Norman Douglas Holbrook VC (born 9 July 1888 Southsea, Hampshire; died Midhurst, Sussex 3 July 1976) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
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Overview
He was 26 years old, and a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy during the First World War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.
On 13 December 1914 in the Dardanelles, Turkey, Lieutenant Holbrook was in command of the submarine B11, an old and obsolete craft built in 1905. Notwithstanding the difficulties of a treacherous current in the Straits, he dived under five rows of mines and torpedoed and sank the Turkish battleship Mesudiye, which was guarding the mine-field. He then succeeded in bringing the B11 back to the Mediterranean, in spite of being attacked by gun fire and torpedo boats. When they got back to safety the B11 had been submerged for 9 hours.
Holbrook was the first submariner to be awarded the VC. He later achieved the rank of Commander. Holbrook is buried at St James Old Churchyard, Stedham, West Sussex. Holbrook is probably the only VC recipient to have a town (and until May 2004) a local government area named for him. On 24 August, 1915 amid a wave of anti-German feeling related to the First World War the name of the New South Wales Eastern Riverina town of Germanton was changed to Holbrook to honour the recent VC recipient. He subsequently visited the town on three occasions. His widow, Mrs Gundula Holbrook, donated his medal to the Council of the Shire of Holbrook in 1982. In 1995 she made a substantial donation towards the establishment of a submariners' memorial in the town and in 1997 visited the town to unveil it. A bronze statue of Lt. Holbrook stands in Germanton Park, Holbrook. Holbrook's medal was donated to the Council of the Shire of Holbrook, New South Wales in 1982. It subsequently passed to Greater Hume Shire Council upon the amalgamation of several Riverina shires in May 2004. As of April 2006 the medal, together with Holbook's other decorations, is kept in a bank vault. It is not on public display. Replicas may be seen at the Submarine Museum, Holbrook.
References
- Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
- The Register of the Victoria Cross (This England, 1997)
- VCs of the First World War - 1914 (Gerald Gliddon, 1994)
- VCs of the First World War - The Naval VCs (Stephen Snelling, 2002)
See also
External links
- Location of grave and VC medal (West Sussex)
- Notes on the town and the several memorials with images
- ÇANAKKALE GEÇİLMEZ page(in Turkish) about the action and the battleship sunk in the action (with images)
- Greater Hume Shire Council
