Sergeant Thomas Young (born as Thomas Morrell) VC (28 January 1895 − 15 October 1966) 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 English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...

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 British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English ...

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.

Details

Thomas was from

High Spen High Spen is an old mining village in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead, historically part of County Durham and the birth place of The Magician. There is an entrance to Chopwell Wood, whose Christmas Trees sales attract many visitors t ...

in what is now the

Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead The Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead is a metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear, North East England. It includes Gateshead, Rowlands Gill, Whickham, Blaydon, Ryton, Felling, Pelaw, Dunston and Low Fell. The borou ...

. He was 23 years old, and a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

in the 9th Battalion,

The Durham Light Infantry The Durham Light Infantry (DLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1968. It was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 68th (Durham) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry) and th ...

during 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 ...

when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. During the period 25/31 March 1918 at

Bucquoy Bucquoy () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region in northern France. The grounds, property of the Lords of Bucquoy, became a county in 1666 by request of Charles II. Geography A farming village located 12 ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

, Private Young, a stretcher-bearer, worked unceasingly evacuating the wounded from seemingly impossible places. On nine occasions he went out in front of British lines in broad daylight, under heavy rifle, machine-gun and shell fire and brought back wounded to safety. Those too badly wounded to be moved before dressing, he dressed under fire and then carried them back unaided. He saved nine lives in this manner. A memorial to Thomas Young and William Dobson another VC recipient from High Spen was unveiled in July 2007 and can be seen in the grounds of High Spen primary school.

Legacy

His Victoria Cross was displayed at the Durham Light Infantry Museum & Durham Art Gallery in Durham City. Statues by the

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable ...

, Roger Andrews, depicting Young and Lieutenant

Richard Annand Captain Richard Wallace Annand VC, ERD, DL (5 November 1914 – 24 December 2004) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and ...

VC, who served with the Durham Light Infantry in the Second World War, were unveiled inside South Shields Town Hall in May 2007.

References

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 ...

(David Harvey, 1999) *

The Register of the Victoria Cross ''The Register of the Victoria Cross'' is a reference work that provides brief information on every Victoria Cross awarded until the publication date. Each entry provides a summary of the deed, along with a photograph of the recipient and the fol ...

(This England, 1997) *

VCs of the First World War - Spring Offensive 1918 ''VCs of the First World War'' is a series of books that list the Victoria Cross recipients of the First World War. The series consists of 13 books written by four different authors, first published under the label Sutton Publishing Limited, part ...

(Gerald Gliddon, 1997)

External links

Location of grave and VC medal
''(Co. Durham)''

, where Young lived]
Memorial to two village heroes
at

Primary School {{DEFAULTSORT:Young, Thomas 1895 births 1966 deaths Burials in County Durham People from The Boldons People from High Spen British World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross Durham Light Infantry soldiers British Army personnel of World War I British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Burials in Tyne and Wear Military personnel from County Durham