- 2 days ago
For educational purposes
Episode 4 "THE ASHCROFT VC COLLECTION" Fascinating facts about the medal and exclusive access to the largest and most valuable collection of VCs in the world.
Carefully gathered by Lord Ashcroft, KCMG.
Extended and revealing interviews with five living VC holders :
- Johnson Beharry VC (Iraq 2004)
- Keith Payne VC (Vietnam 1969)
- Ram Bahadur Limbu VC (Indonesia 1965)
- William Speakman VC (Korea 1951)
- Lachhiman Gurung VC (Burma 1945).
Episode 4 "THE ASHCROFT VC COLLECTION" Fascinating facts about the medal and exclusive access to the largest and most valuable collection of VCs in the world.
Carefully gathered by Lord Ashcroft, KCMG.
Extended and revealing interviews with five living VC holders :
- Johnson Beharry VC (Iraq 2004)
- Keith Payne VC (Vietnam 1969)
- Ram Bahadur Limbu VC (Indonesia 1965)
- William Speakman VC (Korea 1951)
- Lachhiman Gurung VC (Burma 1945).
Category
📚
LearningTranscript
00:01The Victoria Cross is Britain's highest award for valour.
00:06Since 1856, when the cross was first created, 1355 have been awarded.
00:13Each one is a potent symbol of a brave act.
00:22The Ashcroft Victoria Cross collection has been built up quietly over the last 20 years.
00:28This is the world's largest VC collection.
00:32It began with the childhood fascination of one man.
00:36I was constantly asking my father, what did you do during the war, Dad?
00:41He was a young officer that was in one of the first landing craft that came into Normandy on D
00:50-Day.
00:51I listened intently, I thought, well, this is my dad.
00:53And he then explained that as the landing craft came in, the smell, the vomit, the smell of fear,
01:02the pinging of the machine gun bullets immediately, his colonel in charge shot by his side,
01:09the rushing up of the beach, his eventually being wounded some miles off the beach, evacuated.
01:16It was just a former schoolboy hero worship and how proud I was of my father.
01:22I then came across the gallantry awards of the Victoria Cross.
01:28And that led me to take out other books from the library on those who had won the Victoria Cross.
01:35And just reading those citations, and in my own mind, just thinking my dad was just as worthy as any
01:43Victoria Cross holder,
01:45must somehow have been overlooked at that point of time.
01:52And then I read in a newspaper, again as a schoolboy, that a Victoria Cross was for sale.
02:00And I thought, wouldn't it be marvelous to own a VC and to be able to put after your name
02:06VC,
02:07something like Michael Ashcroft VC, sounded superb.
02:11Anyway, it wasn't long before a teacher disillusioned me of this concept.
02:15But it didn't diminish my interest of saying, way back as a schoolboy,
02:21one day, I want to own a Victoria Cross.
02:27As a young man, Michael's fascination developed into something deeper and more questioning.
02:33To me, war and bravery became a very serious subject.
02:40Why didn't that make me ever want to join the armed forces, perhaps, is an interesting question.
02:48When you have a look at the VCs and from the background of many of those,
02:53I think what probably comes out, it's a sense of duty,
02:58and a duty to your peer group not to let them down in cases of danger,
03:03and you just feel you have to do it.
03:06Would I have had the courage to have done one of these acts?
03:12And I invariably came to the conclusion that I didn't think so.
03:18Business success meant that in 1986, Michael Ashcroft was in a position to buy a Victoria Cross.
03:25The Victoria Cross to McGuinness came onto the market, and I felt that this was the time just to obtain
03:34one Victoria Cross.
03:37And I can still, to this day, remember the feeling of sort of an exhilaration.
03:45Medals can be sold privately or by specialist auctioneers.
03:49Prices for all gallantry medals are rising, and before parting with thousands of pounds,
03:54it's best to have a medal expert check it out.
03:57With 40 years experience, Michael Naxton is the Ashcroft VC Collection's curator.
04:03The latest potential addition to the VC Collection is another Victoria Cross coming up for sale.
04:08Michael has arranged a viewing at the auctioneers' offices to examine the VC and make sure it's genuine.
04:14Look out today.
04:14Yes, I'm very keen to have a look at this. I made the arrangements earlier on.
04:18Very good. Thank you.
04:19I'm afraid formalities, as always. Just a name will be fine.
04:22No, don't worry. These things need to be done.
