William George Nicholas Manley

William George Nicholas Manley VC CB

William George Nicholas Manley was born in Dublin, Ireland, on 17 December 1831, the second son of the Reverend William Nicholas Manley and Elizabeth Browne, whose father, Dr Browne, had served with the Army Medical Staff. Educated at Blackheath Proprietary School, Manley chose medicine as his profession and qualified as a Member of the Royal College of Surgeons of England.

He entered the Army Medical Staff in the 1850s and was attached to the Royal Artillery. His military career soon placed him in the midst of some of the most demanding campaigns of the Victorian era.

Crimea

Manley served in the Crimea with the Royal Artillery from June 1855 and was present during the siege and fall of Sebastopol. For his service he received the Crimea Medal with the Sebastopol clasp and the Turkish Crimea Medal.

It was the beginning of an extraordinary career in which Manley repeatedly placed himself in danger, not as a combatant, but as a medical officer caring for men under fire.

New Zealand

Manley later accompanied the Royal Artillery to New Zealand and served during the New Zealand Wars from 1863 to 1866.

On 29 April 1864 British forces attacked the heavily defended Māori position at Gate Pā, near Tauranga. Manley volunteered to accompany the storming party into the pā so that medical assistance would be immediately available to the wounded.

The assault met fierce resistance and rapidly became a disaster. Among those mortally wounded was Commander Edward Hay of the Royal Navy. As Hay was carried from the pā, Manley attended to him. Rather than remaining in comparative safety once Hay had been removed, Manley volunteered to return into the position to search for other wounded men who might still be saved.

His conduct was witnessed and subsequently reported by Commodore Sir William Wiseman. Manley was recorded as being among the last officers to leave the pā.

For his courage at Gate Pā, Assistant Surgeon William George Nicholas Manley was awarded the Victoria Cross.

Victoria Cross Citation

The official London Gazette citation of 23 September 1864 records that Manley risked his life attempting to save Commander Hay and other wounded men. It specifically records that, after attending Hay as he was carried away mortally wounded, Manley volunteered to return to the pā to search for further wounded. The citation also records the testimony of Commodore Sir William Wiseman and states that Manley was one of the last officers to leave the position.

Further Service in New Zealand

Gate Pā was not the end of Manley’s active service in New Zealand. He continued to serve during the conflict and took part in operations under Major-General Sir Trevor Chute, including actions against Māori defensive positions at Okotuku, Putahi, Otapawa and Waikohou.

His work brought further recognition. He was mentioned in despatches and advanced professionally within the Army Medical Department.

Manley’s courage was not confined to the battlefield. While in New Zealand he rescued a Royal Artillery gunner who had fallen overboard while troops were disembarking from a steamer on the Waitotara River. For this act he received the Bronze Medal of the Royal Humane Society.

Franco-Prussian War

When the Franco-Prussian War began in 1870, Manley again volunteered his medical skills for active service. He joined the British Ambulance Corps and worked with the 22nd Division of the Prussian Army, treating wounded soldiers during the campaign.

His medical service exposed him to battlefield conditions at several engagements, including fighting associated with Orléans, Cravant, Châteauneuf and Bretoncelles.

His work was recognised by both German and French authorities. Among the foreign honours associated with his service was the Prussian Iron Cross, 2nd Class for non-combatants. He also received the Bavarian Military Merit Order and a cross from the French Société de Secours aux Blessés for his assistance to wounded French soldiers.

The precise grade of Manley’s Bavarian Military Merit Order requires further verification before it should be stated in his formal list of decorations.

Afghanistan

Manley returned to active campaigning during the Second Anglo-Afghan War. He served with the Quetta Field Force during 1878 and 1879 and was associated with the occupation of Kandahar.

He received the Afghanistan Medal for this service. His entitlement to the separate Kandahar battle clasp should be determined from the medal roll rather than inferred from his earlier service at Kandahar.

Egypt

In 1882 Manley served in Egypt as Principal Medical Officer of the Second Division under Lieutenant-General Sir Edward Hamley. He was present at the Battle of Tel el-Kebir, the decisive engagement of the campaign.

His Egyptian service brought further campaign recognition, including the Egypt Medal and Khedive’s Star. He was also awarded the Ottoman Order of Osmanieh, 3rd Class.

His distinguished career continued after the campaign, but his later appointment as a Companion of the Order of the Bath was not an immediate reward for his Egyptian service.

Later Career

Manley rose through the senior ranks of the Army Medical Department and ultimately held the rank of Surgeon-General. By the end of his career he had accumulated an exceptional record of medical and military service spanning the Crimea, New Zealand, continental Europe, Afghanistan and Egypt.

In 1894, long after the Egyptian campaign, Manley was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the Military Division.

His combination of professional medical service and personal courage made his career particularly unusual. He had entered dangerous positions to reach wounded soldiers, rescued a drowning man and provided medical treatment to casualties on opposing sides of a European war.

William George Nicholas Manley died at Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, on 16 November 1901, aged 69.

He is remembered as one of the most remarkable medical officers of the Victorian British Army, a surgeon whose career repeatedly placed him alongside the wounded at the point where medical duty and personal courage became inseparable.