William Job Maillard VC

Name: William Job Maillard

Conflict: Crete Rebellion

Gazetted: December 2, 1898

Service: Royal Navy

Place/date of birth: Banwell, Axbridge, Somerset/March 10, 1863

Rank when awarded VC (and later highest rank): Surgeon (later Staff Surgeon)

Date of bravery: September 6, 1898

London Gazette citation:

Surgeon William Job Maillard, M.D., Royal Navy.

On the 6^th September, 1898, during the landing of seamen from Her Majesty’s ship “Hazard”, Surgeon Maillard, who had disembarked and reached a place of safety, returned through a perfect deluge of bullets to the boat and endeavoured to bring into safety Arthur Stroud, Ordinary Seaman, who had fallen back wounded into the boat as the other men jumped ashore. Surgeon Maillard failed to bring Stroud in only through the boat being adrift, and it being beyond his strength to lift the man (who was almost dead) out of so unstable a platform. Surgeon Maillard returned to his post with his clothes riddled with bullets, though he himself was unhurt.

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Other decorations: N/A

Place/date of death: Bournemouth, Hampshire (now Dorset)/September 10, 1903

Grave/memorials: Wimborne Road Cemetery, Bournemouth, Dorset/ Kingswood School, Bath, Avon; Royal Naval Museum, Haslar, Hampshire

Origin of VC to the Lord Ashcroft collection: Purchased at auction, Spink, London, 1998

Current location of VC: Displayed on rotation at The Lord Ashcroft Gallery: Extraordinary Heroes exhibition, Imperial War Museum