Edmund John Fowler

Edmond John Fowler
Born	1861
Died	26 March 1926 (aged 64-65)
Place of birth	Waterford, Ireland
Place of death	Colchester, Essex
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Rank	Colour-Sergeant
Unit	90th Regiment of Foot (Perthshire Volunteers)
Battles/wars	Anglo-Zulu War
Awards	Victoria Cross

Edmund John Fowler VC (1861 – 26 March 1926) born in Waterford was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

He later achieved the rank of Colour-Sergeant. He died in Colchester, Essex, on 26 March 1926.

Details

He was around 18 years old, and a Private in the 2nd Battalion, 90th Regiment of Foot (Perthshire Volunteers), British Army during the Zulu War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.

On 28 March 1879 at the Battle of Hlobane, South Africa, Private Fowler, with a captain and a lieutenant (Henry Lysons) dashed forward in advance of the party which had been ordered to dislodge the enemy from a commanding position in natural caves up the mountain. The path was so narrow that they had to advance in single file and the captain who arrived first at the mouth of the cave was instantly killed. The lieutenant and Private Fowler undismayed by the death of their leader, immediately sprang forward and cleared the enemy out of their stronghold.

The medal

His Victoria Cross is displayed at the Cameronians Regimental Museum (Hamilton, Lanarkshire, Scotland).

References

• The Register of the Victoria Cross (1981, 1988 and 1997)
• Clarke, Brian D. H. (1986). "A register of awards to Irish-born officers and men". pp. 185–287. 
• Irelands VCs (Dept of Economic Development 1995)
• Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
• Irish Winners of the Victoria Cross (Richard Doherty & David Truesdale, 2000)

External links

• Location of grave and VC medal (Essex)