04:24And we've released the cross from the stitching, so you can well see the details on the back there.
04:29Thank you very much. I'm particularly anxious to look at that, as you would expect.
04:33Right. 10.20.
04:36Thank you very much indeed.
04:37Lovely. Take all time.
04:38Thank you. And I'll see you later.
04:39Thank you so much. See you later on.
04:40Bye-bye.
04:42Now, over the 40 years that I've been a medal expert, I've seen a huge number of fake Victoria Crosses.
04:50The majority of them are, to the expert eye, fairly obviously fakes.
04:56And also, the majority of them don't have the full details engraved on the back.
05:03The actual genuine VC has been sold in order to raise money.
05:09And rather than admit to the sale of this treasured object, a replica would be made.
05:18It's relatively easy to fake a Victoria Cross.
05:21But what fakers never get completely right is either the thickness, or the colour, or the exact style of the
05:30engraving.
05:31The manufacturers of the VC, the London jewelers, Hancocks, decided to put a secret mark on every Victoria Cross, which
05:40would, in the future, authenticate it absolutely.
05:44And I shall be happy to tell Lord Ashcroft, that this one has the secret mark.
05:53633 VCs were awarded during the First World War, the largest number for any single conflict, with 12 VCs for
06:01outstanding acts of bravery during the Allied landings at Gallipoli.
06:06Irishman William Cosgrove led the attack against the Turkish positions, where thousands were killed, on 26 April 1915.
06:19This is Cosgrove's VC.
06:24And having read carefully the description in the auctioneer's catalogue, and having looked into Corporal Cosgrove's military service, I can
06:34see that everything to which he is entitled is here.
06:39Cosgrove has obviously worn his medals, a little bit faint here, for example, where they've been polished over the years.
06:46But essentially, the general condition of the entire group, and particularly the Victoria Cross, is excellent.
06:52And I will certainly recommend to Lord Ashcroft that the medal is 100%.
06:58Victoria Crosses don't need restoration, as they're very hard-wearing.
07:03Designed to be simple, they're not made of silver or encrusted with diamonds.
07:07The medal comes from a captured 19th-century cannon.
07:12The medal has no real value.
07:15One of the most important medals in the Ashcroft VC collection is that of the First World War ace pilot,
07:21William Leif Robinson.
07:23The Leif Robinson VC, I think, is a very important one.
07:28Lord Ashcroft was really delighted when this one came up for auction and we were able to buy it.
07:33It was the first occasion on which a German Zeppelin had been shot down.
07:37And it is impossible for us to underestimate the importance of this at the time.
07:43The fact that Leif Robinson was the man who brought the first one down.
07:47The fact that it was over England and witnessed by thousands and thousands of ordinary Londoners.
07:54A year later, Leif Robinson was shot down over Germany and became a prisoner of war.
08:01And he sort of drags himself home in a very weakened state.
08:06And within a few days, he's died. Very poignant, I think.
08:14But having died in the flu pandemic, I think initially he was buried in a mass grave, along with a
08:21lot of other servicemen who died nearby.
08:24I would suggest that he was maybe disinterred at a slightly later date and put in a distinctive grave.
08:32And where would the military honours have been? In the mass grave or here when he was finally brought to
08:37this spot?
08:38Undoubtedly, I think they would have been here on this grave.
08:42There were plenty of soldiers around.
08:44And in fact, his coffin was being carried on the shoulders of soldiers.
08:48Even though they were very preoccupied by the huge numbers of dead from this influenza epidemic,
08:55it still appears to be that they gave him the honour that was due to him as a VC hero.
09:04Well, certainly, if you're listening down there and noticing what is happening, I hope you appreciate us being able to
09:13bring back the cross to you.
09:17To Bill Leif Robinson.
09:18Good health, Jim.
09:21When you already own 142 VCs, how do you decide whether you want to buy another one?
09:29Now, we've got this other VC coming up very shortly.
09:32Yes, I've been to have a look at it this morning.
09:35Absolutely OK.
09:37It's a very nice cross.
09:39All the other medals are perfectly OK.
09:42Good condition, very good citation.
09:45I do think it's one we ought to consider.
09:48I always set a limit.
09:51And from time to time, there may be somebody who's prepared to exceed that limit.
09:57My limit does tend to be on the side of generosity because I'm so proud of the collection.
