World War I Victoria Cross Recipient. He received the award for his actions as a quartermaster-sergeant in the 1st Battalion, The King's Own Scottish Borderers, British Army on August 16, 1917 at the Battle of Passchendaele (also known as the Third Battle of Ypres) near Wijdendrift, Belgium. Born in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, he enlisted in the British Army shortly after the outbreak of World War I in July 1914. His Victoria Cross citation reads: "On 16 August 1917 at Wijdendrift, Belgium, Company Quartermaster-Sergeant Grimbaldeston noticed that the unit on his left was held up by enemy machine-gun fire from a blockhouse. Arming himself with a rifle and hand grenade he started to crawl towards his objective, and when he had advanced about 100 yards another soldier came forward to give covering support. Although wounded, he pushed on to the blockhouse, threatened the machine-gun teams inside with a hand grenade and forced them to surrender. This action resulted in the capture of 36 prisoners, six machine-guns and one trench mortar." Additionally, he was awarded the French Croix de Guerre. He died in Blackburn at the age of 69. His Victoria Cross is on display at the Regimental Museum of The Kings Own Scottish Borderers, Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland, England.
World War I Victoria Cross Recipient. He received the award for his actions as a quartermaster-sergeant in the 1st Battalion, The King's Own Scottish Borderers, British Army on August 16, 1917 at the Battle of Passchendaele (also known as the Third Battle of Ypres) near Wijdendrift, Belgium. Born in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, he enlisted in the British Army shortly after the outbreak of World War I in July 1914. His Victoria Cross citation reads: "On 16 August 1917 at Wijdendrift, Belgium, Company Quartermaster-Sergeant Grimbaldeston noticed that the unit on his left was held up by enemy machine-gun fire from a blockhouse. Arming himself with a rifle and hand grenade he started to crawl towards his objective, and when he had advanced about 100 yards another soldier came forward to give covering support. Although wounded, he pushed on to the blockhouse, threatened the machine-gun teams inside with a hand grenade and forced them to surrender. This action resulted in the capture of 36 prisoners, six machine-guns and one trench mortar." Additionally, he was awarded the French Croix de Guerre. He died in Blackburn at the age of 69. His Victoria Cross is on display at the Regimental Museum of The Kings Own Scottish Borderers, Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland, England.
Bio by: William Bjornstad
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