Private William Short VC


On 6 Aug 1916 at Munster Alley in France, Private Short of the 8th Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment, was up front in the attack, bombing the enemy with great enthusiasm. He was soon wounded in the foot and the others urged him to go back, but he carried on throwing bombs. Later his leg was shattered by a shell so he lay in the trench, continuing to make use of his time by adjusting detonators and straightening grenade pins for the others to throw. He died shortly after midnight on 7 Aug, before he could be carried away. He was recommended for a posthumous VC and it was gazetted on 9 Sep 1916. 

William Henry Short was from Grangetown near Middlesborough. He was born at Eston on 4 Feb 1885. His parents were still teenagers when he was born and unmarried. For this reason the family gave out his year of birth as 1887 by which time the couple were married. William worked as a cranesman in the ironworks at Grangetown like his father and grandfather. The family moved from Eston to a house in Grangetown for convenience, living at 35 Vaughan Street. A brother was born in 1901.

William was a keen footballer and played for several local teams, Grangetown, Lazenby and Saltburn. The only photo of him is the one shown here, which is taken from a group photo of the Lazenby team. When war started in 1914 he enlisted on 2 Sep at South Bank, joining the 8th Battalion, Yorkshires at Richmond. They were part of 69 Brigade in the 23rd Division, with the 11th West Yorkshires and 10th West Riding. The division arrived in France in late August 1915 and kept in reserve at the battle of Loos. He gained a reputation for volunteering for ‘dangerous enterprises’. He was rewarded with ten day’s leave not long before his brave deed in Aug 1916. His date of death was 7 Aug 1916. He was buried at Contalmaison Chateau Cemetery.

On 29 Nov 1916, William’s father, James, was at Buckingham Palace to receive his son’s Victoria Cross medal from King George V. At home a public subscription from townspeople and officers and men of his regiment enabled the raising of a memorial to him at Grangetown. It was unveiled on 26 July 1919. It is an obelisk made of Cleveland Ironstone on a granite base. In the 1920s it was moved to Eston Cemetery.


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by Stephen Luscombe