Raphael Louis Zengel
Encyclopedia
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....
MM
Military Medal
The Military Medal was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other services, and formerly also to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for bravery in battle on land....
(November 11, 1894 - February 27, 1977) was an American-born Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
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.
Early life
Zengel was born at Faribault, MinnesotaFaribault, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 20,818 people, 7,472 households, and 4,946 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,644.8 people per square mile . There were 7,668 housing units at an average density of 605.8 per square mile...
. As a young boy, he and his mother Mary proved up a homestead near the village of Plunkett, Saskatchewan
Plunkett, Saskatchewan
- See also :* List of communities in Saskatchewan* Villages of Saskatchewan-External links:********-Footnotes:...
. He enlisted in the Canadian Army in 1914.
Victoria Cross
Zengel received the Military Medal in March 1918 for taking command of his platoon when his officer and sergeant had been put out of action. He was twenty three years old, and serving as a SergeantSergeant
Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
of the 5th (Western Cavalry) Bn., Canadian Expeditionary Force
Canadian Expeditionary Force
The Canadian Expeditionary Force was the designation of the field force created by Canada for service overseas in the First World War. Units of the C.E.F. were divided into field formation in France, where they were organized first into separate divisions and later joined together into a single...
during the First World War
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...
when he performed the deed for which he was awarded the VC.
On 9 August 1918 east of Warvillers
Warvillers
Warvillers is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Population:-External links:*...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Sergeant Zengel was leading his platoon forward to the attack when he realised that an enemy machine-gun was firing into the advancing line. He rushed forward ahead of the platoon to the gun emplacement, killed the officer and operator of the gun and dispersed the crew. Later in the day he was rendered temporarily unconscious by an enemy shell but on recovering continued to direct harassing fire on the enemy. His utter disregard for personal safety and the confidence he inspired in all ranks greatly assisted in the successful outcome of the attack.
Retirement
Sergeant Zengel spent most of the rest of his life at Rocky Mountain House, AlbertaAlberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, where the local branch of the Royal Canadian Legion has been named in his honour. He donated his Victoria Cross to the Rocky Mountain House Legion. His headstone can be found at Pine Cemetery, Rocky Mountain House, Canada.
Legacy
In 1951, one of the mountains of the Victoria Cross Range, in Jasper National ParkJasper National Park
Jasper National Park is the largest national park in the Canadian Rockies, spanning 10,878 km² . It is located in the province of Alberta, north of Banff National Park and west of the City of Edmonton. The park includes the glaciers of the Columbia Icefield, hot springs, lakes, waterfalls and...
was named in his honour. Mount Zengel is visible from highway 16, east of the Jasper townsite.
In 1936 the government of Canada chose to name a lake in northeastern Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
in Zengel's honour. Inexplicably, the feature became Zengle Lake and so it remains today (2007).