Thomas Crisp

For the British politician, see Thomas Crisp (MP).

Thomas Crisp
Thomas Crisp, VC
Born28 April 1876
Lowestoft, Suffolk, England
Died15 August 1917 (aged 41)
Naval smack Nelson, North Sea, off Humber Estuary, England
Allegiance United Kingdom
Service / branch Royal Navy
Years of service1915–1917
RankSkipper
UnitRoyal Naval Reserve
CommandsHM Armed Smack Nelson
Battles / warsFirst World War
AwardsVictoria Cross
Distinguished Service Cross

Thomas Crisp VC, DSC, RNR (28 April 1876 – 15 August 1917) was an English sailor and posthumous recipient of the Victoria Cross. Crisp, in civilian life a commercial fisherman operating from Lowestoft in Suffolk, earned his award after being killed during the defence of his vessel, the armed naval smack Nelson, in the North Sea against an attack from a German submarine in 1917.[1]

Crisp's self-sacrifice in the face of this "unequal struggle" was used by the government to bolster morale during some of the toughest days of the First World War for Britain, in late 1917, during which Britain was suffering heavy losses at the Battle of Passchendaele.[2] His exploit was read aloud by David Lloyd George in the Houses of Parliament and made headline news for nearly a week.

  1. ^ The identity of the submarine involved in this incident has never been positively ascertained, but various sources list UC-41 or UC-63. No surviving German submarines reported the incident in their logs.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference P175 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).