VC - The Boer War

Corporal Frank Howard Kirby VC

Frank Kirby was born at Thame in Oxfordshire on 12th November, 1871 the fourth son of William Henry and Ada Kirby of that town. He was educated at Alleyn's School, Dulwich, and on 8th August 1892 he enlisted in the Royal Engineers at St George's Barracks in London, having previously served as a yeoman in the Queen’s Own Oxfordshire Hussars.

Having been sent to South Africa in 1899 he was awarded the DCM for blowing up the Bloemfontein Railway in March 1900, while in June 1900 Corporal Kirby won the VC for his role in a raid north of Kronstadt under General Hunter Weston. He was mentioned several times in Despatches and in July 1900 he was promoted in the field to the rank of Troop Sergeant-Major.

A local newspaper reported that ‘The inhabitants of Thame and the Queen’s Own Oxfordshire Hussars should be justly proud of the announcement made in last Saturday’s daily papers that Corporal Frank Kirby (fourth son of Mr W.H.Kirby), Royal Engineers, formerly of this town, has had conferred upon him the coveted distinction of the Victoria Cross for valour in the field. The act of valour was described as follows by The Daily Graphic:

On the morning of the 2nd June 1900, a party sent to cut the Dalagoa Bay Railway were retiring, the raiding party being hotly pressed by superior numbers of the enemy. Daring one of the successive retirements of the rearguard, Corporal Kirby rode back to aid a man whose horse had been shot and was running after his comrades. By the time he reached the man, they were under very heavy fire at close range, but Corporal Kirby managed to get the dismounted man up behind him on his horse and rode clear of the firing over the next rise there was held by our rearguard. This was the third occasion on which Corporal Kirby had displayed gallantry in the face of the enemy.

In 1906 Frank Kirby became a Warrant Officer. He married Miss Kate Jolly in 1909, and they subsequently had two sons and two daughters. He was commissioned in April 1911 and, as Lieutenant Kirby, he was posted to the Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers at Farnborough. In 1912 he was gazetted to the Royal Flying Corps, and served as a Squadron Commander during World War I, being promoted to captain and, later, to temporary Lieutenant-Colonel. He died on 8th July 1956 at Sidcup in Kent.