Personal info
- Name: John Vincent HOLLAND
- D.O.B: 19th Jul, 1898
- D.O.A: 3rd Sep, 1916
- D.O.D: 27th Feb, 1975
- Award: Victoria Cross
- Occupation at time of action: Lieutenant, 3rd Battalion The Prince of Wales’s Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians), attached to the 7th Battalion, 47th Brigade, 16th Division
Guillemont, France 3-5 September 1916
3-5 September 1916
The First World War 1916
At Guillemont the Germans had withstood attacks on 30 July (see above) and 8 and 9 August 1916 (see above). The village was finally taken on 3 September by forces which included the 10th King’s Royal Rifle Corps, the 6th Connaught Rangers, the 12th King’s (Liverpool) Regiment and the 7th Leinster Regiment. The advance continued east towards Ginchy over the following days but was fiercely contested.
Citation
For most conspicuous bravery during a heavy engagement, when, not content with bombing hostile dug-outs within the objective, he fearlessly led his bombers through our own artillery barrage and cleared a great part of the village in front. He started out with 26 bombers and finished up with only five, after capturing some fifty prisoners. By this very gallant action he undoubtedly broke the spirit of the eneny, and thus saved us many casualties when the battalion made a further advance. He was far from well at the time, and later had to go to hospital.