Mark Of The Lion

Leaving alone for a moment the facts of Charles Upham, the only combat solider to be awarded two Victoria Crosses, this book is very well written. There is no unnecessary fawning, it is well paced and it quotes other publications or people without becoming list of quotations. 4/5 for the writing.

As to the content, there is probably one one other New Zealander to measure up near Charles Upham, and that is Sir Ed Hillary. Military memoirs are not for everyone, and of the several I have read, it is obviously a difficult thing to get the tone, and the content correct, and not to give too much adoration to the subject.

With Upham's absolute unwillingness to discuss his war deeds with anyone, let alone journalists, it cannot have been a simple book to write, but it is an easy one to read. This book was written in 1962.

More than just a great man - humble, generous, intelligent and courageous, the book showed that he really was a personality quite different to what was expected. Under normal circumstances, and under the control of a different set of commanding officers, Upham would not have lasted a month in the army. He was scruffy, and couldn't be convinced to tidy himself, he couldn't march or lead a march, he was argumentative, he didn't respect authority unless it was proven that his superiors knew better than he did (rarely occurred), and he regularly and frequently swore - at his men, at his superiors and in general.

However, his peculiar personality traits made sense to himself - how did being tidy win the war? How did marching help in battle? Swearing - it was just the way he spoke. Rank? Not relevant if the superior officer was wrong - why should it be?

Time after time during his training he proved his superiors wrong. A gifted tactician, an excellent reader of the situation, and a man who while leading from the front, motivated his men to achieve better and more than others. His idea of commanding a company was to lead - to take on the most dangerous of tasks himself, to roundly abuse the men who put themselves in risk, while doing far more himself. Often suffering from illness, and wounded a number of times, he was a terrible patient, and was not one to spend time in hospital, he would find his way back the company.

His first VC was awarded for bravery in Crete. The citation reads as follows:

Second Lieutenant Charles Hazlitt Upham (8077), New Zealand Military Forces.During the operations in Crete this officer performed a series of remarkable exploits, showing outstanding leadership, tactical skill and utter indifference to danger.He commanded a forward platoon in the attack on Maleme on 22nd May and fought his way forward for over 3,000 yards unsupported by any other arms and against a defence strongly organised in depth. During this operation his platoon destroyed numerous enemy posts but on three occasions sections were temporarily held up.In the first case, under a heavy fire from a machine gun nest he advanced to close quarters with pistol and grenades, so demoralizing the occupants that his section was able to “mop up” with ease.Another of his sections was then held up by two machine guns in a house. He went in and placed a grenade through a window, destroying the crew of one machine gun and several others, the other machine gun being silenced by the fire of his sections.In the third case he crawled to within 15 yards of an M.G. post and killed the gunners with a grenade.When his Company withdrew from Maleme he helped to carry a wounded man out under fire, and together with another officer rallied more men together to carry other wounded men out.He was then sent to bring in a company which had become isolated. With a Corporal he went through enemy territory over 600 yards, killing two Germans on the way, found the company, and brought it back to the Battalion's new position. But for this action it would have been completely cut off.During the following two days his platoon occupied an exposed position on forward slopes and was continuously under fire. Second Lieutenant Upham was blown over by one mortar shell, and painfully wounded by a piece of shrapnel behind the left shoulder, by another. He disregarded this wound and remained on duty. He also received a bullet in the foot which he later removed in Egypt.At Galatas on 25th May his platoon was heavily engaged and came under severe mortar and machine-gun fire. While his platoon stopped under cover of a ridge Second-Lieutenant Upham went forward, observed the enemy and brought the platoon forward when the Germans advanced. They killed over 40 with fire and grenades and forced the remainder to fall back.When his platoon was ordered to retire he sent it back under the platoon Sergeant and he went back to warn other troops that they were being cut off. When he came out himself he was fired on by two Germans. He fell and shammed dead, then crawled into a position and having the use of only one arm rested his rifle in the fork of a tree and as the Germans came forward he killed them both. The second to fall actually hit the muzzle of the rifle as he fell.On 30th May at Sphakia his platoon was ordered to deal with a party of the enemy which had advanced down a ravine to near Force Headquarters. Though in an exhausted condition he climbed the steep hill to the west of the ravine, placed his men in positions on the slope overlooking the ravine and himself went to the top with a Bren Gun and two riflemen. By clever tactics he induced the enemy party to expose itself and then at a range of 500 yards shot 22 and caused the remainder to disperse in panic.During the whole of the operations he suffered from dysentery and was able to eat very little, in addition to being wounded and bruised.He showed superb coolness, great skill and dash and complete disregard of danger. His conduct and leadership inspired his whole platoon to fight magnificently throughout, and in fact was an inspiration to the Battalion.

His second VC was awarded after the war, after he had been a POW in Italy, and later Germany, where he was eventually sent to Colditz, as a serial escaper.

Captain Charles Hazlitt UPHAM, V.C. (8077), New Zealand Military Forces.Captain C. H. Upham, V.C., was commanding a Company of New Zealand troops in the Western Desert during the operations which culminated in the attack on El Ruweisat Ridge on the night of 14th–15th July, 1942.In spite of being twice wounded, once when crossing open ground swept by enemy fire to inspect his forward sections guarding our mine-fields and again when he completely destroyed an entire truck load of German soldiers with hand grenades, Captain Upham insisted on remaining with his men to take part in the final assault.During the opening stages of the attack on the ridge Captain Upham's Company formed part of the reserve battalion, but, when communications with the forward troops broke down and he was instructed to send up an officer to report on the progress of the attack, he went out himself armed with a Spandau gun and, after several sharp encounters with enemy machine gun posts, succeeded in bringing back the required information.Just before dawn the reserve battalion was ordered forward, but, when it had almost reached its objective, very heavy fire was encountered from a strongly defended enemy locality, consisting of four machine gun posts and a number of tanks.Captain Upham, without hesitation, at once led his Company in a determined attack on the two nearest strongpoints on the left flank of the sector. His voice could be heard above the din of battle cheering on his men and, in spite of the fierce resistance of the enemy and the heavy casualties on both sides, the objective was captured.Captain Upham, during the engagement, himself destroyed a German tank and several guns and vehicles with grenades and although he was shot through the elbow by a machine gun bullet and had his arm broken, he went on again to a forward position and brought back some of his men who had become isolated. He continued to dominate the situation until his men had beaten off a violent enemy counter-attack and consolidated the vital position which they had won under his inspiring leadership.Exhausted by pain from his wound and weak from loss of blood Captain Upham was then removed to the Regimental Aid Post but immediately his wound had been dressed he returned to his men, remaining with them all day long under heavy enemy artillery and mortar fire, until he was again severely wounded and being now unable to move fell into the hands of the enemy when, his gallant Company having been reduced to only six survivors, his position was finally overrun by superior enemy forces, in spite of the outstanding gallantry and magnificent leadership shown by Captain Upham.The Victoria Cross was conferred on Captain Upham for conspicuous bravery during the operations in Crete in May, 1941, and the award was announced in the London Gazette dated 14th October, 1941.

Incredible man. Great book.

Charles Upham died in 1994.