Douglas Walter Belcher
Lance Sergeant, 1/5th Battalion (City Of London) The London Regiment.(London Rifle Brigade)
- Register No.
- 74 (Alf's numbering, from The Register of the Victoria Cross, 1997)
- Rank
- Lance Sergeant (register: Lance-Sergeant) all Lance-Sergeants →
- Unit
- 1/5th Battalion (City Of London) The London Regiment.(London Rifle Brigade) all London Regiment VCs →
- Date of action
- 13 May 1915 on this day → all of 1915 →
- Conflict / campaign
- First World War
- London Gazette
- 23rd June 1915 on this day → all of 1915 →
- Born
- 15th July 1889 at Surbiton, Surrey
- Died
- 3rd June 1953 at Claygate, Surrey
- Memorial / grave
- grave in the Churchyard, Holy Trinity Church, Claygate, Surrey
- Medal held by
- the Royal Green Jackets Museum
Digest of citation
On 13th May 1915, south of the Weiltje- St. Julien Road, Belgium, Lance Sergeant Belcher was in charge of a portion of an advanced breastwork during continuous bombardment by the enemy. The lance-sergeant, with very few men, elected to remain and try to hold his position after the troops near him had been withdrawn, and with great skill he succeeded in his objective, opening rapid fire on the enemy, who were only 150-200 yards away, whenever he saw them collecting for an attack. This bold action prevented the enemy breaking through and averted an attack on the flank of one of our divisions
From Alf Askin's research notes
Reproduced as Alf wrote it, c. 2000–2005. Spelling and abbreviations are his own.
BELCHER, Douglas Walter (Reg. No 74).
Lance Sergeant 1/5th Battalion (City Of London) The London Regiment.(London Rifle Brigade)
London Gazetted on 23rd June 1915.
VC Medal's Custodian is the Royal Green Jackets Museum.
Born on 15th July 1889 at Surbiton, Surrey.
Died on 3rd June 1953 at Claygate, Surrey.
Memorial at grave in the Churchyard, Holy Trinity Church, Claygate, Surrey.
Digest of Citation reads: On 13th May 1915, south of the Weiltje- St. Julien Road, Belgium, Lance Sergeant Belcher was in charge of a portion of an advanced breastwork during continuous bombardment by the enemy. The lance-sergeant, with very few men, elected to remain and try to hold his position after the troops near him had been withdrawn, and with great skill he succeeded in his objective, opening rapid fire on the enemy, who were only 150-200 yards away, whenever he saw them collecting for an attack. This bold action prevented the enemy breaking through and averted an attack on the flank of one of our divisions.
Additional Information: Promoted Captain.
Additional information
Promoted Captain
Visit the grave or memorial
Alf recorded the memorial as: grave in the Churchyard, Holy Trinity Church, Claygate, Surrey
Map links open a search for the place name Alf recorded; please check opening times and exact locations before travelling. Many VC graves have since been restored by the Victoria Cross Trust.
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