somerset in 1640. Educated at state schools in Kilmore and Alexandra, his family moved north to the

Strathbogie Ranges The Strathbogie Ranges are a set of low mountain ranges within the Great Dividing Range, rising to at Mount Strathbogie. The Strathbogie Ranges are located approximately north-east of Melbourne, Victoria. Geology and ecology The range is t ...

region of Ruffy when he was about 20 years old, where he worked on his father's property. In March 1891 he enlisted in the

Victorian Mounted Rifles The Victorian Mounted Rifles (VMR) was a regiment composed of Australian forces that served in the Second Boer War. It was first raised by Colonel Tom Price in the mid-1880s, composed of voluntary forces. It was composed of several contingents, th ...

Military service

Following the outbreak of the

, Maygar unsuccessfully attempted to volunteer for active service on several occasions with the first and second contingents of the Victorian Mounted Rifles that were departing for South Africa, but was prevented from doing so due to a decaying tooth. He was later accepted into the fifth contingent and was promoted to the rank of

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 ...

. He arrived in

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

in March 1901. Maygar's unit was constantly in action for the next 12 months, seeing service north of Middelburg, East Transvaal, then at Rhenoster Kop, Klippan, Kornfontein and Drivelfontein, before being transferred to Natal in August. He was 29 years old, and a lieutenant in the

5th Victorian Mounted Rifles The Victorian Mounted Rifles (VMR) was a regiment composed of Australian forces that served in the Second Boer War. It was first raised by Colonel Tom Price in the mid-1880s, composed of voluntary forces. It was composed of several contingents, th ...

when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the

: Maygar's award was presented by Lord Kitchener and he was later also

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of t ...

. He returned to Australia in March 1902. Maygar worked as a grazier at Ruffy near Euroa, while continuing to serve in the 8th Light Horse, Victorian Mounted Rifles, and was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in 1905. In July 1912, he transferred to the 16th (Indi) Light Horse Regiment. Following the outbreak of the

he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force, lowering his age by four years in order to do so. Appointed as a captain in the 4th Light Horse Regiment on 20 August 1914, he sailed for Egypt in October. He later fought at

, and was promoted to

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. On 17 October 1915, he was given temporary command of the

8th Light Horse Regiment The 8th Light Horse Regiment was a mounted rifles regiment of the Australian Army during the First World War. The regiment was raised in September 1914, and assigned to the 3rd Light Horse Brigade. The regiment fought against the forces of the Ot ...

, with his promotion to lieutenant colonel being confirmed in December. During the evacuation he commanded a small party of forty men, with instructions to hold the trenches at all costs until early morning, in order to allow the successful embarkation of the remainder of the force. Following the withdrawal, Maygar commanded the 8th Light Horse Regiment during the

throughout 1916 and 1917. He also temporarily commanded the

3rd Light Horse Brigade The 3rd Light Horse Brigade was a mounted infantry brigade of the First Australian Imperial Force, Australian Imperial Force (AIF), which served in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. The brigade was initially formed as a part-time Austra ...

on three occasions. He was awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

in June 1917, and was mentioned in despatches on three occasions. He qualified for the

Volunteer Officers' Decoration The Volunteer Officers' Decoration, post-nominal letters VD, was instituted in 1892 as an award for long and meritorious service by officers of the United Kingdom's Volunteer Force (Great Britain), Volunteer Force. Award of the decoration was di ...

in July 1917. Maygar was wounded during the Battle of Beersheba by a German aircraft on 31 October 1917 and died in hospital in Karm,

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

, on 1 November. He is buried in the

Beersheba War Cemetery Beersheba ( / ; ), officially Be'er-Sheva, is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Often referred to as the "Capital of the Negev", it is the centre of the fourth-most populous metropolitan area in Israel, the eighth-most po ...

, now in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

Legacy

The

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army ...

base located at

Broadmeadows Broadmeadows is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north of Melbourne's Central Business District and the council seat of the City of Hume local government area. Broadmeadows recorded a population of 12,524 at the 2021 census. It i ...

(a northern suburb of

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

) is named

Maygar Barracks Maygar Army Barracks is located in Broadmeadows, Victoria. It was the training area for the Australian Light Horse during World War I. The barracks was named after Victoria Cross winner Leslie Maygar, who received the award for his actions during ...

in honour of Leslie Maygar; the then Captain Maygar had helped establish Broadmeadows as an Army base in 1914 to train soldiers for the First World War. There is a VC Memorial dedicated to Leslie Maygar, along with other local Victoria Cross winners in

Euroa Euroa is a town in the Shire of Strathbogie in the north-east of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census in Australia, census, Euroa's population was 3,116. The name Euroa comes from an Aboriginal Australians, Aboriginal w ...

, which as of April 2012 was seeking funding to upgrade the site. A hill in the

is name
Maygars Hill
in his honour, as well as a winery of the same name nearby which uses his name and image. There is also a major road calle
Maygar Street
in north

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

, Queensland. His Victoria Cross is displayed at the

Australian War Memorial The Australian War Memorial (AWM) is a national war memorial, war museum, museum and archive dedicated to all Australians who died as a result of war, including peacekeeping duties. The AWM is located in Campbell, Australian Capital Territory, C ...

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

Notes

;Footnotes ;Citations

References

* *

External links

List of Australian winners of the Victoria Cross
anzacday.org.au {{DEFAULTSORT:Maygar, Leslie Cecil 1868 births 1917 deaths Military personnel from Victoria (state) Australian Army officers Australian military personnel killed in World War I Australian military personnel of the Second Boer War Australian recipients of the Victoria Cross Companions of the Distinguished Service Order People from Kilmore, Victoria Second Boer War recipients of the Victoria Cross Australian people of Hungarian descent People from the Colony of Victoria