Theodore Bayley Hardy

RECOVERED WOUNDED SOLDIERS UNDER CONTINUOUS ENEMY FIRE

The Reverend Theodore Bayley Hardy carried his pastoral duty into the exposed ground between the trenches. During the First World War he repeatedly went forward to find wounded men, bring them back, and dig survivors out of positions hit by shellfire. His Victoria Cross citation records three dangerous rescues: remaining with a patrol officer dangerously wounded beyond the British line, digging buried men from a shelled post, and returning with a sergeant to recover a soldier near a pillbox retaken by the enemy. Hardy kept tending casualties through the day’s artillery, machine-gun and trench-mortar fire.

Born in Exeter in 1863, Hardy worked as a schoolmaster before his ordination in 1898. He taught at Nottingham High School, later became headmaster of Bentham Grammar School, and in 1913 took up the living of Hutton Roof in Westmorland. His wife Florence had died in 1914. Although already over fifty when war began, he persisted after an initial rejection on grounds of age and was accepted as a temporary chaplain in 1916. He served with the 8th Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment, on the Western Front.

Hardy had already received the Distinguished Service Order and Military Cross for earlier acts of courage in caring for wounded soldiers under fire. The Victoria Cross, announced in July 1918, made him one of the most highly decorated British Army chaplains of the war. King George V presented it in France on 9 August. Hardy remained with his men, later suffered a gunshot wound while crossing a temporary bridge over the River Selle, and died of his wounds in a Rouen hospital on 18 October 1918. He was buried at St. Sever Cemetery Extension, Rouen. His headstone bears the words “Love Never Faileth.”

VICTORIA CROSS CITATION

For most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty on many occasions. Although over fifty years of age, he has, by his fearlessness, devotion to men of his battalion, and quiet, unobtrusive manner, won the respect and admiration of the whole division. His marvellous energy and endurance would be remarkable even in a very much younger man, and his valour and devotion are exemplified in the following incidents: An infantry patrol had gone out to attack a previously located enemy post in the ruins of a village, the Reverend Theodore Bayley Hardy (C.F.) being then at company headquarters. Hearing firing, he followed the patrol, and about four hundred yards beyond our front line of posts found an officer of the patrol dangerously wounded. He remained with the officer until he was able to get assistance to bring him in. During this time there was a great deal of firing, and an enemy patrol actually penetrated between the spot at which the officer was lying and our front line and captured three of our men.

On a second occasion, when an enemy shell exploded in the middle of one of our posts, the Reverend T. B. Hardy at once made his way to the spot, despite the shell and trench mortar fire which was going on at the time, and set to work to extricate the buried men. He succeeded in getting out one man who had been completely buried. He then set to work to extricate a second man, who was found to be dead. During the whole of the time that he was digging out the men this chaplain was in great danger, not only from shell fire, but also because of the dangerous condition of the wall of the building which had been hit by the shell which buried the men.

On a third occasion he displayed the greatest devotion to duty when our infantry, after a successful attack, were gradually forced back to their starting trench. After it was believed that all our men had withdrawn from the wood, Chaplain Hardy came out of it, and on reaching an advanced post asked the men to help him to get in a wounded man. Accompanied by a serjeant, he made his way to the spot where the man lay, within ten yards of a pill-box which had been captured in the morning, but was subsequently re-captured and occupied by the enemy. The wounded man was too weak to stand, but between them the chaplain and the serjeant eventually succeeded in getting him to our lines. Throughout the day the enemy’s artillery, machine-gun, and trench mortar fire was continuous, and caused many casualties. Notwithstanding, this very gallant chaplain was seen moving quietly amongst the men and tending the wounded, absolutely regardless of his personal safety.

SOURCES

1. The London Gazette, Supplement to issue 30790, 9 July 1918, pp. 8155–8156; Victoria Cross citation. 2. Victoria Cross and George Cross Association, “Rev Theodore Bayley Hardy VC,” biographical profile and service chronology. 3. Imperial War Museums, War Memorials Register, “Revd Theodore Bayley Hardy VC DSO MC,” memorial and biographical inscription. 4. Commonwealth War Graves Commission, “Reverend Theodore Bayley Hardy VC DSO MC,” service, death, and burial record.