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Friday 29 December 2017

Activity 2: A Call to Arms

Over the course of WWII, approximately 140,000 New Zealanders were sent overseas to serve in the war. Many were sent to fight in huge battles, including the Battle of the Atlantic that lasted for 2064 days (over 5 years)! The Battle of the Atlantic came to an end in 1943, in large part due to the heroic efforts of people like Lloyd Trigg, a pilot from New Zealand. He was awarded a special medal from the New Zealand Government for his bravery. It is called a Victoria Cross (‘VC’ for short). A total of 22 New Zealanders have been awarded VCs.

Click on this link to find a list of VC winners. Choose one from the Second World War, and read about him. On your blog tell us about him. Who was he? What did he do to earn a Victoria Cross medal?

VC winner - James Ward

James Ward was the first New Zealand airman to win the VC.

James Ward won the VC while returning from a raid on the German city of Münster on 7 July 1941. When his Vickers Wellington bomber was set alight by an enemy fighter plane, Ward climbed out onto the burning wing (several thousand feet in the air) and smothered the fire. Although he was unable to block the leaking petrol pipe that was feeding it, the fire eventually burnt itself out and the badly damaged bomber limped back to base. Two months later, Ward was killed when he remained at the controls of his burning aircraft after it was hit by flak over Hamburg.

1 comment:

  1. Hey Samuel,

    This is Jade C from the Summer Learning Journey. It's super great to be back to read more of your blog posts!

    Thank you for giving me some interesting information about James Ward. He sounds like an amazing soldier who is extremely brave and courageous. For me, I pick Charles Upham. I've met his daughter when I went volunteering for the RSA. RSA was formed in 1916 to provide support and care for returning and returned soldiers from the war. Charles Upham has won two Victorian Crosses. Perhaps you could find out more about him, he is considered as a hero and a history maker!

    I really enjoy reading your blog posts, keep up the amazing work :)

    Jade C.

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