Maurice James Dease VC

Lieutenant Maurice James Dease VC 4th Battalion Royal Fusiliers (Wiki Image)

Lieutenant Maurice James Dease VC
4th Battalion Royal Fusiliers
(Wiki Image)

Mons-Condé Canal, Belgium: Action of 23 August 1914
REQUIESCAT IN PACE

Though two or three times badly wounded he continued to control the fire of his machine guns at Mons on 23rd Aug., until all his men were shot. He died of his wounds.

It may have been a brief visit to the railway bridge at Nimy but the day stands out. Here we were two from Canada (Chris and I) and our historian host and driver (Andy) from England. There was much to see and though we had been to the Western Front previously, this time we not only saw additional sites related to the Canadian Expeditionary Force but also those of the British Expeditionary Force covering all the years of the Great War. At Nimy we read the memorial below the tracks, watched the canal and could envisage what had happened here. Dease VC and Godley VC, both of the 4th Battalion Royal Fusiliers. Dease one of the first officer casualties of the Great War. Sidney Godley to survive with his memories of the bridge and as a prisoner of war. Godley died in 1957.

Dease marker at St. Symphorien Cemetery, Belgium. (P. Ferguson image, September 2006)

Dease marker at St. Symphorien Cemetery, Belgium. Age 24.
(P. Ferguson image, September 2006)

Helpful Link
Fusilier Museum London

Nimy Railway Bridge. (P. Ferguson image, September 2006)

Nimy Railway Bridge.
(P. Ferguson image, September 2006)

November Series 2022 Summary

The Victoria Cross was awarded on 627 occasions during the First World War. Of these awards 158 were granted posthumously (awarded after the death of the recipient). The 2022 November series focuses on posthumous awards of the Victoria Cross on the Western Front in France and Belgium. The posthumous awards were made for actions in the following places.

France 104
Belgium 30
Turkey 7
Mesopotamia 5
Jutland (North Sea near Denmark) 3
Palestine 3
North Atlantic 2
Heligoland Bight (North Sea near Germany) 1
India (Tochi Valley) 1
Kenya 1
North Sea (off Humber Estuary, England) 1


About The Author

pferguson
Paul has worked with the Paradigm Motion Picture Company since 2009 as producer, historian and research specialist. Paul first met Casey and Ian WIlliams of Paradigm in April 2007 at Ieper (Ypres), Belgium when ceremonies were being held for the re-dedication of the Vimy Memorial, France. Paul's sensitivity to film was developed at an early age seeing his first films at RCAF Zweibrucken, Germany and Sardinia. Paul returned to Canada in 1967 and was captivated by David Lean's "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Bridge on the River Kwai". Over time Paul became increasingly interested in storytelling, content development, character, direction, cinematography, narration and soundtracks. At the University of Victoria, Paul studied and compared Japanese and Australian film and became interested in Australian film maker Peter Weir and his film "Gallipoli" (1981). Paul was inspired when he learned Weir visited the beaches, ridges and ravines of the peninsula. "Gallipoli", the film, led Paul on many journeys to sites of conflict in England, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Malta, Hawaii, Gallipoli, North Macedonia and Salonika. When Paul first watched documentary filmmaker Ken Burns, "The Civil War", Paul understood how his own experience and insight could be effective and perhaps influential in film-making. Combining his knowledge of Museums and Archives, exhibitions and idea strategies with his film interests was a natural progression. Paul thinks like a film-maker. His passion for history and storytelling brings to Paradigm an eye (and ear) to the keen and sensitive interests of; content development, the understanding of successful and relational use of collections, imagery and voice. Like Paul's favorite actor, Peter O'Toole, Paul believes in the adage “To deepen not broaden.” While on this path Paul always remembers his grandmother whose father did not return from the Great War and how his loss shaped her life and how her experience continues to guide him.

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