Mellish, Edward Noel VC
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Mellish, Edward Noel

Dates:
(1880 - 1962)

Local Connection: Assistant Curate at St Paul's, Deptford and Vicar of St Mark’s, Lewisham.

War Service:
Captain, The Reverend. Army Chaplains Department.

London Gazetted on 20th April, 1916.

Digest of Citation for the Victoria Cross reads:
On three consecutive days, the 27th to 29th March 1916, during the heavy fighting at St Eloi, Belgium, Captain, the Reverend, MELLISH, went to-and-fro continuously between the original trenches and the captured enemy trenches, attending to and rescuing wounded men. The first day, from an area swept by machine-gun fire, he rescued 10 severely wounded men. Although his battalion was relieved on the second day, he returned and rescued 12 more of the wounded. Taking charge of a group of volunteers, on the third day, he again returned to the trenches in order to rescue the remaining wounded. This excellent work was done voluntarily and was far outside the sphere of his normal duties.

Victoria Cross

A total of 628 Victoria Crosses were awarded during the First World War: 454 Victoria Crosses were awarded to UK-born recipients; 173 were awarded to servicemen who fought for Britain, but were born overseas; 1 person was awarded the Victoria Cross twice during the First World War. Special paving stones will be laid in the home towns of every UK soldier awarded the Victoria Cross as part of 2014's World War I centenary events. The specially-commissioned stones will be given to councils in the areas where the VC recipients were born. A total of 28 will be unveiled next year to commemorate medals awarded in 1914 and a further 600 will be laid in every year up to 2018. Mellish's will be laid in March 2016 at Oakley Park, Barnet, where he was born.

Captain Mellish served in the South African war from 1900-1902 as a trooper in Baden-Powell's Police. He also served in World War Two as an air-raid warden.

His Victoria Cross is held by the Royal Fusiliers museum in the Tower of London.

Location of Memorial:
He is remembered on the Deptford Town Hall Roll of Honour and on the Lewisham-Shopping-Centre-Mural.

Details:
He was born on 24th December, 1880 at Oakley Park, Barnet, Hertfordshire the son of Edward and Mary Mellish. He was educated at Saffron Walden Grammar School. He died on 8th July 1962 at South Petherton, Somerset. His funeral took place at Weymouth crematorium.

His brother, Richard Coppin Mellish, was killed during the Battle of Loos in 1915 and is remembered on the St Pauls, Deptford WW1 War Memorial.

Newsreel:
Of Rev. Edward Mellish returning to Deptford and being given a hero's welcome
//http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=75509

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