Remembered Charlton Cemetery,London Lieutenant SEWELL, CECIL HAROLD Died 29/08/1918 Aged 23 Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment) and 3rd (Light) Tank Bn. Tank Corps V C Son of Harry Bolton Sewell and Mary Ann Sewell, of 26 Crooms Hill, Greenwich, London. His brothers Harry Kemp Sewell and Herbert Victor Sewell also fell. INSCRIPTION ALSO IN MEMORY OF LIEUT H.V. SEWELL ROYAL FIELD ARTILLERY KILLED 13.11.16. AGE 27 YEARS Buried at VAULX HILL CEMETERY Location: Pas de Calais, France Number of casualties: 600 Cemetery/memorial reference: I. D. 3. CITATION An extract from "The London Gazette," No. 30982, dated 29th Oct., 1918, records the following '' When in command of a section of Whippet Light Tanks in action this officer displayed most conspicuous bravery and initiative in getting out of his own Tank and crossing open ground under heavy shell and machine-gun fire to rescue the crew of another Whippet of his section which had side slipped into a large shell-hole, overturned and taken fire. The door of the Tank having become jammed against the side of the shell-hole, Lt. Sewell, by his own unaided efforts, dug away the entrance to the door and released the crew. In so doing he undoubtedly saved the lives of the officer and men inside the Tank as they could not have got out without his assistance. After having extricated the crew, seeing one of his own crew lying wounded behind his Tank, he again dashed across the open ground to his assistance. He was hit in doing so, but succeeded in reaching the Tank when a few minutes later he was again hit, fatally, in the act of dressing his wounded driver. During the whole of this period he was within full view and short range of the enemy machine guns and rifle-pits, and throughout, by his prompt and heroic action, showed an utter disregard for his own personal safety."
UK, Victoria Cross Medals, 1857-2007 Name: Cecil Harold Sewell Birth Date: 27 Jan 1895 Birth Place: Crooms Hill, Greenwich, South East London Death Date: 29 Aug 1918 Death Place: Fremincourt, France One or two other bits hopefully for interest TD
His Whippet tank is on permanent display at the Bovington Tank Museum and his VC is also there on temporary display along with the other 3 VCs awarded to Tank Corps personnel in WW1. Not sure how long that temporary display will be in place but the medals will no doubt return to their home in the Ashcroft Collection at the IWM in due course.
