HEROIC OFFICER

Wairarapa Times-Age, 13 August 1943, Page 4

HEROIC OFFICER

AWARDED VICTORIA CROSS

POSTHUMOUSLY CHARGE INTO ENEMY GUNPIT. NUMBER OF CREW KILLED?” (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 11.0 a.m.) RUGBY, August 12. The Victoria Cross has been awarded posthumously to Captain Lord Lyell, of the Sects Guards, who, by outstanding leadership and gallant self-sacrifice at Djebel Bou Arrar, in Tunisia, enabled his com-

pany to carry out a task which had

an important bearing on the sue-

cess of the battalion and brigade. On April 27 his company was held up in the foothills by heavy fire from an enemy post consisting of heavy mach-ine-guns and an 88 millimetre gun in separate pits. He collected the only available men not pinned down by fire —a sergeant, Jance-corporal and two guardsmen—and led them to attack it. He lobbed a grenade into the machinegun pit, destroying the crew at this point. The sergeant was killed and both guardsmen were wounded quickly. Lord Lyell ran towards the 88millimetre gun, while the lance-cor-poral gave covering fire, and was in among the gun’s crew with the bayonet before they had time to fire more than one shot. He killed a number of them before being overwhelmed and killed himself. The few survivors of the crew then left the pit, some being killed while retreating. Thus both guns were silenced, and the company was able to advance and take its objective.