Samuel Hodge
Encyclopedia
Samuel Hodge VC
(1840- 14 January 1868) was a West Indian 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.
, blackwater fever
and dysentery
and so the British Army addressed this problem by bringing in troops from the West India regiments.
In 1866, Lieutenant Colonel George Abbas Koolie D'Arcy, commanding officer of the 3rd West India Regiment and Governor of the Gambia, marched to confront a rebellious Marabout leader named Amar Faal at Tubabecolong (also known as Tubab Kolon), a stockaded town on the river's northern bank. The garrison unit in Bathurst at that time was Samuel Hodge's regiment - the 4th West India Regiment. Colonel D'Arcy led 270 officers and men of that battalion together with around 500 warriors from the Soninke tribe to Tubabecelong, attacking the town on 30 June.
Samuel Hodge was approximately 26 years old (his precise date of birth is not known), and only a private
at the time. The British force had light armaments and rockets, but were unable to break down the wooden stockade walls by bombardment. Colonel D'Arcy called for volunteers to assist him to try and cut a breach by hand. Two officers and fifteen men (including Samuel Hodge) seized axes and followed him. However, the fire of the defenders was intense and the officers were killed almost immediately whilst, and most of the remaining men were wounded. Colonel D'Arcy and the two remaining uninjured men, Private Hodge and another Private named Boswell, reached the stockade and were able to hack a gap large enough for a man. At approximately that point Private Boswell was killed leaving only D'Arcy and Hodge of the original assault party of 18. Colonel D'Arcy went through the gap, followed closely by Private Hodge who then used his axe to hack open inside fastenings on a gate before he was himself shot down.
Samuel Hodge sustained serious gunshot wounds, but survived. The remaining British troops poured in through the now open gate and in the fierce fighting that followed, several hundred of the Marabouts were killed and the village and stockade burned down. Once day had been won, Colonel D'Arcy took Hodge and acclaimed him in front of them as the bravest man in the regiment.
He was promoted to the rank of Lance-corporal and presented with the Victoria Cros on June 24, 1867. However, he never fully recovered from the terrible injuries sustained during the attack, and died of fever less than a year later whilst on service in Belize.
A Tortolian
from the British Virgin Islands
, he was only the second black man to ever be awarded 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....
(1840- 14 January 1868) was a West Indian 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.
Details
Samuel Hodge was one of a number of West Indian soldiers who were sent to garrison British positions on the West coast of Africa. White troops suffered terribly from malariaMalaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
, blackwater fever
Blackwater fever
Blackwater fever is a complication of malaria in which red blood cells burst in the bloodstream , releasing hemoglobin directly into the blood vessels and into the urine, frequently leading to kidney failure...
and dysentery
Dysentery
Dysentery is an inflammatory disorder of the intestine, especially of the colon, that results in severe diarrhea containing mucus and/or blood in the faeces with fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, dysentery can be fatal.There are differences between dysentery and normal bloody diarrhoea...
and so the British Army addressed this problem by bringing in troops from the West India regiments.
In 1866, Lieutenant Colonel George Abbas Koolie D'Arcy, commanding officer of the 3rd West India Regiment and Governor of the Gambia, marched to confront a rebellious Marabout leader named Amar Faal at Tubabecolong (also known as Tubab Kolon), a stockaded town on the river's northern bank. The garrison unit in Bathurst at that time was Samuel Hodge's regiment - the 4th West India Regiment. Colonel D'Arcy led 270 officers and men of that battalion together with around 500 warriors from the Soninke tribe to Tubabecelong, attacking the town on 30 June.
Samuel Hodge was approximately 26 years old (his precise date of birth is not known), and only a private
Private (rank)
A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
at the time. The British force had light armaments and rockets, but were unable to break down the wooden stockade walls by bombardment. Colonel D'Arcy called for volunteers to assist him to try and cut a breach by hand. Two officers and fifteen men (including Samuel Hodge) seized axes and followed him. However, the fire of the defenders was intense and the officers were killed almost immediately whilst, and most of the remaining men were wounded. Colonel D'Arcy and the two remaining uninjured men, Private Hodge and another Private named Boswell, reached the stockade and were able to hack a gap large enough for a man. At approximately that point Private Boswell was killed leaving only D'Arcy and Hodge of the original assault party of 18. Colonel D'Arcy went through the gap, followed closely by Private Hodge who then used his axe to hack open inside fastenings on a gate before he was himself shot down.
Samuel Hodge sustained serious gunshot wounds, but survived. The remaining British troops poured in through the now open gate and in the fierce fighting that followed, several hundred of the Marabouts were killed and the village and stockade burned down. Once day had been won, Colonel D'Arcy took Hodge and acclaimed him in front of them as the bravest man in the regiment.
He was promoted to the rank of Lance-corporal and presented with the Victoria Cros on June 24, 1867. However, he never fully recovered from the terrible injuries sustained during the attack, and died of fever less than a year later whilst on service in Belize.
A Tortolian
Tortola
Tortola is the largest and most populated of the British Virgin Islands, a group of islands that form part of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands. Local tradition recounts that Christopher Columbus named it Tortola, meaning "land of the Turtle Dove". Columbus named the island Santa Ana...
from the British Virgin Islands
British Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands, often called the British Virgin Islands , is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union, located in the Caribbean to the east of Puerto Rico. The islands make up part of the Virgin Islands archipelago, the remaining islands constituting the U.S...
, he was only the second black man to ever be awarded the Victoria Cross.