David Philip Hirsch VC (28 December 1896 – 23 April 1917) was a British Army officer during World War I 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.
David Philip Hirsch | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 28 December 1896 Leeds, West Yorkshire |
| Died | 23 April 1917 (aged 20) Wancourt, France |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Service |  British Army |
| Rank | Captain |
| Unit | Green Howards |
| Battles / wars | World War I |
| Awards | Victoria Cross |
Details
editHirsch was born 28 December 1896 to Harry and Edith Hirsch of Weetwood Grove, Leeds.[1]
He was 20 years old, and an Acting Captain in the 4th Battalion, The Yorkshire Regiment (Alexandra, Princess of Wales's Own),[2] British Army during the First World War. On 23 April 1917 near Wancourt, France, he performed a deed for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross. He died in action that day.
Citation
edit2nd Lt. (A/Capt.) David Philip Hirsch, late York R.
For most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty in attack.
Having arrived at the first objective, Capt. Hirsch, although already twice wounded, returned over fire-swept slopes to satisfy himself that the defensive flank was being established.
Machine gun fire was so intense that it was necessary for him to be continuously up and down the line encouraging his men to dig and hold the position.
He continued to encourage his men by standing on the parapet and steadying them in the face of machine gun fire and counterattack until he was killed.
His conduct throughout was a magnificent example of the greatest devotion to duty.
The medal
editHis Victoria Cross is displayed at the Green Howards Regimental Museum, Richmond, North Yorkshire, England.
Hirsch came from a Jewish family - his father and grandparents were Jews but father converted; nevertheless, ethnically he was at least half Jewish and I attach the following anecdote. I gave a lecture to the Army Museum Friends in Chelsea in 2008 and a very elderly 96 year old lady was sitting alone at the front. I engaged her in conversation asking what her interest was in my talk which was on Jewish Commandos the SIG in WW2 - and she said she was the first cousin of Hirsch VC and knew him when she was a little girl and saw him on his last leave before he was killed. She said he always attended the family Passover services and meals and identified as Jewish. It would be appropriate to place a Star of David British Legion peg by his memorial, rather than pretend he had no Jewish close links. Signed Martin Sugarman (AJEX Archivist and Author - 8/8/2024). In a book by Dr Harold Pollins of Ruskin College Oxford, the Hirsch family history is detailed in one chapter and is kept at the Imperial War Museum in London
References
edit- ^ Hirsch, David Philip, Commonwealth War Graves Commission
- ^ "Remembrance - The Yorkshire Regiment". Retrieved 14 January 2013.
- ^ "No. 30130". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 June 1917. pp. 5865–5866.
- ^ "No. 31340". The London Gazette. 15 May 1919. p. 6084.
Bibliography
edit- Gliddon, Gerald (2012) [1998]. Arras and Messines 1917. VCs of the First World War. Stroud, Gloucestershire: The History Press. ISBN 978-0-7524-6604-0.