Samuel Pearse

Samuel George Pearse
Private Samuel Pearse c.1915
Born(1897-07-16)16 July 1897
Penarth, Glamorganshire, Wales
Died29 August 1919(1919-08-29) (aged 22)
north of Emtsa, Russia
Buried
Obozerskay
AllegianceAustralia
United Kingdom
Service / branchAustralian Imperial Force (1913–19)
British Army (1919)
Years of service1913–1919
RankSergeant
Unit73rd Battalion
7th Battalion
1st Machine Gun Battalion
45th Battalion, Royal Fusiliers
Battles / warsFirst World War
Russian Civil War
AwardsVictoria Cross
Military Medal

Samuel George Pearse, VC, MM (16 July 1897 – 29 August 1919) was an Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Serving in the Australian Imperial Force during the First World War, he saw action during the final weeks of the Gallipoli Campaign in 1915 and later on the Western Front from 1916 to 1918. Following the Armistice he fought as part of the North Russia Relief Force with the British Army during the North Russia Campaign in 1919. He was killed after charging a machine gun post during an action at Emtsa, in North Russia, for which he was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.