Corporal Harold Mugford VC.

Lest we forget
kiwi
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Corporal Harold Mugford VC.

Postby kiwi » Fri Aug 28, 2020 3:00 am

Corporal Harold Mugford VC. WW1. Keetons Road Bermondsey.   X.png

Corporal Harold Mugford from Keetons Road Bermondsey was born in 1894, a WWI hero whose bravery as a machine gunner earned him the Victoria Cross. In 1914 he joined the Essex Yeomanry regiment along with his two brothers. He saw action in the Ypres Salient in the early part of 1915 and again in May, where the Yeomanry distinguished themselves at the Battle of Frezenberg Ridge. He was with the regiment’s machine gun detachment at the Battle of Loos on September 27-28, 1915 and fought there again in the early part of 1916.
Heavy enemy fire from the village of Roeux in the north forced a change in the direction of the Yeomanry’s advance into Monchy itself.
Although the recapture of Monchy was a success, they quickly came under a fierce counterattack.
It was reported that the 8th Machine Gun Squadron did great work in helping to keep the attackers at bay, and it was Mr Mugford’s extraordinary bravery that earned him the Victoria Cross.
Before the war he was a clerk with a shipping company, Furness Withy, and a keen cricketer. He saw action in the Ypres Salient in the early part of 1915 and again in May, where the Yeomanry distinguished themselves at the Battle of Frezenberg Ridge. He was with the regiment’s machine gun detachment at the Battle of Loos on September 27-28, 1915 and fought there again in the early part of 1916.
His machine gun partner was killed within minutes of the counterattack, and Mr Mugford was severely injured.
He was ordered to a new position and told to seek medical help, but continued with his machine gun, inflicting severe loss on the enemy.
A plaque was laid in honour of Lance Corporal Harold Mugford at the Bermondsey and Rotherhithe War Memorial in West Lane.
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