Samuel Frickleton, (1 April 1891 – 1 September 1971) was a soldier in the

New Zealand Military Forces , image = New Zealand Army Logo.png , image_size = 175px , caption = , start_date = , country = , branch = ...

and a 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 award of the

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for gallantry in the face of the enemy. Born in 1891 in Scotland, Frickleton moved to New Zealand in 1913 and was a

miner A miner is a person who extracts ore, coal, chalk, clay, or other minerals from the earth through mining. There are two senses in which the term is used. In its narrowest sense, a miner is someone who works at the rock face; cutting, blasting ...

when he enlisted with the

New Zealand Expeditionary Force The New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was the title of the military forces sent from New Zealand to fight alongside other British Empire and Dominion troops during World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). Ultimately, the NZE ...

(NZEF) the year after the outbreak of 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 ...

. He took ill on reaching the Middle East and had to be repatriated to New Zealand. Although he had been discharged from the NZEF, he rejoined after recovering his health. He was posted to the 3rd Battalion, New Zealand Rifle Brigade, then serving on the Western Front. Wounded during the Battle of Messines when he destroyed two machine gun posts, an action that earned him the VC, he received medical treatment in England. He then underwent

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," ...

training but his health was still poor and before the end of the war he was returned to New Zealand. Post war, Frickleton served in the

New Zealand Staff Corps The New Zealand Staff Corps was a corps of professional officers in the regular New Zealand Military Forces which, in peacetime, administered the Territorial Force. During the First and Second World Wars, many members of the corps commanded batta ...

before returning to civilian life in 1927. He tried farming and worked as a house manager. In the mid-1930s, Frickleton joined the part time

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 i ...

and would be later awarded the

Efficiency Decoration The Efficiency Decoration, post-nominal letters TD for recipients serving in the Territorial Army of the United Kingdom or ED for those serving in the Auxiliary Military Forces, was instituted in 1930 for award to part-time officers after twe ...

(ED). He went to London in 1937 for the

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and again nearly 20 years later for the VC centenary. He served on the home front 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 ...

, and eventually retired from the military in 1948. He died in 1971 at the age of 80.

Early life

Frickleton was born on 1 April 1891 in

Slamannan Slamannan ( gd, Sliabh Mhanainn) is a village in the south of the Falkirk council area in Central Scotland. It is south-west of Falkirk, east of Cumbernauld and north-east of Airdrie. Slamannan is located at the cross of the B803 and B8022 ...

, Scotland, one of 11 children born to Samuel Frickleton, a coal

, and his wife Elizabeth. Following the death of his father, he immigrated to New Zealand in 1913, with his mother and several of her children, to join an older brother who was living in Blackball on the West Coast. He and four of his brothers worked all worked in a mine in the town, extracting coal.

First World War

Following the outbreak of the

, Frickleton joined the

New Zealand Military Forces , image = New Zealand Army Logo.png , image_size = 175px , caption = , start_date = , country = , branch = ...

in February 1915 and volunteered to serve overseas with the

(NZEF). His four brothers had also volunteered for the NZEF. Frickleton embarked for the Middle East with the 5th Reinforcements with the rank of

corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non- ...

in the Canterbury Battalion. After arriving in

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in June, he became ill with

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in w ...

, was repatriated to New Zealand and subsequently discharged from the NZEF as medically unfit for active service. After a period of convalescence at a medical facility near

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

, he re-enlisted in the NZEF in 1916 and sent to England with the 15th Reinforcements. Initially a

rifleman A rifleman is an infantry soldier armed with a rifled long gun. Although the rifleman role had its origin with 16th century hand cannoneers and 17th century musketeers, the term originated in the 18th century with the introduction of the rif ...

(equivalent to a private), later that year he was posted to France to join the 3rd Battalion, New Zealand Rifle Brigade. By March 1917, he had been promoted to corporal. On 7 June 1917, Frickleton participated in the Battle of Messines. His battalion, covered by artillery fire, was attacking the edge of the village of

Messines Messines may refer to: * Mesen (in French: Messines), a village in Belgium ** Battle of Messines (disambiguation), World War I battles * Messines, Quebec, a municipality in Canada * Messines, a village in Portugal * Messines, Queensland, a sett ...

, now known as Mesen, when it was slowed by two machine gun posts. Frickleton, wounded in the arm, led his section in an attack on the machine gun posts. With the barrage of artillery concealing their approach, he threw a

grenade A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade g ...

that destroyed one machine gun and rushed forward with a bayonet to deal with the survivors of its crew. He similarly dealt with the other machine gun, making a solo attack under the covering gunfire of his section. He continued to remain involved in the fighting in Messines until being wounded again, this time in the hip. He also was badly gassed which, with his wounds, saw him taken from the battlefield for treatment. Frickleton was awarded a

(VC) for his actions in dealing with the machine gun posts in Messines. The VC, instituted in 1856, was the highest gallantry award that could be bestowed on a soldier of the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading post ...

