Portrait of Captain Edward Kinder Bradbury V.C.

[Gunner 87]

Being a member of a small military art group paintings depicting the Great War are frequently shared by artists with accompanying information about the work. As such, I thought this portrait of Captain Edward Kinder Bradbury V.C., 'L' Battery, Royal Horse Artillery, maybe of interest to our members here. 

As I'm sure many of the forum members are aware Captain Bradbury was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for the following actions at Néry which have been summed up by the 'The VC and GC Association'

'By 30th August 1914, the German drive towards Paris had pushed the British and French southwards across the River Aisne. On 1st September at Néry, on the southern edge of the Forest of Compiègne, ‘L’ Battery, Royal Horse Artillery, which had already distinguished itself at Mons, performed another notable brief holding action. Early that morning the German 4th Cavalry Division caught up with the British 1st Cavalry Brigade. ‘L’ Battery, which was bivouacked in an orchard, came under fire from German guns at a range of less than a thousand yards. Men and horses were blown to pieces. Calling for volunteers, Captain E K Bradbury succeeded in turning three guns on the enemy to return fire. Two were soon hit. Bradbury acted as layer for the remaining gun with Sergeant D Nelson as range setter. Nelson was soon wounded but refused to seek medical attention. When they were joined by Sergeant Major G T Dorrell, Bradbury set off to run the twenty yards to the ammunition wagon, when a shell blew off his leg. Despite this, he continued to direct fire until he was hit again. 1st Battalion The Middlesex Regiment and The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) relieved the British force and eventually captured twelve German guns. The British then withdrew with the surviving gunners and cavalrymen, just as the German infantry appeared'.

This chalk and pastel portrait of Captain Bradbury, by artist Lee Buccilli, himself an ex British Army soldier, is one item at the Army Benevolent Fund charity auction in York next month. 

Gunner 87.

 

Edited 22 May , 2023 by Gunner 87