Does anybody know anything about this soldier ... or have his citation ? Birth - Dec. 3 1874 Death - Jan. 19 1945 British Victoria Cross War Medal Recipient. He served as a Subadar or Captain in The 55 Coke's Rifles, Attached 57th Wilde's Rifles, of The Indian Army. He was awarded his Medal for service at Belgium on April 26, 1915. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=8130663
Of course I should have looked first !! - what a soldier .... what a man he was ! The Oxford DNB Life of the Day for today features Mir Dast (1874-1945), army officer, who was born at Maidan, Tirah, in the mountainous North-West Frontier Province of British India, on 3 December 1874. He saw action on the north-west frontier during the great tribal rising of 1897-8, and in Waziristan in 1901-2. He was awarded the Indian order of merit, third class, for displaying conspicuous gallantry during the 1908 Mohmand expedition; and he was promoted jemadar-the most junior Indian commissioned rank with effect from 3 March 1909. Shortly after the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 two infantry divisions of the Indian army (3rd Lahore and 7th Meerut) were despatched to help stem the German invasion of Belgium and France. Mir Dast was one of those cross-posted from his home unit to a regiment serving in France-in his case from Coke's to the 57th Wilde's rifles (frontier force) in the 7th (Ferozepore) brigade of the Lahore division. For his courage and bravery there, George V, the emperor of India, formally presented Mir Dast with his VC in the Pavilion grounds in late August, watched by a crowd of wounded Indians. In 1916 Mir Dast was awarded the Order of British India, second class, allowing him to assume the title of bahadur (Hindi for hero or champion), and making him one of India's most-decorated soldiers He is remembered on the Indian Memorial Gates at Hyde Park Corner