. The citation for Frickleton's award read as follows: Evacuated to England for medical treatment, Frickleton's wounds would affect his health for the remainder of his life. He was presented with his VC by

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Q ...

on 17 September 1917, in a ceremony at

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. By then he was an acting sergeant, which was confirmed later that year. After a period of further hospitalisation, he was selected for and underwent

training. He was commissioned as 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 March 1918 and returned to the Rifle Brigade. However, his health problems persisted and he again was repatriated to New Zealand in June 1918. The first of the VC recipients of the NZEF to return to New Zealand, Frickleton was accorded a hero's welcome. A reception was held in Frickleton's honour at the Auckland Town Hall. He spent the remainder of the year under medical care before being discharged from the NZEF in December 1918. Of his brothers who also served in the war, one was killed in the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place bet ...

, and three others were wounded.

Later life

After the war, Frickleton transferred to the

. He was promoted to acting

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

and served as assistant provost marshal for the Wellington Military District for several months until June 1919. He was then transferred to the Canterbury Military District. For health reasons, he retired from the military with the rank of captain in April 1927. In civilian life he tried several professions. At first, he took up business in Wellington and then tried farming at

Waikanae Waikanae (, ) is a town on the Kapiti Coast, 60 kilometres north of the Wellington CBD. The name is a Māori word meaning "waters" (''wai'') "of the grey mullet". The town lies between Paraparaumu, eight kilometres to the southwest, and Ō ...

. He later worked as a house manager. His poor health notwithstanding, in 1934 he joined the

with the rank of captain. He was later awarded the

(ED) for his long service in the military. He was part of the New Zealand contingent sent to London in 1937 for the

. He was returned to the Officer Reserve the same year. On the outbreak of the Second World War, Frickleton was unsuccessful in his attempt to enlist in the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force being raised for overseas service. Instead he served on the home front as Inspector, New Zealand Military Forces, for the duration of the war. He was returned to the Retired List in 1948. VCSamuelFrickletonGrave

In his later years, Frickleton worked for the Colonial Motor Company as a clerk. In 1956, he was one of 400 VC winners who paraded in Hyde Park in London for the VC centenary. He died on 1 September 1971 in Wellington after a long illness. He was survived by his wife, Valeska whom he married in 1922, and a son. He is buried in the Taita Serviceman's Cemetery, Naenae.

Medals

In 1977, Frickleton's wife donated his VC and other medals which in addition to the ED, included the 1914-15 Star, the

British War Medal The British War Medal is a campaign medal of the United Kingdom which was awarded to officers and men of British and Imperial forces for service in the First World War. Two versions of the medal were produced. About 6.5 million were struck in si ...

, the Victory Medal, the

King George VI Coronation Medal The King George VI Coronation Medal was a commemorative medal, instituted to celebrate the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. Issue This medal was awarded as a personal souvenir of King George VI's coronation. It was awarded to th ...

, and the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal, to the

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. The VC was on display when it was one of nine Victoria Crosses that were among a hundred medals stolen from the museum in December 2007. On 16 February 2008, New Zealand Police announced all the medals had been recovered as a result of a NZ$300,000 reward offered by

Michael Ashcroft Michael Anthony Ashcroft, Baron Ashcroft, (born 4 March 1946) is a British-Belizean businessman, pollster and politician. He is a former deputy chairman of the Conservative Party. Ashcroft founded Michael A. Ashcroft Associates in 1972 and i ...

and Tom Sturgess.

Legacy

There are several memorials to his memory; a plaque commemorating his bravery was unveiled on 7 June 2007 at the Mesen Church in Belgium in a ceremony attended by two of his granddaughters. There is also a plaque in his honour at the

Messines Ridge British Cemetery Messines Ridge British Cemetery is a Commonwealth War Graves Commission burial ground for the dead of the World War I, First World War located in the Ypres Salient in Belgium on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front. History The town of ...

and a memorial cairn in Slamannan, his place of birth. In 2010, a barracks at Burnham Military Camp was named for him.

Notes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Frickleton, Samuel 1891 births 1971 deaths New Zealand Army officers New Zealand military personnel of World War II New Zealand Rifle Brigade (Earl of Liverpool's Own) New Zealand World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross People from Falkirk (council area) Scottish emigrants to New Zealand