Noel Godfrey Chavasse
| Noel Godfrey Chavasse | |
|---|---|
Portrait of N.G. Chavasse wearing the glengarry of the Liverpool Scottish
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| Born |
9 November 1884 Oxford, Oxfordshire, England |
| Died | 4 August 1917 (aged 32) Brandhoek, Belgium |
| Buried at | Brandhoek New Military Cemetery |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/branch | British Army |
| Years of service | 1913–1917 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Unit | Royal Army Medical Corps |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards |
Victoria Cross & Bar Military Cross Mentioned in Despatches |
| Relations |
Francis Chavasse (father) Christopher Chavasse (brother) |
| Other work | Olympic athlete |
Captain Noel Godfrey Chavasse, VC & Bar, MC (9 November 1884 – 4 August 1917) was a British medical doctor, Olympic athlete, and British Army officer from the Chavasse family. He is one of only three people to be awarded a Victoria Cross twice.
The Battle of Guillemont was to see acts of heroism by Captain Chavasse, the only man to be awarded the Victoria Cross twice during the First World War. In 1916, Chavasse was hit by shell splinters while rescuing men in no-man's land. It is said he got as close as 25 yards to the German line, where he found three men and continued throughout the night under a constant rain of sniper bullets and bombing. He performed similar heroics in the early stages of the offensive at Passchendaele in August 1917 to gain a second VC and become the most highly decorated British officer of the First World War. Although operated upon, he was to die of his wounds two days later in 1917.
Noel Godfrey Chavasse was the younger of identical twin boys born to the Rev. Francis Chavasse (later Bishop of Liverpool and founder of St Peter's College, Oxford) and Edith Jane Chavasse (née Maude) on 9 November 1884 at 36 New Inn Hall Street, Oxford.Christopher Maude was born 20 minutes before his brother. In all, there were seven children born to the Chavasse family, in age order: Dorothea, Christopher, Noel, Edith, Mary, Francis and Aidan. The twins were so small and weak at birth that their baptism was delayed until 29 December 1884 and both were very ill with typhoid in their first year of life.
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