Francis Cornwallis Maude

He kept his battered guns firing to open the road to Lucknow

Francis Cornwallis Maude VC CB was born in London on 28 October 1828. Educated at Rugby and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, he entered the Royal Artillery in 1847. He commanded a battery in Ceylon before the Indian uprising brought his men to Henry Havelock's relief force.

On 25 September 1857, approaching Lucknow, Maude's guns went into action near the Char Bagh Bridge. The enemy held the opposite bank and swept the approaches with artillery fire. One British gun was disabled and its crew suffered heavily.

Maude kept the battery fighting with volunteers drawn from supporting infantry. The guns helped sustain the advance until the bridge could be stormed. His men selected him by ballot for the Victoria Cross, recognising his leadership in circumstances that had placed the whole relief column in danger.

He subsequently helped defend the Lucknow Residency and continued in the campaign. His service brought brevet promotion and appointment as a Companion of the Bath. He married Paulina Sterling in 1860 and reached the rank of colonel before leaving active military service.

Maude later became Britain's consul-general at Warsaw, serving from 1876 to 1886, and was appointed a Military Knight of Windsor in 1895. He died at Windsor in October 1900 and was buried in the borough cemetery. His awards also included the Indian Mutiny Medal with the Relief of Lucknow and Lucknow clasps.

Official Victoria Cross citation

This officer steadily and cheerily pushed on with his men, and bore down the desperate opposition of the enemy, though with the loss of one-third of his Artillerymen. Sir James Outram adds, that this attack appeared to him to indicate no reckless or foolhardy daring, but the calm heroism of a true soldier, who fully appreciates the difficulties and dangers of the task he has undertaken; and that, but for Captain Maude’s nerve and coolness on this trying occasion, the Army could not have advanced. (Extract from Field Force Orders of the late Major- General Havelock, dated 17th October, 1857.)

The London Gazette of 18 June 1858, Numb. 22154, p. 2957