John Aidan Liddell | |
|---|---|
 Liddell, front, while serving with the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders on the Western Front | |
| Born | (1888-08-03)3 August 1888 Newcastle upon Tyne, England |
| Died | 31 August 1915(1915-08-31) (aged 27) De Panne, Belgium |
| Buried | Basingstoke (South View or Old) Cemetery |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Branch | British Army |
| Years of service | 1912–1915 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Unit | The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders No. 7 Squadron RFC |
| Battles / wars | First World War |
| Awards | Victoria Cross Military Cross Mentioned in Despatches |
John Aidan Liddell,VC, MC (3 August 1888 – 31 August 1915) was a British military pilot and a recipient of theVictoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British andCommonwealth forces.
Liddell was born inNewcastle upon Tyne on 3 August 1888. He was educated atStonyhurst College, Lancashire andBalliol College, Oxford, where he took the Honours Course in Zoology.
Liddell, not wishing himself "to be a slacker", joined the Officers' Special Reserve of the 3rd Battalion,Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (Princess Louise's) of theBritish Army in 1912. He obtained his pilot's certificate in May 1914 and, following the outbreak of theFirst World War, the now-Captain Liddell embarked with his battalion on 28 August for service in France. He spent 43 consecutive days in the trenches in command of the machine gun section and was awarded theMilitary Cross at Le Maisnil, France, before training as a pilot and joiningNo. 7 Squadron of theRoyal Flying Corps.
On 31 July 1915, while flying reconnaissance overOstend-Bruges-Ghent, Belgium, Liddell's aircraft was raked by machine gun fire and Liddell was severely wounded in his right thigh. This caused momentary unconsciousness, but by great effort he recovered partial control of his machine when it had dropped nearly 3,000 feet and succeeded, although fired on, in completing the course and brought the plane back into the Allied lines. The control wheel and throttle control were smashed, as was part of the undercarriage and cockpit, but the machine and life of the observer were saved. In recognition of his feat, Liddell was awarded theVictoria Cross.[1]
After having his leg removed andseptic poisoning setting in, Liddell died of his wounds a month later atDe Panne,Flanders, Belgium, on 31 August 1915, aged 27.[2] He is buried in theHoly Ghost Cemetery in Basingstoke with his sisterDorothy Liddell who went out to serve in the hospital where he died for the remainder of the war.[3]
A brass "In Memoriam" tablet was erected to Aidan Liddell in the Scottish Naval and Military Residence, Edinburgh. The inscription on the brass tablet runs as follows:[4]
CAPTAIN J. AIDAN LIDDELL, V.C., M.C.
3rd (RESERVE) BATTALION
ARGYLL AND SUTHERLAND HIGHLANDERS
MORTALLY WOUNDED WHEN SERVING WITH
THE ROYAL FLYING CORPS
NEAR OSTEND, BELGIUM
AUGUST 1915
PRESENTED BY HIS BROTHER OFFICERS OF THE
A memorial to him was also erected at Balliol College, on the west wall of the Chapel passage.[5] His VC is on display in the Lord Ashcroft Gallery at theImperial War Museum, London.
A plaque also exists in theChurch of the Holy Rude in Stirling, close toStirling Castle, home of his regiment.[6]
A plaque was unveiled in 2015 at Sherfield-on-Loddon where he and his family lived on the centenary of his achieving the VC. There is also a blue plaque at his family home which is now Sherfield School and where his memory is kept alive.
On 29 August 2017 a memorial was unveiled outside theDiscovery Museum inNewcastle upon Tyne, where Liddell and PrivatesEdward Lawson andAdam Wakenshaw are commemorated.[7]
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