William Barnard Rhodes-Moorhouse

William Barnard Rhodes-Moorhouse VC (26 September 1887–27 April 1915) 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. Rhodes-Moorhouse was the first airman to perform an action that was subsequently rewarded with the VC. He had a New Zealand and Māori connection through his mother.

Early life

Rhodes-Moorhouse’s mother Mary Ann Rhodes married her stepmother’s younger brother Edward Moorhouse in Wellington, New Zealand in 1883. They moved to England and raised four children; including William Barnard Moorhouse, who went to Harrow School and (briefly) Cambridge University. Leaving university in 1909 Moorhouse took private flying lessons and gained his pilot's certificate in that year. [O'Connor, M. p.90] Besides designing aircraft he also competed in aviation races and was the first to cross the English Channel from Douai to Ashood with two passengers in a biplane, one of whom was his wife.

William legally appended Rhodes to his name in 1912, shortly before he married, as required by the will of his grandfather. His wife Linda Morrit was also a flying enthusiast, and he was the first to fly the English Channel with two passengers, his wife and a London "Evening News" journalist.

His grandfather, William Barnard Rhodes, was a prominent Wellington politician and settler, whose second wife, Sarah Ann Moorhouse, was the sister of William Sefton Moorhouse, a prominent Canterbury politician and settler. She adopted Mary Ann Rhodes, William's natural daughter.

Involvement in World War 1

At the outbreak of war, Rhodes Moorhouse enlisted in the Royal Flying Corps and as a second lieutenant was posted to Farnborough. Seeking to serve on an operational basis, Rhodes Moorhouse successfully obtained a posting to No. 2 Squadron on 20 March 1915 at Merville. [O'Connor, M. “Airfields & Airmen – Ypres”. Leo Cooper, 2001. p.90 ISBN 0-85052 753-8]

He was 27 years old when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.

On 22 April 1915 at Kortrijk, Belgium, Rhodes-Moorhouse swept low over the rail junction which he had been ordered to attack. He released his 100 lb (45 kg) bomb, but was immediately plunged into a heavy barrage of small arms fire from rifles and machine-gun in the belfry of Kortrijk Church; he was severely wounded by a bullet in his thigh, and his plane was also badly hit. Returning to the Allied lines, he again ran into heavy fire from the ground and was wounded twice more. He managed to get his aircraft back, and insisted on making his report before being taken to the Casualty Clearing Station. Rhodes Moorhouse died five days after the action on 27 April 1915. [O'Connor, M. p. 91]

His body was returned to England and buried at the family home Parnham Park, Beaminster, Dorset, with the ashes of his son alongside him. His son, also called William and less than a year old when his father died, represented England as a skier. In 1937 he joined the RAF, flying in Bristol Blenheims, then Hawker Hurricanes. He was shot down and killed over Kent in the Battle of Britain in 1940, shortly after being awarded the DFC.

References

*Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
*The Register of the Victoria Cross (This England, 1997)
*VCs of the First World War - Air VCs (P G Cooksley, 1999)
*"Great Tales from New Zealand History" by Gordon McLauchlan (2005: Penguin, Auckland) ISBN 0143019635 ("The Maori VC Winner from Harrow and Cambridge"; Chapter 32 pages 181-186)

External links

* [http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Park/7572/nzvcross.txt New Zealand Troops who have won the Victoria Cross] "(brief biography details)"
* [http://www.homeusers.prestel.co.uk/stewart/dorset.htm Location of grave and VC medal] "(Dorset)"
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=9018247 Find-A-Grave profile for William Barnard Rhodes-Moorhouse]