James Bergin

He climbed a defended wall to clear a path for his comrades.

James Bergin was born at Kilbricken in County Laois, Ireland, on 29 June 1845. He enlisted in the 10th Regiment of Foot in 1862, transferred to the 108th in India the following year and joined the 33rd Regiment in 1867. His service with the 33rd brought him into the British expedition to Abyssinia, dispatched to release prisoners held by Emperor Tewodros II.

On 13 April 1868, the regiment attacked the fortress of Magdala. Its entrance was obstructed, and the assault troops were exposed to defenders above them. Bergin and Drummer Michael Magner climbed the escarpment and reached the top of the defences ahead of the main body. They crossed the obstacles and helped clear the entrance so that the troops below could enter. Their initiative accelerated the assault at a point where the advance might otherwise have stalled. Both men received the Victoria Cross.

Bergin's award was announced on 28 July 1868. He received the decoration in India the following year, at Belgaum, from Brigadier-General Domvile. His Abyssinian campaign medal commemorated the same expedition. Unlike many recipients whose military lives ended soon after their decorated action, Bergin continued as a regular soldier.

He later served with the 78th Highlanders and attained the rank of sergeant. During the Second Afghan War he served with the Kurram Valley Field Force and received the Afghanistan Medal. His subsequent career remained closely connected to the army's Indian stations. He died at Poona on 1 December 1880, aged thirty-five, and was buried in St Patrick's Cemetery. The cemetery and his grave did not survive intact. His medals, preserved with the history of the Duke of Wellington's Regiment, provide a tangible record of the young infantryman's part in the assault on Magdala.