John Carmichael

Who was John Carmichael?

John Carmichael VC MM was a Scottish 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.

Carmichael was 24 years old, and a sergeant in the 9th Battalion, The North Staffordshire Regiment, British Army during the First World War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.

On 8 September 1917, when excavating a trench near Hill 60, Zwarteleen, Belgium, Sergeant Carmichael saw that a grenade had been unearthed and had started to burn. Rather than simply throwing the bomb out of the trench and endangering the lives of the men working on top, he immediately rushed to the spot shouting for his men to get clear, put his steel helmet over the grenade and then stood on the helmet. The grenade exploded, blowing him out of the trench causing him serious injuries, but no one else was hurt.