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War heroes awarded the VC remembered in ceremony
A Doncaster ceremony is remembering seven local recipients of the Victoria Cross, Britain’s highest award for military valour. The event also supports the Victoria Cross Trust, which restores military graves and memorials and educates the public about their history. The city’s cluster of recipients is significant: only 1,360 VCs have been awarded.
Six of the seven men served in France during the First World War and one served in Belgium during the Second World War; three were killed in action. Their acts included rescuing trapped miners, disabling machine-gun posts and repairing an aircraft under fire. George Wyatt’s great-grandson said the medal’s story inspired him to value purpose, duty and courage; Wyatt later served as a police officer in Doncaster and Barnsley.
In short
- Doncaster remembers seven Victoria Cross recipients at a city ceremony.
- Six served in France in the First World War.
- The event supports the restoration of military graves and memorials.
Explained simply
The Victoria Cross is Britain’s highest award for military valour. It recognises acts of exceptional courage in the face of the enemy, and only 1,360 have been awarded.
The seven men being remembered came from the Doncaster area and served in the First or Second World War. Their actions included rescuing trapped miners, confronting machine-gun posts and repairing an aircraft under fire; three died in action.
The Victoria Cross Trust works to restore military graves and memorials and to teach people about their history. Remembering local recipients connects the medals’ wartime stories with the communities and families they left behind.