Henry Tandey

Henry Tandey was born Henry James Tandy on 30 August 1891 in Leamington, Warwickshire. On 12 August 1910 he enlisted in the Alexandra, Princess of Wales’s Own (Yorkshire Regiment), later widely known as the Green Howards, and served under the regimental number 9545. After joining the 2nd Battalion, he served in Guernsey and South Africa before the outbreak of the First World War. Tandey went to the Western Front in 1914 and fought during the First Battle of Ypres. He was wounded during the Battle of the Somme in October 1916 and again at Passchendaele in November 1917. After recovering, he returned to France and in July 1918 transferred from the Yorkshire Regiment to the Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding Regiment), where he served with the number 34506.

Serving with the 5th Battalion, Duke of Wellington’s Regiment, Tandey produced an extraordinary series of acts of gallantry within little more than a month. On 28 August 1918, during the fighting around Vaulx-Vraucourt in the late-August Allied advance, he was in charge of a reserve bombing party when the advance was temporarily checked. Calling on two other soldiers, he worked across exposed ground in the rear of the enemy position, rushed a post and returned with twenty prisoners. For this action he received the Distinguished Conduct Medal, which was published in the London Gazette supplement dated 3 December 1918. This action should not be described as part of the Second Battle of Cambrai, which was a later operation.

At Havrincourt on 12 September 1918, Tandey again distinguished himself in action. Regimental accounts associate his gallantry there with the Military Medal. The action date and award publication date should be kept separate: his Military Medal was published in the London Gazette on 11 March 1919, several months after the fighting. There is no verified entitlement to a Bar to his Military Medal, and the documented medal group contains a single Military Medal without a Bar.

The culmination of Tandey’s wartime gallantry came at Marcoing on 28 September 1918. During the advance his platoon was stopped by machine-gun fire. Tandey crawled forward, located the position and, with a Lewis gun team, knocked it out. At the canal crossings he repaired a damaged plank bridge under heavy fire, allowing the crossing to proceed. Later that day he and eight comrades found themselves surrounded by a much larger German force. Tandey led a bayonet charge that drove thirty-seven Germans into the hands of the remainder of his company. Although wounded twice, he refused to leave until the position had been secured. His actions earned him the Victoria Cross, gazetted on 13 December 1918.

The official citation stated:

“For most conspicuous bravery and initiative during the capture of the village and the crossings at Marcoing, and the subsequent counter-attack on September 28th, 1918. When, during the advance on Marcoing, his platoon was held up by machine-gun fire, he at once crawled forward, located the machine gun, and, with a Lewis gun team, knocked it out. On arrival at the crossings he restored the plank bridge under a hail of bullets, thus enabling the first crossing to be made at this vital spot. Later in the evening, during an attack, he, with eight comrades, was surrounded by an overwhelming number of Germans, and though the position was apparently hopeless, he led a bayonet charge through them, fighting so fiercely that 37 of the enemy were driven into the hands of the remainder of his company. Although twice wounded, he refused to leave till the fight was won.”

Tandey was formally invested with the Victoria Cross by King George V at Buckingham Palace on 17 December 1919. That date is supported independently by the Yorkshire Regiment research material and the specialist catalogue of his attributed medal group. The alternative claim that the investiture occurred before Christmas 1918 is inconsistent with these sources.

After his wartime service ended in March 1919, Tandey re-enlisted almost immediately in the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment and subsequently continued serving at home and overseas. He was later posted with the regiment to Gibraltar, Turkey and Egypt before finally leaving the Army on 5 January 1926. He then returned to civilian life, eventually settling in Coventry and working for the Standard Motor Company. During the Second World War he served as an Air Raid Warden in Coventry, including during the bombing of the city in November 1940. His documented medal entitlement includes the Defence Medal for his Second World War service. Tandey remained in Coventry until his death on 20 December 1977, aged eighty-six.