Samuel Mitchell
Captain of the Foretop, Royal Navy
- Register No.
- 878 (Alf's numbering, from The Register of the Victoria Cross, 1997)
- Rank
- Captain of the Foretop all Captain of the Foretops →
- Unit
- Royal Navy (register: HMS Harrier) all HMS Harrier VCs →
- Date of action
- 29 April 1864 on this day → all of 1864 →
- Conflict / campaign
- New Zealand Wars
- London Gazette
- 23rd July, 1864 on this day → all of 1864 →
- Born
- the 8th September 1841 at Apsley Guise, Woburn, Bedfordshire
- Memorial / grave
- on a hillside near Ross, New Zealand
Digest of citation
Captain of the Foretop, Samuel Mitchell, of HMS Harrier, at the time acting as the Captain's coxswain, during the attack at Gate Pah, Te Papa, Tauranga, New Zealand, entered the pah with Commander Hay. When his officer was wounded, he defied the order to leave him behind and save himself, and carried him to safety
From Alf Askin's research notes
Reproduced as Alf wrote it, c. 2000–2005. Spelling and abbreviations are his own.
MITCHELL, Samuel. (reg No. 878).
Captain of the Foretop. Royal Navy.
London Gazetted on 23rd July, 1864.
Born on the 8th September 1841 at Apsley Guise, Woburn, Bedfordshire. Drowned on 16th March, 1894 in the Mikonui River, New Zealand.
Memorial on grave on a hillside near Ross, New Zealand.
Digest of Citation reads: Captain of the Foretop, Samuel Mitchell, of HMS Harrier, at the time acting as the Captain's coxswain, during the attack at Gate Pah, Te Papa, Tauranga, New Zealand, entered the pah with Commander Hay. When his officer was wounded, he defied the order to leave him behind and save himself, and carried him to safety.
Additional information:. The son of a labourer, Samuel Mitchell joined the Navy as a boy in August 1857. After a gunnery course at HMS Excellent he joined HMS Harrier when she was commissioned at Portsmouth in August 1860. After his discharge from the Navy in 1866 he returned to New Zealand. His sea-chest and other belongings, including his Victoria Cross, were lost in Sydney. Having settled down a Hokitiki, New Zealand, he married Agnes Ross in 1869. She bore him three sons and seven daughters. His Victoria Cross turned up and was sold on 20th November 1908 for £50. His family managed to regain the Cross in 1928. A coincidence, (Recorded in John Winton's, "the Victoria Cross at Sea,") tells of how his body was found by a Mr Green, who had, in fact, also been present at the attack on the Gate Pah while serving aboard HMS Eclipse.
Additional information
The son of a labourer, Samuel Mitchell joined the Navy as a boy in August 1857. After a gunnery course at HMS Excellent he joined HMS Harrier when she was commissioned at Portsmouth in August 1860. After his discharge from the Navy in 1866 he returned to New Zealand. His sea-chest and other belongings, including his Victoria Cross, were lost in Sydney. Having settled down a Hokitiki, New Zealand, he married Agnes Ross in 1869. She bore him three sons and seven daughters. His Victoria Cross turned up and was sold on 20th November 1908 for £50. His family managed to regain the Cross in 1928. A coincidence, (Recorded in John Winton's, "the Victoria Cross at Sea,") tells of how his body was found by a Mr Green, who had, in fact, also been present at the attack on the Gate Pah while serving aboard HMS Eclipse.
Drowned on 16th March, 1894 in the Mikonui River, New Zealand.
Visit the grave or memorial
Alf recorded the memorial as: on a hillside near Ross, New Zealand
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.
Research this recipient further
Would you like to honour Samuel Mitchell by sponsoring this page from £1 a month — in memory of someone, in your own name or for your company? Sponsor this page.