Edmund O'Toole, VC | |
---|---|
![]() Ulundi burning | |
Nickname(s) | Pat or Paddy |
Born | Dublin, Ireland |
Allegiance | Cape Colony |
Service/ | South African Forces |
Rank | Captain |
Unit | Cape Frontier Light Horse |
Battles/wars | Anglo-Zulu War |
Awards | Victoria Cross |
Edmond Joseph O'Toole VC was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, [1] [2] the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
He was the fourth son of Charles O'Toole of Wilford, Bray, Ireland and brother of Luke O'Toole of Toole and Company, Seed Merchants. [3] He was baptised in Dublin in 1848. [4] It had been previously claimed falsely that he was born at Grahamstown, South Africa, but it has been shown that he was born in Ireland of an Irish family. [5] Several sources report his death as 1891 in Salisbury, Rhodesia [6] but there is a reference to him being a resident of the "Cape" in 1900. [7] and Tanser states the Darter's claim that he died in 1891 is incorrect. [8]
He was always known as Pat or Paddy O'Toole. [8] His first name is sometimes spelt as Edmond.
He was a Sergeant in the Frontier Light Horse, British Colonial forces during the Zulu War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. [9]
On 3 July 1879 at Ulundi, Zululand, South Africa, during the retirement of a reconnoitering party, a captain (Lord William Leslie de la Poer Beresford) of the 9th Lancers went to the assistance of Sergeant Fitzmaurice [10] of the 24th Regiment whose horse had fallen and rolled on him. The Zulus were coming up quickly in great numbers, but the officer, with help from Sergeant O'Toole, managed to mount the injured man behind him. He was, however, so dizzy that the sergeant, who had been keeping back the enemy, gave up his carbine and rode alongside to hold him on. They all finally reached safety.
Beresford's VC was gazetted on 23 August 1879. It is reported that when he collected his medal from the Queen he told her that "he could not in honour receive the recognition of his services unless it were shared in by Sergeant O’Toole". [11] O'Toole was then gazetted on 10 October 1879.
He later achieved the rank of Captain.
James Williams Adams VC was an Irish Anglican chaplain and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. He was the first clergyman, and the last of five civilians, to be awarded the VC.
General Frederic Augustus Thesiger, 2nd Baron Chelmsford, was a British Army officer who rose to prominence during the Anglo-Zulu War, when an expeditionary force under his command suffered a decisive defeat at the hands of a Zulu force at the Battle of Isandlwana in 1879. Despite this defeat, he was able to score several victories against the Zulus, culminating in the British victory at the Battle of Ulundi, which ended the war and partly restored his reputation in Britain.
Colonel John Rouse Merriott Chard was a British Army officer who received the Victoria Cross, the highest military decoration for valour "in the face of the enemy" that can be awarded to members of the British armed forces. He earned the decoration for his role in the defence of Rorke's Drift in January 1879 where he assumed command of the outpost and a small garrison of 139 soldiers and successfully repulsed an assault by some 3,000 to 4,000 Zulu warriors. The battle was recreated in the film Zulu in which Chard was portrayed by Stanley Baker.
General Sir Redvers Henry Buller, was a British Army officer and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. He served as Commander-in-Chief of British Forces in South Africa during the early months of the Second Boer War and subsequently commanded the army in Natal until his return to England in November 1900.
William Wilson Allen, VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC) for his actions at the Battle of Rorke's Drift in January 1879, the highest and most prestigious award for valour in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
Lieutenant-Colonel Lord William Leslie de la Poer Beresford was an Anglo-Irish soldier and 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 Commonwealth forces.
Colonel Edward Douglas Brown-Synge-Hutchinson, was an Anglo-Irish soldier and a 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 Commonwealth forces.
Brigadier general Edward Stevenson Browne, VC, CB was a British Army officer, and 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 Commonwealth forces.
Alan Richard Hill later Hill-Walker, VC 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 Commonwealth forces. He won the VC for his actions on 28 January 1881 at the Battle of Laing's Nek during the First Boer War.
Lance Corporal William John House VC was a British Army soldier and an English recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
Nevill Josiah Aylmer Coghill VC was a British Army officer and 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 Commonwealth forces.
Henry Cecil Dudgeon D'Arcy VC was a New Zealand-born 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 Commonwealth forces. He won the VC on 3 July 1879 at Ulundi in South Africa during the Anglo-Zulu War when he was 28 years old, and a captain in the Frontier Light Horse.
William Gardner VC DCM was a Scottish 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 Commonwealth forces.
Edmund John Fowler was an Irish 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 Commonwealth forces.
Brigadier-General Francis Aylmer Maxwell, was a British Army officer in the Second Boer War and First World War. He was also a recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
Major-General William Knox-Leet VC CB, was an Irish 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 Commonwealth forces.
The Battle of Hlobane took place at Hlobane, near the modern town of Vryheid in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa during the Anglo-Zulu War.
The Frontier Light Horse, a mounted unit of 200 volunteers, was raised at King William's Town, Eastern Cape Colony in 1877 by Lieutenant Frederick Carrington.
This article refers to the "prowess of the three Irishmen - "Ulundi Bill", Sergeant Fitzmaurice and Sergeant O'Toole". Forbes was a journalist who reported on Ulundi so would have most likely met O'Toole.