Rev. Theodore Bayley Hardy VC DSO MC.
Temporary Chaplain to the Forces, 4th Class,
Army Chaplains’ Department,
attached 8th Battalion The Lincolnshire Regiment,
37th Division.
Killed-in-Action 18 October 2018.
Text and Illustrations: THE UNION JACK CLUB.
LEST WE FORGET.
The Union Jack Club.
Victoria Cross.
Roll of Honour.
Rev. Theodore Bayley Hardy VC DSO MC.
20 October 1863 — 18 October 1918.
Occupation at time of Action: Temporary Chaplain to the Forces, 4th Class, Army Chaplains’ Department, attached
8th Battalion The Lincolnshire Regiment, 37th Division.
Theodore Bayley Hardy was the third son of
George Hardy, a commercial traveller selling woollen cloth, and Sarah Richards Huntley (née Beedle).
He grew up in Southernhay, Exeter, moving to London
with his mother when his father died. He went on to London University and in 1889 attained a Bachelor of Arts degree.
The previous year, he had married Florence Hastings in Belfast. The couple went on to have a son and a daughter.
At thirty-five, Hardy was Ordained as a Deacon in
Southwell and, leading up to the First World War, he
was a schoolteacher and a curate in Nottinghamshire.
He then became headmaster at Bentham Grammar School.
Ill-health led to a move to Hutton Roof, Cumbria, as Parish Priest in 1913. His wife died a few weeks before war broke out.
As young men rushed to join up to defend their Country, Hardy was over fifty, but felt he should serve his Country.
The authorities initially felt that The Front was no place for a Clergyman of his age, but, in the Summer of 1916, after the slaughter of The Somme, they relented, and Theodore Hardy was sent as Chaplain to Etaples, on the Coast of France.
This was not enough for Hardy; he wanted to Serve at
The Front and minister to the fighting men in the trenches.
In December 1916, he persuaded the Army to let him join
8th Battalion, The Lincolnshire Regiment, at Vieille Chapelle.
Hardy ministered to the Troops during the build-up
to Passchendaele, dodging snipers, handing out sweets
and cigarettes, writing letters for the Troops, and
calming many a lost and frightened Soul.
On 31 July 1917, the Battle commenced with an attack
on Riffle Farm. The Battalion suffered seven Officers
and 170 Other Ranks as casualties in this Action.
All this time, Hardy was with his men, helping the
stretcher-bearers and bringing succour to the wounded.
He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order.
He continued at The Front through September 1917
into October 1917 and was awarded the Military Cross
“for repeatedly going out under heavy fire to help
the stretcher-bearers during an attack.”
The War ebbed and flowed, and in Spring 1918, The Lincolns were moved to The Somme. Hardy was in the thick of it as usual, and his actions on 5 April, 25 April, and 27 April 1918, resulted in him being awarded the Victoria Cross.
LEST WE FORGET.
Citation:
“For most conspicuous bravery
and devotion to duty on many occasions.
“Although over fifty years of age, he has, by his fearlessness, devotion to the men of his Battalion, and quiet, unobtrusive manner, won the respect and admiration of the Division.
“His marvellous energy and endurance would be remarkable even in a very much younger man, and his valour and devotion are exemplified in the following incidents:
“An Infantry Patrol had gone out to attack a previously located enemy Post in the ruins of a village, the Reverend Theodore Bayley Hardy being at Company Headquarters.
“Hearing firing, he followed the Patrol and, 400 yards
past our Front Line, found a wounded Officer. He remained with the Officer until he got assistance to bring him in.
“During this time, there was a great deal of firing,
and an enemy Patrol actually penetrated between
the spot at which the Officer was lying and our Front Line.
“On a second occasion, when an enemy shell exploded
in the middle of one of our Posts, the Reverend T. B. Hardy
at once made his way to the spot, despite shell and trench mortar fire, and set to work to extricate the buried men.
“He succeeded in getting out one man
who had been completely buried. He then set to work to extricate a second man, who was found to be dead.
“During the whole of the time that he was digging out the men, this Chaplain was in great danger, not only from shell fire, but also because of the dangerous condition of the wall of the building which had been hit by the shell which buried the men.
“On a third occasion, he displayed the greatest Devotion to Duty when our Infantry, after a successful attack, were gradually forced back to their starting trench.
“After it was believed that all our men had withdrawn from the Wood, Chaplain Hardy came out of it, and, on reaching an Advanced Post, asked for help to get in a wounded man.
“Accompanied by a Serjeant, he made his way to the spot where the man lay, within ten yards of a Pill-Box which had been captured in the morning, but was subsequently recaptured and occupied by the enemy.
“The wounded man was too weak to stand, but,
between them, the Chaplain and the Serjeant
eventually succeeded in getting him to our Lines.
“Throughout, enemy artillery, machine-gun, and trench mortar fire, was continuous, and caused many casualties.
“Notwithstanding, this very gallant Chaplain was seen
moving quietly amongst the men and tending the wounded, absolutely regardless of his personal safety.”
When told that he had been nominated for the VC
[Editor: “Victoria Cross”], he said: “I really must protest”.
On 9 August 1918, King George V presented him with his award at Frohen-le-Grand, France. The King appointed him Chaplain to His Majesty, hoping to remove him from The Front. Hardy had none of that, and returned to his Battalion.
On 10 October 1918, he was hit by machine gun fire,
as The Lincolns were crossing the River Selle by night.
He died on 18 October 1918,
three days before his fifty-fifth birthday.
Hardy was buried in the Saint Sever Cemetery, near Rouen.
The Reverend Theodore Bayley Hardy is the
most decorated, non-combatant in the First World War.
His Medals are held by the Museum of Army Chaplaincy, Amport, Hampshire.
LEST WE FORGET.
Sources vcgca.org and victoriacrossonline.com
