Euston Sartorius

Euston Sartorius VC CB
Born	6 June 1844 Sintra, Portugal
Died	19 February 1925(1925-02-19) (aged 80) Chelsea, London
Buried	St Peter and St Paul's Churchyard, Ewhurst
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service / branch	British Army
Rank	Major General
Unit	59th Regiment of Foot East Lancashire Regiment
Battles / wars	Second Anglo-Afghan War 1882 Anglo-Egyptian War
Awards	Victoria Cross Order of the Bath Order of Osminieh (Ottoman Empire)
Relations	Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Rose Sartorius (father) Major General Reginald William Sartorius VC (brother)

Major General Euston Henry Sartorius VC CB (6 June 1844 – 19 February 1925) was a 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. His brother Reginald was also awarded the VC.

Details

Sartorius was 35 years old, and a captain in the 59th (2nd Nottinghamshire) Regiment of Foot (later The East Lancashire Regiment), British Army, during the Second Anglo-Afghan War when the following deed took place on 24 October 1879 at Shahjui, Afghanistan for which he was awarded the VC:

For conspicuous bravery during the action at Sliah-jui, on the 24th October, 1879, in leading a party of five or six men of the 59th Regiment against a body of the enemy, of unknown strength, occupying an almost inaccessible position on the top of a precipitous hill. The nature of the ground made any sort of regular formation impossible, and Captain Sartorius had to bear the first brunt of the attack from the whole body of the enemy, who fell upon him and his men as they gained the top of the precipitous pathway; but the gallant and determined bearing of this Officer, emulated as it was by his men, led to the most perfect success, and the surviving occupants of the hill top, seven in number, were all killed. In this encounter Captain Sartorius was wounded by sword cuts in both hands, and one of his men was killed.

Further information

His father was Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Rose Sartorius and his brother was Major General Reginald William Sartorius VC. Educated at Victoria College, Jersey; one of the school's five Houses was later named after the brothers. He succeeded his father as Count of Penhafirme in the Portuguese nobility, and was confirmed in the title by King Carlos I on 20 June 1903. On 22 December 1874 he married Emily Jane, daughter of Sir Francis Cook, 1st Viscount of Monserrate; their son Euston Francis Frederick Sartorius was born in 1882 and served in the Grenadier Guards.

He also served in the 1882 Anglo-Egyptian War and was mentioned in despatches. He later was appointed as Military Attache in Japan. He was awarded the Bronze Medal of the Royal Humane Society for saving the lives of three girls from drowning at Broadstairs on 29 June 1869.

The medal

His Victoria Cross is displayed at the National Army Museum, Chelsea, London.

References

• Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
• The Register of the Victoria Cross (This England, 1997)

External links

• Location of grave and VC medal (Surrey)