10:03The auctioneers hope to sell about 1,500 medals and pieces of memorabilia today, each with its own unique history.
10:12Michael Naxton is here to bid on behalf of the Ashcroft VC collection to buy the VC and other medals
10:18of William Cosgrove.
10:22So do please be careful. I will leave a perfectly fair pause before I bring the hammer down.
10:29That's when you need to shout if you think I've missed you.
10:31Don't be shy. Just shout bidding.
10:33We'll start the bidding on this one at £110,000.
10:37At £110,000 is bid in the room. Any more?
10:40New place. £120,000 now. £130,000. £140,000. £150,000. £160,000. £170,000.
10:55Against you at the front there? Yes.
10:57Yes? £180,000 now. At £180,000. Thank you very much indeed.
11:21The highest price that a British Victoria Cross for the First World War has ever made in this country.
11:29I think it's probably what drove today's price to where it went, which was £180,000 hammer price.
11:36And that is a pretty outstanding result.
11:39There were certainly two other bidders. The second one had dropped out by about £130,000, I think,
11:47which of course was just over the low estimate. But the other man chased me all the way.
11:52So he, I'm sure, is very disappointed. And I'm very, very happy that we've managed to acquire this one.
12:00The Ashcroft VC collection is a trust with its own strict rules for acquiring medals.
12:06We have never ambulance chased. In other words, the owner of the Victoria Cross, whether it is still the family
12:15or whether during the passage of time it has moved on outside the family,
12:19is that they either come up for auction or that I'm approached privately. Therefore, the decision to sell has already
12:28been made by the holder at that particular point of time.
12:33Having grown so quickly in the last 20 years, with 143 invaluable medals, the Ashcroft Victoria Cross collection is looking
12:42to the future.
12:44I would now like to be able to find a permanent home for the whole of the exhibition.
12:50In one place, with the memorabilia, with a history index of those that have won it, I would feel very
12:58proud.
12:59This largest collection of Victoria Crosses will never, ever leave this country.
13:09It's a tangible relic of a brave act with no intrinsic value.
13:16But yet there is a surge of electricity when you hold it in your hand and look at it and
13:24know the story of the courage behind that little piece of metal that you're looking at.
13:29To be continued...
13:42To be continued....
14:03Al Amara, Iraq, 1st May 2004, Princess of Wales Royal Regiment 1st Battalion.
14:12Private Johnson Bahari carried out two individual acts of bravery, saving the lives of his comrades
14:18under intense fire in the face of the enemy.
14:22He sustained life-threatening injuries.
14:25I had only moved in a couple of months before we had moved to Iraq, and I think it was
14:32the
14:32intensity and the violence in the combat that sort of moulded the battalion together very,
14:38very quickly.
14:40And you do become very attached and form very strong friendships when that happens.
14:48And I think some of those friendships will continue for years, a long, long time.
14:55And, like, I can never be grateful enough to Johnson for what not only he did for me but
15:01for the rest of the battalion as well.
15:02And, like, I speak for a lot of the guys when I say that'll never be forgotten.
15:07It took me a few weeks to get used with the concept of the Warrior, etc.
15:12And with having Johnson as my driver, he was very dedicated to the Warrior, so much so
15:20he was having conversations with it occasionally and talking to it and things like that.
15:25But from my point of view, it made life a lot more simple for me.
15:30I didn't have to worry about the Warrior and all the bits and pieces that went along with
15:34it because I knew Johnson had it all squared away, and that took a lot of weight off my
15:40shoulders.
15:40Johnson done a very, very good job at keeping the Warrior battle worthy.
15:46When guys are away maybe getting something to eat or getting a few hours sleep, Johnson
15:51would have been working, tinkering away with the Warrior, just making sure that the final
15:55points were squared away.
15:58And I think he actually slept on the Warrior a few nights as well, just to make sure he
16:03was there, make sure the Warrior was 100%.
16:06With me, I don't know if it's because of my pride in the vehicle, I'll stay back and
16:10look after the vehicle.
16:11And I'll be happy knowing the vehicle is 100% to take on the ground.
16:17I think you have to look after it.
16:19He takes you out, he has to bring you back, because if you take you out and you break down
16:23in the middle of a contact, that's it.
16:25And I remember one time we were going over a bridge and we tracked on top of the bridge
16:29and the vehicle just died.
16:32And I was like, no.
16:35That is what I'm trying to prevent.
