Located in the CWGC site of Hill 60, south of Ypres, the memorial commemorates the Queen Victoria’s Rifles, which was the 9th Battalion The London Regiment. The original memorial was damaged by the Germans in 1940 and the was replacement we see today was positioned on some of the original stones of the first construction.
Hill 60 was defended by the QVR 20-21st April 1915 and 2nd Lieutenant G H Woooley was Awarded the Victoria Cross for the action.
Courtesy greatwar.co.uk
Second Lieutenant Geoffrey H Woolley was serving with this battalion in the fighting at Hill 60 in April 1915. On the night of 20th-21st April he and a handful of men were the only defenders on the hill and continually repelled attacks to hold the position. He encouraged the men to hold the line against heavy enemy machine gun fire and shellfire. For a time he was the only officer on the hill. When he and his men were relieved on the morning of 21st April only 14 out of a company of 150 had survived.
For his gallantry he was awarded the Victoria Cross which was the first one to be awarded to a Territorial Officer.
This page was published on 21st April 2019, 104 years after this action.
17th Battalion Manchester Regiment on the Somme 