An Irish Victoria Cross recipient with a Canadian connection is Denis Dempsey. He was born in Rathmichael, Bray, County Dublin in 1826. Dempsey enlisted in the lst Battalion, 10th (the North Lincolnshire) Regiment of Foot which was in India at the outbreak of the Indian Mutiny in 1857.
Indian Mutiny
The Battalion was stationed at Dinapore, some 650 kilometers north-west of Calcutta. Their duty was to guard the communications line between Calcutta and Delhi and could not be spared to participate in the siege of the capital.
The commander of the garrison at Dinapore, fearing trouble from the sepoys in his area, decided on July 25, to disarm them. The sepoys were disinclined to follow his orders to lay down their arms and instead nearly two thousand of them deserted and marched to Arrah to besiege the garrison there. Four hundred men from the 37th Foot and the 10th Regiment, including Private Denis Dempsey were sent to relieve the besieged town. The sepoys were waiting for them and ambushed the force outside of the town. When the smoke cleared after a fierce and bloody battle, half of the British contingent were casualties. As the remainder of the 10th Regiment retreated back to Dinapore, Private Dempsey courageously took on the task of carrying the severely wounded Ensign Erskine for more than three kilometers. Unfortunately, Erskine died of his wounds.
Battle of Jugdispore
Two weeks later, this brave soldier again came to the attention of his superiors when the 10th Regiment assaulted the town of Jugdispore on August 12, 1857. Despite being under heavy fire from the enemy within the village, Dempsey was the first man to enter the town, leading his regiment to a successful attack.
Battle of Lucknow
March, 1858 found Dempsey and the 10th Regiment participating in the siege of Lucknow as part of the 20,000 reinforcements arriving with Sir Colin Campbell. The plan was to attack Lucknow from the east with four divisions, one of which was cavalry, against the three defensive lines of the enemy, now estimate at 100,000 men. The assault on Lucknow began on the first day of March and continued with varying degrees of combat for over two weeks.
In order to keep casualties down and yet continue to advance through the city, the British blasted their way through buildings and walls with the assistance of the artillery. The black powder they used was carried forward under difficult circumstances as sparks from the burning buildings floated through the area and settled on the powder bags.
Earning His VC
On March 14, Private Denis Dempsey, already well known for his courage, was assigned the task of carrying a powder bag through a burning village. The plan was to blast a hole behind the enemy position. "With great coolness and gallantry" Dempsey made his way through the burning buildings with the powder bag. Ignoring the hot sparks settling around him, Denis dodged the bullets from the enemy sharpshooters trying to stop his progress from behind the loop holed walls. He was successful in his endeavour and for this action and the other acts of bravery mentioned above he was awarded the Victoria Cross.
Two days later 20,000 mutineers escaped from Lucknow, leaving the city in British hands. The efforts of the army now turned to pacification of the area and the hunting down of the remnants of the rebel forces.
Return to England
In 1859 Dempsey and the 10th Regiment returned to England after 16 years of service in India Over the next few years Dempsey saw service in Ireland, the Cape Colony in South Africa, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore. In 1877 the Regiment returned to England where they were to remain for the next 18 years.
Move to Canada
Denis Dempsey left the army and moved to Canada, settling in Toronto where he died on January 10, 1886 at the age of 60. He was buried in St. Michael’s Cemetery in Toronto. His medals, which include the Victoria Cross and the Indian Mutiny Medal with Lucknow bar, amongst others, are not publicly held. For more on the Victoria Cross information.
Bibliography
Max Arthur - Symbol of Courage - Sidgwick & Jackson - 2004
Michael Edwardes - Battles of the Indian Mutiny - Pan Books - 1963
 |