16:38It is hot.
16:39I mean, sitting next to the engine and they're hitting Iraq, both of them together.
16:43It's really hot.
16:44The Warrior was turned into this ambulance, basically.
16:47And I can't expect the blokes to go out into, knowing that they were going out into what
16:54was going to be a firefight and then not have the support they required.
16:58So, you know, that was my job really.
17:00Absolutely.
17:01I will get there, hell or high water.
17:05But you can't expect them to do it otherwise.
17:07And initial reports were they had a very serious casualty on the ground who needed extraction.
17:13They were still in the firefight at the time.
17:15So they couldn't extract themselves with Mr. Dean's Warrior taking the lead.
17:21The trouble with moving up there is the route.
17:25We were on a particular part of the city which is known for attacks on coalition forces.
17:32However, we were committed to that route.
17:37And at a certain point, just on the edge of the city, a decision had to be made by Mr.
17:43Dean as to which way we were going to go.
17:44My assessment at that time was to move straight ahead because off to the right, it had really
17:49grown quiet, et cetera, and I thought, no, that's maybe a precursor to an ambush.
17:55Now, normally, you can tell when you're going to get into a particularly bad area because
18:03there will be some lack of movement of civilians, the streets will be clear, and the normal daylight
18:11activity would seem to cease and, you know, it would just put the hairs on the back of your
18:15neck up.
18:15I remember popping my head up out of the turret just to get a better look because
18:20the view inside the turret can be quite restrictive.
18:25And to be honest, that's quite nearly the last thing I remember.
18:28I just remember an awful flash, an awful bang, an awful lot of heat and falling back down
18:36inside the warrior.
18:37And inside the warrior was on fire.
18:41And that's, that's really the last thing I remember.
18:43I just slept on the unconsciousness after that.
18:45So I called to the boss and I said, boss, what happened?
18:49And I didn't get no response.
18:52So I moved forward just about a meter and a half.
18:57Then I get heat again.
19:00So I moved forward a meter and a half because I didn't have much space in front of me.
19:06So I was trying to just move with the space in front of me.
19:11And the reason why I was moving is to get out the line of fire.
19:15And I was still calling on to the boss.
19:17And I couldn't get, I didn't get no reply.
19:20And the, the fourth time I called on to the boss and asked, what happening?
19:25Swami said to me, that's the gunner.
19:27He said, leave the boss alone.
19:29He's dead.
19:33So when he said that to me, I just think, well, it's nothing else to do, but I couldn't
19:39hear anything over the radio, like with the rest of the, the platoon.
19:45And I think that's when I decided to stay here and get hit by RPG or I went through.
19:53What seemed like an hour, which was realistically probably a minute.
19:59We were firing at everything that was coming at us.
20:04So like I say, people running out the streets, out of the alleys with RPGs and rifles, machine
20:09guns, having to go handheld, improvised explosive devices and everything.
20:15From the start to the end of that incoming fire was probably a good kilometer and a half,
20:20maybe longer.
20:21And so it was just running the gauntlet, basically.
20:24I break through the ambush and I was going down the road and I saw this black thing was
20:31coming towards me and it looked like a bird, but I find he was coming straight towards me
20:38and he wasn't, he wasn't moving out of the way.
20:42So I had the hatch open, so I pulled the hatch down.
20:46And as soon as I pulled the hatch down, it just blew off.
20:50That's when I realized it was RPG.
20:53The hatch was still there, but I couldn't use the cover because the day sight in the hatch was blown
21:01off.
21:02So if I closed the hatch, I couldn't see anything, so I had to keep it open.
21:06So the gunners within the warriors are engaging, dismounts are covering various other arcs to engage in the enemy.
21:11I need to know what's happening with the guys in the vehicle.
21:16So I just decided, well, no one would help me, so I get out of the vehicle.
21:21I get out of the driver's seat, I take my weapon.
21:26Because we were still under contact, I lie in front of the warrior, right on the ground.
21:34And I was just looking around, still contact.
21:39I left my weapon on the ground.
21:42And I went up on top of the turret.
21:46And the first person I saw was Mr. Dean, right down inside the turret.
21:51And I touched him on top of the head on the helmet and said, boss, boss.
21:55I didn't get any response.
21:58So straight away, I just lean over and hold him by his helmet with one hand and I pull him
22:04up.
22:05I don't know how I'd done it.
