John Grieve (VC)
Encyclopedia
John Grieve VC
(3 May 1821 - 1 December 1873) was a Scottish
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.
Grieve was 34 years old, and a sergeant-major in the 2nd Dragoons (Royal Scots Greys), British Army
at the Battle of Balaclava
during the Crimean War
when the following deed took place on 25 October 1854 at Balaklava
, Crimea
, for which he was awarded the VC.
His citation read:
He later achieved the rank of lieutenant
. His VC is on display at the Art Gallery of South Australia
in Adelaide
, Australia
.
list Sergeant Major John Grieve VC (Crimea, 1854) and Captain Robert Cuthbert Grieve
(Belgium, 1917) as great uncle and great nephew. This connection was suggested by an article in The Times
on 29 May 1964. The article said John Grieve sent home £75 from the Crimea to Robert Grieve and that if Robert Grieve was his brother and also emigrated, then some relationship may be established between the Crimean VC and an Australian First World War VC, Robert Grieve. However, descendents of both Grieve families have been in contact with each other and have found that they are not great uncle and great nephew.
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
(3 May 1821 - 1 December 1873) was a Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
recipient of the Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
forces.
Grieve was 34 years old, and a sergeant-major in the 2nd Dragoons (Royal Scots Greys), British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
at the Battle of Balaclava
Battle of Balaclava
The Battle of Balaclava, fought on 25 October 1854 during the Crimean War, was part of the Anglo-French-Turkish campaign to capture the port and fortress of Sevastopol, Russia's principal naval base on the Black Sea...
during the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
when the following deed took place on 25 October 1854 at Balaklava
Balaklava
Balaklava is a former city on the Crimean peninsula and part of the city of Sevastopol which carries a special administrative status in Ukraine. It was a city in its own right until 1957 when it was formally incorporated into the municipal borders of Sevastopol by the Soviet government...
, Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
, for which he was awarded the VC.
His citation read:
He later achieved the rank of lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
. His VC is on display at the Art Gallery of South Australia
Art Gallery of South Australia
The Art Gallery of South Australia , located on the cultural boulevard of North Terrace in Adelaide, is the premier visual arts museum in the Australian state of South Australia. It has a collection of over 35,000 works of art, making it, after the National Gallery of Victoria, the largest state...
in Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
Are John Grieve and Robert Grieve related?
A number of references including the 1997 edition of The Register of the Victoria CrossThe Register of the Victoria Cross
The Register of the Victoria Cross is a reference work that provides brief information on every Victoria Cross ever awarded: it provides a summary of the deed, along with a photograph of the awardee and the following details where applicable or available; rank, unit, other decorations, date of...
list Sergeant Major John Grieve VC (Crimea, 1854) and Captain Robert Cuthbert Grieve
Robert Cuthbert Grieve
Robert Cuthbert Grieve VC was an Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry "in the face of the enemy", during the First World War...
(Belgium, 1917) as great uncle and great nephew. This connection was suggested by an article in The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
on 29 May 1964. The article said John Grieve sent home £75 from the Crimea to Robert Grieve and that if Robert Grieve was his brother and also emigrated, then some relationship may be established between the Crimean VC and an Australian First World War VC, Robert Grieve. However, descendents of both Grieve families have been in contact with each other and have found that they are not great uncle and great nephew.
External links
- Gravestone
- Location of grave and VC medal (Lothian, Scotland)