William John Vousden

William John Vousden
Born	20 September 1848 Perth, Scotland
Died	12 November 1902 (aged 54) Lahore, British India
Buried at	Lahore Cemetery, Pakistan
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Indian Army
Rank	Major General
Unit	Bengal Staff Corps Indian Staff Corps
Commands held	Inspector-General of Cavalry in India
Battles/wars	Second Anglo-Afghan War Tirah Campaign
Awards	Victoria Cross Order of the Bath

Major General William John Vousden VC CB (20 September 1848 – 12 November 1902) 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.

Vousden was born in Perth, Scotland and trained at Sandhurst. He was 34 years old, and a captain in the 5th Punjab Cavalry, Bengal Staff Corps, and British Indian Army during the Second Afghan War when the following deed took place on 14 December 1879 on the Koh Asmai Heights, near Kabul, Afghanistan, for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross:

For the exceptional gallantry displayed by him on the 14th December, 1879, on the Koh Asmai Heights, near Kabul, in charging, with a small party, into the centre of the line of the retreating Kohistani force, by whom they were greatly outnumbered, and who did their utmost to close round them. After rapidly charging through and through the enemy, backwards and forwards, several times, they swept off round the opposite side of the village and joined the rest of the Troop.

He later achieved the rank of major general and served as Inspector-General of Cavalry in India. He died of dysentery at the age of 54.

References

• Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
• The Register of the Victoria Cross (This England, 1997)
• Scotland's Forgotten Valour (Graham Ross, 1995)

External links

• Biography