22:07I don't think I could be able to do it now, but at the time I'd done it.
22:10And the vehicle's smoking quite heavily.
22:13And he manages to do that and then get back in and reverse the vehicle into an area where,
22:18because it wasn't going to go anywhere because it was badly damaged, to an area where it could
22:24be safely observed by the forces at the coalition forces base there, whilst we extracted out
22:33of there and got away.
22:35I went back into the vehicle and start driving.
22:40And I look on the side of me and the side of me is the engine panel.
22:46That metal plate was red and I say, well, it's only a month of time for this vehicle to blow
22:51up.
22:52And I'm the only one in it.
22:53And we have all this ammunition in there if it go up.
22:56That's it.
22:56I was thinking on the way back, if I take it into the compound and the vehicle blow up,
23:01the building would go up as well.
23:04So what I did a stop shot, he had a sanger outside the semi-couse.
23:10I put it around the side of it.
23:13So if he do go up, that sanger would take the blast.
23:19And I went and I disabled the vehicle so that if the enemy went in the vehicle, they wouldn't
23:26be able to use it.
23:27I was unconscious that whole time.
23:30I remember really nothing until I think I was nearly back at Abu Najee before I came
23:35round in the back of the war air, wondering just what had happened exactly.
23:40And when I realised I wasn't in my own war air any longer, well, that totally, I just couldn't
23:46understand what had happened.
23:48And at the time I was more concerned about the rest of the lads, where they were, were
23:53they safe?
23:54Were they getting the medical treatment?
23:56And once we were patched up down at Scheiber Log Base and we were all sitting in the
24:01ward together, the story started to move back and forth what had happened.
24:05It was only then I realised what Johnson had done at that time.
24:11The second action was very similar to the first one.
24:14His warrior armoured personnel carrier was in an ambush and a rocket propelled grenade hit
24:20six inches from his head.
24:21But Johnson managed to stay conscious long enough to get his team to safety.
24:27I'm not exactly sure where the RPG hit, but I just remember getting an awful thud to the
24:35face.
24:36I knew I'd been, I'd been hit in the face.
24:40And dropped down inside, made sure that I still had my eye, popped back up again and opened fire
24:46on the enemy.
24:47And with that I was screaming at Johnson to move to get out of the killing area.
24:53And he actually replied, okay boss.
24:56And the warrior started to slowly move backwards and then gathered up speed.
25:01So we got back out of the killing area, kept reversing until we actually had a house to stop.
25:08And I thought that's odd, like Johnson's usually very careful here, but Johnson took the brunt
25:14of the RPG strike.
25:18I really don't know how he managed, he was coherent to move the warrior at that stage because
25:24of his injuries.
25:25There's obviously a bit of self-preservation involved in that, but it's your friends that
25:30you live with, that you socialise with, that you work with, that you've known for a number
25:34of years that are in trouble and need help.
25:38Maybe that's courage.
25:40Johnson Bahari survived nine hours of neurosurgery.
25:44A year later, he went to Buckingham Palace to collect his VC from Her Majesty the Queen.
25:50I was first in line.
25:51I didn't want to go because I didn't want to be the one that was making a mistake.
25:56So I said, no, I don't want to go first.
25:59And he said, well, too bad you have to.
26:03I went to, they give you, they, you know, tell you what to do.
26:09And I went forward, turned bow to the Queen and walked forward.
26:18She was pinning the medal on me and she said to me, the first thing she said, you're a
26:27very special person.
26:28But I didn't hear what she said.
26:30So I was just standing there, just looking at her.
26:33But honestly, I didn't know, although I'm in the army, I didn't know much about the Victoria
26:36Cross.
26:36I didn't even know what the Victoria Cross is until I received it.
26:43I know it's sad to say it, but I've been honest.
26:47It is a lot of pressure on me.
26:50And make it worse.
26:52I'm still having treatment.
26:53So I have to deal with both the injury and deal with the Victoria Cross as well.
26:58The medal is, it's an honor, but I weighed with pride knowing he represents the guys that
27:08are alive today.
27:10And because of them, I weighed that medal.
27:14I couldn't do it all by myself.
27:16Would you go back, Johnson?
27:18I would if I could.
27:20I wish I was with them now.
27:41Con Tum Province, Vietnam, 24th of May, 1969.
