Alphonsus Hickey

He held his Bren gun position to shield retreating comrades.

Alphonsus Hickey was born in Sydney, Nova Scotia, on 29 April 1920 and raised in Whitney Pier. He worked at Dominion Steel, where burns to his feet delayed his first attempt to enlist. He joined the Canadian Army on 18 August 1942. After training in Nova Scotia, he arrived in Britain in March 1943 and deployed to Italy with the Cape Breton Highlanders later that year.

Wounded in April 1944, Hickey returned to his battalion in May. On 30 August, B Company fought for Point 120 during the Gothic Line offensive. As the company withdrew under fire, Hickey volunteered to remain with his Bren gun and cover his comrades. Accounts preserved by Cape Breton Military History describe other soldiers passing him ammunition as they escaped. He was killed that evening, aged 24, and his body was recovered after the position fell the next day.

Private Hickey was posthumously Mentioned in Despatches. He is buried at Montecchio War Cemetery in Italy, grave I.D.13.