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Bandsman Thomas Edward Rendle VC at Wulverghem, Belgium, 20th November 1914
At 9am on 20th November 1914, German howitzers fired on British trenches at Wulverghem, a mile west of Messines. The German lines were between 50 and 150 yards away. A Company of the 1st Battalion, The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry was in the front line trenches whilst C Company was in the support trench. About 40 yards of trench were blown in, causing heavy casualties. Bandsman Rendle went out as a stretcher bearer under heavy rifle and shell fire to rescue the wounded. Some he saved by lying on his back, hooking his feet under their armpits and dragging them backwards to safety.
During the afternoon the bombardment intensified. Lieutenant R M Colebrook lay in an isolated section, wounded in the thigh, the main artery being severed. Lieutenant RR Wingate dashed through heavy fire, and was joined by Rendle. Together they bandaged him up. Rendle recalled, “The Germans were firing all the time with shell and machine-guns. To get Lieutenant Colebrook back, I started digging a shallow burrow with my hands, as I lay on the ground." His intent was to remove the earth that had fallen into the choked-up part of the trench, in order to make a safe pathway through this to the trench beyond. With feverish haste he tore at the loose soil. His nails were bleeding and his hands cut, but still he went at it heedless of the bullets which flew around. At the section of trench which had been levelled by shellfire, he had to crawl across the open ground. He gently raised Lieutenant Colebrook a few inches from the ground, made him place his hands round his neck, and edged him on to his back. Then with consummate coolness and daring, with the casualty behind him, he started to worm his way to the trench from which he had started. Crawling on his stomach, with the wounded man clutching him tightly, he advanced inch by inch across the dangerous gap. This brave bandsman eventually succeeded in reaching the section of the trench where he would find help and relative safety.
Lieutenant Wingate can be seen in the background.
Thomas Rendle was born in Bedminster, Bristol in 1884. He was the only bandsman awarded the Victoria Cross in the First World War. The painting was commissioned by the Royal Military School of Music.
Medium: Oil on Canvas
Printed image size(s): B2 only (58 x 38 cm)
Owner: The Royal Military School of Music
Price(s): £70
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