27:45Keith Payne is in command of the 212 Company mobile strike force, made up of the Montagnar,
27:52local people being trained to fight the communist Viet Cong.
27:57It's a lightly armed unit of 64 men.
28:00On the night of the 24th of May, his unit walks into an ambush.
28:08Unfortunately, the position that we selected was one also that he'd selected as one of his
28:14RVs.
28:16So, it became a little bit of a nightmare.
28:19We arrived on a position towards the middle of the afternoon.
28:26As soon as we got up there, he came in and he hit us simultaneously from three sides and
28:32he cut us off from the rear.
28:33So, we had to break out of there.
28:36We did that just prior to dark and we formed a security position some three or four hundred
28:45meters back behind this particular feature in the direction of the one where we just left.
28:50Of course, there was quite a number of wounded still on the hill and everything.
28:54So, just on dark, I decided, well, I'd better go and get some of these people off.
29:00Whenever action is pending, you do get very keyed up, hoping that, A, you can do the job,
29:10because you don't know when a breaking point's going to come along.
29:14And, C, you hope that you've got all the information available to you to be able to carry out a
29:23reasonably
29:24intelligent attack and give intelligent orders to your soldiers to keep them alive.
29:30So, you're very apprehensive at that stage.
29:33And, of course, once the firefight's on, you know, as I said, you know your business,
29:39you get about doing your business, and it's after the action that you're coming down off
29:44that adrenaline high, you say, wow, you know, I got out of it.
29:49How did I get out of that, you know?
29:51When you're in a firefight, you're very much concerned about staying alive.
29:57And a commander's position is he's very much concerned about keeping his troops alive.
30:04The knowledge will dispel fear.
30:07The more you know about something, right, the less fear you've got of doing that particular job.
30:15So, if you're really well trained, right, you can get away with things like that,
30:22because they're no longer a fearful thing, because you know what's going on.
30:27So, initially, when I went back, he wasn't anywhere near organised or anything.
30:33He was trying to pick up gear and shoot wounded and all the rest of the things that the enemy
30:39do.
30:40So, I was able to move reasonably freely and extricate some people on that occasion.
30:48And that's when you can basically get away with it a lot quicker if you do it very smart in
30:53the incident,
30:55before he gets organised and before he gets to know that something's missed.
30:59He didn't know that I was there, but I knew he was there.
31:02And, of course, they were all over the place and I could see them.
31:06The second time I was up, they started to get themselves a little bit organised, right?
31:11And I was able to pull it off again.
31:14The third time was completely different.
31:17He was now sort of settled in on a position and everything.
31:21And they did see me going up in the gully at one stage and they had a shot at me
31:27and I missed.
31:28So, I thought, well, it's time I got out of here.
31:32And I was starting to feel a little bit weak and I was physically and mentally exhausted.
31:38So, I said, well, if I go up again, quite likely that I won't get out and these people won't
31:44get out
31:45and the whole thing will fall to pieces.
31:47So, I decided that the best thing for me to do now is to get the people back to the
31:53secure area that I'd already got out.
31:55And, obviously, I wasn't going to move up on the skyline where he was.
31:59He was moving on the skyline, firing down on us, hoping to draw fire.
32:04And I'd have hit any of them over the head with a rifle if they'd have fired a shot, I
32:08can tell you.
32:09So, your aim is not to draw his fire.
32:12Don't let him know where you are.
32:14So, to cover your own self, you've got to stay down in there and it becomes a bit noisy.
32:19One of the Americans was mortally wounded and, unless we got him out, he wasn't going to make it at
32:24all.
32:24I tried to get in the helicopter to extract him.
32:30The medevac, normal medevac helicopters wouldn't come in because we were still under fire, spasmodic fire.
32:38Before the helicopter got there, he passed away.
32:42So, I'm now in another fix. What am I going to do here?
32:46I've got all the wounded and everything.
32:48And, I thought, well, I'll get permission to leave his body.
32:52We couldn't recover the body because there was a strike going in and everything.
32:58And, about two months later, they went in and recovered the remains.
33:05So, it wasn't a very nice situation at all.
33:08Keith Payne was glad to get out alive with most of his men.
33:12His wounds were treated in hospital and he went home on leave.
33:17Six months later, his commanding officer told him he'd been awarded the Victoria Cross.
33:23I wanted it done in Queensland because I'm a one-eyed Queenslander, I suppose.
