Colonel John Rouse Merriott Chard VC (21 December 1847 – 1 November 1897) was a British Army officer who received the Victoria Cross for his role in the defence of Rorke's Drift in 1879.
He was born in Plymouth Devon, the son of William Wheaton Chard and Jane Brimacombe. He had two brothers: William Wheaton and Charles Edward, and five sisters: Charlotte Maria Herring, Mary Jane, Jane Brimacombe, Florence and Margaret Edith. He joined the Royal Engineers in 1868 and served in Bermuda and Malta before being sent to South Africa. As a Lieutenant, he commanded the supply depot at Rorke's Drift when it was attacked by Zulus during the Anglo-Zulu War. After the battle he was immediately promoted to Captain and then brevet Major. His actions were reported in this way:
| “ | For gallant conduct at the Defence of Rorke's Drift, 22nd and 23rd January 1879. The Lieutenant-General reports that had it not been for the example and excellent behaviour of Lieutenants Chard, Royal Engineers, and Bromhead, 24th Regiment, the defence of Rorke's Drift would not have been conducted with the intelligence and tenacity which so eminently characterised it. The Lieutenant-General adds, that the success must in a great measure be attributable to the two young officers who exercised the chief command on the occasion in question. | ” |
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—London Gazette, 2 May 1879 |
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From 1892 until 1896, he commanded the Royal Engineers detachment at Singapore as a Lieutenant Colonel and was made a Colonel in 1897 when he was due to be posted to Perth, Scotland. However he became ill with cancer of the tongue and died at Hatch Beauchamp, near Taunton.
He was played by Stanley Baker in the film Zulu; Baker owned Chard's VC and Zulu War Medal from 1972 until his death in 1976.
Until 2003, the bravery of Lt. Chard was commemorated by the South African Army with the John Chard Decoration (see South African military decorations).
The Resident Infantry Company (RIC) officers bar at Mount Pleasant Airfield Military Base in the Falkland Islands (UK) is called the "Chard Bar" and features a mural depicting the scene at Rorke's Drift.
The 108 Fd Sqn Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers (Militia) are based at John Chard VC House, Swansea.
Famous quotes containing the word john:
“Whither goest thou?”
—Bible: New Testament Peter, in John, 13:36.
The words, which are repeated in John 16:5, are best known in the Latin form in which they appear in the Vulgate: Quo vadis? Jesus replies, “Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt follow me afterwards.”