On Aug 23, 1914 the German Army launched a concentrated attack against the men of the 4th Bn Royal Fusiliers who were tasked with guarding the vital Nimy Bridge in Mons, Belgium.
Under devastating artillery and rifle fire, Lt. Maurice Dease (left), after his entire MG crew was either killed or wounded, held back the relentless infantry attack with his Maxim machinegun despite being wounded 4 separate times. His was mortally wounded on the fifth time.
At that moment, Pvt. Sidney Godley pushed Lt. Dease's body off the Maxim and continued to pile up Germans who were attempting to cross the bridge.
As the rest of the company retreated, he stayed on his gun despite taking artillery shrapnel to his back and a bullet to the head. Still alive and bleeding profusely, he continued to fire for 2 hours until he ran out of ammo.
He then tossed the Maxim into the river and attempted to crawl back to friendly lines but was subsequently captured.
Upon his arrival to the prison camp, he was personally congratulated by the Camp’s Commandant, who recognized what a heroic act it was to stay behind and protect his comrades with little to no hope of survival or escape.
Pvt. Godley would remain a prisoner until the end of the war, where he received the Victoria Cross in 1918.
Lt. Dease would posthumously receive the Victoria Cross as well. Both soldiers became the first recipients of the VC during WW1.
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