John Vaughan Campbell

John Vaughan Campbell
John Vaughan Campbell as depicted on a cigarette card
Born	31 October 1876 London, England
Died	21 May 1944 (aged 79) Woodchester, Gloucestershire
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Rank	Brigadier-General
Unit	Coldstream Guards Home Guard
Battles/wars	Second Boer War World War I World War II
Awards	Victoria Cross Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George Distinguished Service Order Croix de guerre (France)

Brigadier-General John Vaughan Campbell VC CMG DSO (31 October 1876 – 21 May 1944) was a Scottish 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.

Campbell was 39 years old, and a temporary lieutenant-colonel in the 3rd Battalion, Coldstream Guards, British Army, during the First World War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.

On 15 September 1916 at Ginchy, France, Lieutenant Colonel Campbell took personal command of the third line when the first two waves of his battalion had been decimated by machine-gun and rifle fire. He rallied his men and led them against the enemy machine-guns, capturing the guns and killing the personnel. Later in the day he again rallied the survivors of his battalion and led them through very heavy hostile fire. His personal gallantry and initiative at a very critical moment enabled the division to press on and capture objectives of the highest tactical importance.

In 1916, he achieved the rank of brigadier-general. His Victoria Cross is displayed at The Guards Regimental Headquarters (Grenadier Guards RHQ) in Wellington Barracks, London.

References

• Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
• The Register of the Victoria Cross (This England, 1997)
• Scotland's Forgotten Valour (Graham Ross, 1995)
• VCs of the First World War - The Somme (Gerald Gliddon, 1994)