Herbert Barefoot

Acting Major Herbert John Leslie Barefoot GC (15 May 1887 – 23 December 1958) was an English recipient of the George Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry for actions not involving direct enemy action granted to British military personnel (and certain Commonwealth countries).

Biography
He was educated as Dulwich College between 1900 and 1905. Before the First World War, he trained as an architect.

In the war, he served in the ranks with Royal Army Medical Corps in Egyptian Expeditionary Force (1916-1919) and was mentioned in dispatches. After demobilisation in 1919, he continued to practice as an architect, becoming President of the Suffolk Association of Architects (1936-1938), and of the East Anglian Society of Architects in 1938.

World War II
In the Second World War, he joined the Royal Engineers, working in bomb disposal. He was awarded the George Cross in 1940 "for most conspicuous gallantry in carrying out hazardous work in a very brave manner...". The citation includes the following comments:

He was promoted major in 1941 and returned to his architectural practice after the war. He died aged 71 in 1958.

Medals
Barefoot's medals are currently on display at the Imperial War Museum in London.