- Frederick Maurice Watson Harvey
Infobox Military Person
name=Frederick Maurice Watson Harvey
caption="Frederick Maurice Watson Harvey"
born=September 1 ,1888
died=August 24 ,1980
placeofbirth=Athboy, County Meath,Ireland .
placeofdeath=Fort Macleod, Alberta ,
allegiance=Canadian ,Irish
branch=Army
serviceyears=1915-1946
rank=Brigadier General
battles=First World War
awards=VC MC andCroix de Guerre .
relations=Frederick Maurice Watson Harvey VC MC (
September 1 ,1888 –August 24 ,1980 ), bornAthboy ,County Meath ,Ireland was an Irish born naturalised Canadian recipient of theVictoria Cross , the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.Early career
He is considered Irish and Canadian. He was born in Athboy, County Meath,
Ireland . He had been an InternationalRugby player-playing for Ireland against teams fromEngland ,Scotland andWales . [Staff note in the Nov 1923 Royal Military College of Canada Review]He came to
Canada in 1908 where he worked as asurveyor in northernAlberta and High River. He settled inFort Macleod, Alberta ca. 1911.Military Service
He enlisted in the Canadian Mounted Rifles in 1915. He became a lieutenant in 1916 and went overseas. He transferred to
Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians) . During theFirst World War he was awarded the VC, MC andCroix de Guerre .He was 28 years old, and a
lieutenant inLord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians) ,Canadian Army , during theFirst World War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.On
27 March 1917 atGuyencourt ,France , during an attack by the regiment, the leading troop, commanded by Lieutenant Harvey, had suffered heavy casualties from rapid fire at close range. He was riding in front of his men when he came upon a wired trench containing a machine-gun and a strong garrison. He at once swung from his saddle and ran straight for the trench, jumped the wire, shot the gunner and captured the gun.He was promoted to Captain in 1923. He served as the Instructor in Physical Training at the
Royal Military College of Canada inKingston, Ontario from 1923 to 1927. [ Staff note in the Nov 1923Royal Military College of Canada Review]In 1938, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and became commanding officer of LdSH(RC) at Currie Barracks in Calgary. He lived in Calgary from 1938 on. In 1940 he was promoted to
Brigadier and commander of the 13th Alberta Military District. He retired from the Canadian military in 1946. He served as honourary colonel of theLord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians) from 1958 to 1966. He was an avidequestrian who took part in horse shows. [http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~canab/vet/vetvictoriacross.html]Hi died at 91 years of age and he was buried at Union Cemetery,
Fort Macleod, Alberta , Canada.The medal
His Victoria Cross is displayed at the
Museum of the Regiments "(Calgary, Alberta, Canada)". It is the only Victoria Cross currently on display in the world that shows both sides of the medal.References
*"
Irish Winners of the Victoria Cross " (Richard Doherty & David Truesdale, 2000)
*"Monuments to Courage " (David Harvey, 1999)
*"The Register of the Victoria Cross " (This England, 1997)
*Irelands VCs ISBN 1-899243-00-3 Dept of Economic Development The Cultural Traditions Group 1995
*Corporal L.J. Ramsden, CDExternal links
* [http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2004/11/vimy-and-more/Legion Magazine Article on Frederick Harvey]
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=10811428 Find-A-Grave profile for Frederick Maurice Watson Harvey]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