33:28But, it was my home state and I thought it was only right to have it done there.
33:33So, we went on board Britannia for the first time.
33:36I had my wife and five boys on board.
33:39And, it was a great day.
33:44Baw District, Sarawak, Indonesia.
33:4721st November, 1965.
33:5110th Gurkha Rifles.
33:53Ram Bahadur Limbu is on a covert mission which goes wrong, coming under intense fire.
33:59Ram Bahadur acts with extreme courage, attacking gun positions and rescuing the wounded,
34:05risking his life to do so.
34:10We had bought in from England plain garden secateurs.
34:17We carried these, every man carried these, in order to cut through secondary jungle,
34:23so that one could do it quietly.
34:25And, when we got to here, we were on this knife edge and it was a ridge that was no
34:32more than three people wide to be able to stand.
34:37So, there was no question of being able to charge in line or anything like that.
34:40We were coming up basically in single file and anybody at the top with a machine gun would have moan
34:45it all down.
34:46We got to here, and it included Ram Bahadur and his two men.
34:52The rest of that section were the lead party.
34:55As we got to the second barrier, the Indonesian came out exactly what we wanted.
35:02And we hoped he'd keep coming, which indeed he did.
35:07And then he saw, when he was about 20 yards away, he saw us and opened fire, or tried to
35:15open fire and was actually shot.
35:17And that alerted everybody.
35:19When Ram Bahadur platoon got to here, fire was opened from this area here.
35:24And he was sent out by his section commander to get himself into position to give covering fire.
35:31He actually went too far.
35:34He was expected to go about here, but he went right out to the area of this tree.
35:39And as they ran over this trench, he dropped a grenade into the trench,
35:46which, before it went off, an Indonesian, without aiming, put a gun over the top and just sprayed like this.
35:54And shot both his two men.
35:57The enemy, under 10 sets, had a fire.
36:02A bullet, my friend, one in the stomach.
36:08He cried.
36:11Then a few minutes ago, another friend, some had a laying down bullet in the head.
36:23He said,
36:26Aya, a bullet.
36:29Only then dropped and then, they killed.
36:36And after, I looked left, right, and forward.
36:43This time, and under the trench, enemy, some, I seen it.
36:54Then, 36-handed grenades, and my possession, and the possession, put it, right there.
37:02Then she pinned my teeth, you know, through it.
37:09And under the enemy, all in it.
37:12And the, I had to cry, outside.
37:16I don't, some, I don't know what happened.
37:22And he said, I am very, very injured.
37:33I killed me.
37:34He said, well, my friend.
37:36Oh, okay.
37:37Okay.
37:38You don't worry.
37:39The administration.
37:40I said.
37:41And he said.
37:42And he's a hand.
37:42I think I was a crowling.
37:44And the.
37:45Some, hundred meter behind.
37:48And the safety line.
38:15By this stage, he, I think, had probably completely lost his temper.
38:20At his two men being killed, the light machine gun that the two men were manning was still
38:26over here, and he realised he had to get that, he went across and picked it up, and firing
38:33from the hip, he then marched towards these two shooting, I mean, just from the hip, and
38:42killed them.
38:42He was a manning, and I was a manning for that.
38:53He was afraid to be killed.
38:57I and I was a manning for that manning.
38:59I had the campaign for the commander.
39:04I had the gun and I had the gun.
39:08I had the gun and the gun and the gun.
39:21I had the gun.
39:47They come from a patriarchal society where the senior
39:51man in the house, and by senior you probably mean oldest. When he says do something, they
39:57do it. I think probably what makes them such wonderful soldiers.
40:11United Hill, Korea. 4th November 1951. King's Own Scottish Borderers, 1st Battalion. After
40:2012 hours of severe shelling and mortar fire, 6,000 Chinese soldiers attack their ridge.
40:26For six hours there's intense hand-to-hand combat, and when the order finally comes to
40:31retreat, Private William Speakman led the counter-attack to get the wounded off the hill.
40:38I mean there were 6,000 of those buggers, man. They come at us, a division I think it was,
40:44about 6,000. They estimate, I put it in there, it's been there, about 6,000. They spread
40:49them along the whole battalion line. And they just took the hills and they fought, and in
40:56the end it was very overwhelming. But we managed to hold on for about five hours, did our best.
