Charles Vincent Fox
Encyclopedia
Charles Vincent Fox DSO
(born 1877) was a British army officer and rower
who won the Diamond Challenge Sculls
at Henley Royal Regatta
in 1900 and the Wingfield Sculls in 1901.
Fox was born in Dublin in 1877, the son of Henry and Mary Fox. His father was an agent for Dundalls Whisky and by 1881 had moved to Swanscombe
, Kent
. Fox joined the Scots Guards
and rowed for the Guards Brigade
Rowing Club. In 1899 he entered the Wingfield Sculls but lost to B H Howell
. He won the event in 1900. In 1901 he won the Diamond Challenge Sculls at Henley
, beating St G Ashe.
Fox became a lieutenant in 1902 On the outbreak of World War I
he was with the British Expeditionary Force and took part in the First Battle of Ypres
. On 25 October he defended a breach in the line and captured five German officers and 200 men, and as a result was awarded the DSO
. He was captured and made three escape attempts, on one occasion throwing himself from a train. He made his last successful escape attempt from Schwarmstedt Camp in June 1917. In the course of his run to the border travelling with a Lieutenant Blank, he met up with Captain John Alan Lyde Caunter whose chronicle of his time in German camps and his escape described Fox's experiences in detail. Fox provided evidence of an atrocity at the Brandenburg Camp writing on July 10, 1917 that before he arrived at the camp, an Englishman had been burned alive because guards would not let prisoners out of a burning building.
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
(born 1877) was a British army officer and rower
Rowing (sport)
Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...
who won the Diamond Challenge Sculls
Diamond Challenge Sculls
The Diamond Challenge Sculls is a rowing event for men's single sculls at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England...
at Henley Royal Regatta
Henley Royal Regatta
Henley Royal Regatta is a rowing event held every year on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. The Royal Regatta is sometimes referred to as Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage...
in 1900 and the Wingfield Sculls in 1901.
Fox was born in Dublin in 1877, the son of Henry and Mary Fox. His father was an agent for Dundalls Whisky and by 1881 had moved to Swanscombe
Swanscombe
Swanscombe is a small town, part of the Borough of Dartford on the north Kent coast in England. It is part of the civil parish of Swanscombe and Greenhithe.-Prehistory:...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
. Fox joined the Scots Guards
Scots Guards
The Scots Guards is a regiment of the Guards Division of the British Army, whose origins lie in the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland...
and rowed for the Guards Brigade
Guards Brigade
Guards Brigade may refer to:* Brigade of Guards, a formation of the British Army* Soviet Guards brigade, see Guards unit...
Rowing Club. In 1899 he entered the Wingfield Sculls but lost to B H Howell
Benjamin Hunting Howell
Benjamin Hunting Howell was an American rower who won the Diamond Challenge Sculls at Henley Royal Regatta and the Wingfield Sculls in 1898 and 1899....
. He won the event in 1900. In 1901 he won the Diamond Challenge Sculls at Henley
Henley
- Places :UK:*Henley-on-Thames, a town in South Oxfordshire, England**Henley Rural District, a former rural district in Oxfordshire*Henley-in-Arden, a village in Warwickshire, England*Henley, Suffolk, a village in Suffolk, England...
, beating St G Ashe.
Fox became a lieutenant in 1902 On the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he was with the British Expeditionary Force and took part in the First Battle of Ypres
First Battle of Ypres
The First Battle of Ypres, also called the First Battle of Flanders , was a First World War battle fought for the strategic town of Ypres in western Belgium...
. On 25 October he defended a breach in the line and captured five German officers and 200 men, and as a result was awarded the DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
. He was captured and made three escape attempts, on one occasion throwing himself from a train. He made his last successful escape attempt from Schwarmstedt Camp in June 1917. In the course of his run to the border travelling with a Lieutenant Blank, he met up with Captain John Alan Lyde Caunter whose chronicle of his time in German camps and his escape described Fox's experiences in detail. Fox provided evidence of an atrocity at the Brandenburg Camp writing on July 10, 1917 that before he arrived at the camp, an Englishman had been burned alive because guards would not let prisoners out of a burning building.