41:02And by the time they got up to us, to be honest, they all seemed half dope. But they just
41:06kept
41:06coming. Well I remember that, the fact that we had to fight or be taken prisoners or be
41:14killed. But we fought because, you know, we'd fought for that hill, we'd taken that hill. And
41:21we weren't just going to let it go. But we had a big problem, we had a lot of wounded
41:26guys
41:26down there, wounded, NCOs and men. And, you know, when you lose, if you start to lose control
41:32of it, you know, people looking around, then it just gets out of hand. We managed to get
41:40enough grenades together to do a last charge to clear the hill, to get our guys, the wounded
41:45guys off the hill. It was very important, because you can't leave them there, just that
41:50when you know you can get them away. If they're dead, alright, you can still manage if the battle's
41:56over and you can recollect. But if they're wounded there, you just can't leave them, Mary.
42:00And the idea of the whole thing was to hold the hill, to save our wounded and do the job
42:07we've
42:07been trained to do as soldiers, fight and fight and fight. You just can't bugger off, you know.
42:12I mean, I think we're all pretty shell-shocked, because, you know, it was quite a dramatic
42:18thing to go through. He did a series of rushes forwards with grenades to push these Chinamen back.
42:29And, obviously, it had a great effect. And it also, of course, affected the men round about them.
42:34And it gave them a bit of, you know, heart.
42:36When you do a thing like this in action, you fight. It's the least thing you think of, or the
42:43last thing you think of.
42:44And then somebody touches you on the shoulder a couple of months later and says, you know, you've been awarded
42:49the VC.
42:51And it's very overwhelming because you don't realise what you've been awarded.
42:56You know, you hear VCs, but you say, well, me? But it was done like that.
43:02But I classed the medal. I wear the medal for all my guys that fought in Korea.
43:07Britain was in a bit of a state at the moment. We still had rationing when I came home, which
43:11surprised me.
43:13Being so tall was my thing because I couldn't get away with it.
43:17In those days, you weren't allowed to wear civvies. You had to wear uniform.
43:20So it was obvious, you know, what it was.
43:23And the same old rigmarole going into a pub and people want to give you a pint after pint.
43:31When I came out, I still couldn't get employed because nobody will employ you at 42, many of you at
43:3741, not really.
43:39I had a family then when I came out, I finally came out.
43:42And we were left in an old cottage.
43:45And the old cottage, I did my best, you know, pointing, re-cementing, anything like that.
43:49But we had a faulty roof and I had five children, six children by then.
43:54So the roof click gave in. So I had to have money to do this.
43:59So I sold my medals. I went up to London.
44:02And I got money for it and repaired the roof.
44:04And I thought that was a good way to do it because we were struck for cash and things like
44:10that.
44:11I got money for it, then Malaya.
44:13And then Bihari was the latest one.
44:15So now he must take his share of all the, you know, what you people put us.
44:22Tangdao, Burma. 12th of May, 1945. 8th Gurkha Rifles.
44:27Lachman Gurung mans the foremost trench, defending the jungle path to his company's position.
44:33At 1.20am, 200 Japanese soldiers attack the position, hurling grenades.
44:38He manages to catch and throw back two, but a third blows the fingers off his right hand.
44:44But he remained alone at his post, and when finally relieved, 31 bodies were found in front of the trench.
44:52I was also a judge.
44:57I was arrested for ABS.
44:59He was arrested for murderers.
45:00He was arrested for murderers.
45:05It took me a million years ago to be economized from the river.
45:20I was hoping to find out that something happened in the country.
45:26It's commonality in the country.
45:32I often find that the people who have been working on a country
45:39where there are more people who have been working on a country.
45:44I was a first-rate engineer, but I was not worried about it before.
45:53I was worried about this year.
45:55I was worried about having them.
45:57I was worried about them.
45:58I was worried about them.
46:01I was worried about them and having them,
46:08and then still Mojanaq was worried about the��is.
46:11I was like,
46:11I was worried about all that time.
46:12...and then he decided to destroy his
46:17And they would destroy his life.
46:24What do they do with the dead?
46:29Sometimes he would die.
46:31I told him if he was dead...
46:36...he said that the dead of my son was dead...
46:38That hasn't happened.
46:41So I got the Kathakinep,
46:45so I gave him a pilgrimage.
46:47I got to go.
46:49I got to go.
46:50I got to go.
46:52I got to go.
46:53Then I got to go.
46:57I got to go.
47:08You
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