Archie White VC
Archie White was the name of the first world war V C man who lived in
Boroughbridge there is a blue memorial on the wall near the post office.
Harrogate Grammar school has a lot of research about him.
Linda Dookes
Archie Cecil Thomas White VC MC
Archie White was born in Boroughbridge on 5th October 1891. The 1901 census shows the White
family resident at Horse Fair in Boroughbridge where his father Thomas described his occupation as
an ‘outfitter and shopkeeper’. Thomas was then aged 59 and had been born in Derbyshire. His wife,
Jeanie White was then 49 years of age; she came from Aberdeen. Apart from 9 year old Archie, the
family also included his elder sister Katie (aged 23), and his younger brother John (7). An elder
brother, Godfrey, born c.1875 had evidently left home by the turn of the century. All the children
had been born in Boroughbridge. A 19 year old servant, Sarah Foster, also resided with the family in
1901. Archie was educated at the Technical School in Harrogate (ref.6).
A decade later, at the time of the 1911 census, Archie is still living at Horsefair, together with his
widowed mother. A visitor is also recorded at the house, 39 year old Annie Simpson, a school nurse
and the household is completed by Lily Horsman, their housemaid from Boroughbridge. By 1911,
Jeanie White is now running the family business, now described as a ‘Tailor and Outfitter’ and 19
year old Archie is a university student (ref.1).
Archie White evidently enlisted as a cadet in the University of London Officer Training Corps (OTC),
one of the bodies formed at British universities by Royal Warrant in 1908 with the aim of providing
the army with a supply of well trained officers. The OTC had been formed in response to the critical
shortage of officers which the British army had experienced during the Boer war of 1899-1902. He
graduated in 1912 and became a teacher at Westminster School (ref.2)
At the start of the Great War, he was commissioned into the Yorkshire Regiment (the Green
Howards), becoming a temporary Lieutenant in the 6th battalion in December 1914. The 6th battalion
was one of the new army battalions and had been formed at Richmond in August 1914. It moved to
Belton Park for initial training but by April 1915 it was at Witley Camp near Godalming in Surrey
(ref.3). Archie White was promoted to temporary Captain in the regiment on 1 July 1915 just prior to
sailing for Gallipoli on 3 July; they disembarked at Suvla Bay on 6 August (ref.3). It was at Lala Baba
on Suvla Bay that his younger brother John was killed during the night of 6/7th August 1915 (ref.2).
John had initially served as a Private in the Yorkshire Regiment but had then been commissioned as a
2nd Lieutenant in the 6th Battalion; he has no known grave and is today commemorated on the Helles
Memorial in Turkey (ref.4). Archie was wounded at Gallipoli (ref.6).
In December 1915, the Yorkshires were evacuated from Gallipoli and sent to Egypt but in July 1916
they moved again, this time to the western front in France (ref.3). It was on the Somme battlefield
that Archie White won his Victoria Cross, whilst defending the Stuff Redoubt near Thiepval between
27th September and 1st October 1916. The award was confirmed in the London Gazette of 26th
October 1916 and the official reasons for the award were reprinted in the Harrogate Advertiser
which stated that Captain White ‘was in command of the troops that held the southern and western
faces of a redoubt. For four days and nights by his indomitable spirit and personal courage and skilful
dispositions he held his position under heavy fire of all kinds and against several counter-attacks.
Though short of supplies and ammunition, his determination never wavered. When the enemy
attacked in greatly superior numbers and had almost ejected our troops from the redoubt, he
personally led a counter-attack which finally cleared the enemy out of the southern and western
faces. He risked his life continually and was the life and soul of the defence’ (ref.6).
The news was well received in his home town. The Chairman of his local parish council sent him a
congratulatory telegram which read ‘On behalf of the inhabitants of Boroughbridge I congratulate
you on your gallant achievement and on the honour conferred upon you. You have also honoured
your native place’ (ref.6).
Later on, Archie White was also Mentioned in Despatches. He subsequently became a staff officer on
30th June 1917, being promoted to the rank of Brigade Major on 28th March 1918. Shortly
afterwards, he was awarded the Military Cross (London Gazette 3 June 1918) in the birthday
honours list (ref.7). He went on to serve as Brigade Major for the Archangel Relief Force in Russia
where the fighting continued into October 1919. His medal card shows that he was awarded the
1915 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal in addition to the VC and MC.
After the war had ended, a war trophy in the shape of a 6in howitzer on its carriage was delivered to
Boroughbridge in recognition of Captain White’s valour (ref.8).
At the cessation of hostilities, he was only offered the rank of Lieutenant as a permanent position
and decided to relinquish his commission, instead joining the newly created Army Education Corps
(AEC) as a Major in 1920. In this new role, he became an instructor at Sandhurst between 1921 and
1925, commanded Queen Victoria’s School in Dunblane from 1925-1929 and then returned to
Sandhurst as Senior AEC Instructor between 1929-1933. At the outbreak of the second world war, he
was still serving with the army as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Cipher Office. During the war, he
became Command Education Officer between 1940 and 1943 before being appointed as the Chief
Education Officer of 21st Army Group until 1945, being again Mentioned in Despatches in 1945. After
the war, he served in the Far East and retired with the rank of Honorary Colonel on 17th November
1947 (ref.2).
After the war, White became Principal of the City Literary Institute (1948-1953), a member of the
Senate of London University and he was appointed a Fellow of Kings College, London. His wife Jean,
with whom he had three daughters, died in 1960. Archie White was then Deputy Commandant of
the RAEC between 1960 and 1969, and he wrote their history ‘The Story of Army Education 16431963 (ref.2).
He died at his home in Camberley on 20 May 1971, at the age of 80 and was cremated at Brookwood
Crematorium. In their obituary, the RAEC quoted Major-General A.L.Gadd who had been Director of
Army Education. He compared Archie White to Sir Philip Sidney as being the soul of ‘noblesse and
chivalry, a hero of course, but beyond that one whose gentleness, charm and warm-heartedness
made him uniquely beloved by those in and out of the Army who were his friends. His gaiety, shrewd
humour, absurd modesty and abundant humanity were combined with outstanding professional
ability and quickness of understanding to make him an ideal comrade and a superlative staff officer’
(ref.5).
References
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Ancestry
www.ww1-yorkshires.org
www.1914-1918.net/yorks.htm
Commonwealth Graves Commission
RAEC Gazette May 1971
Harrogate Advertiser 28 October 1916
Harrogate Advertiser 22 June 1918
Harrogate Advertiser 3 January 1920
Kevin Earl
Claro Community Archaeology Group
2013
Archie White from 'Beyond their Duty - Heroes of the Green Howards by Roger Chapman
http://www.ww1-yorkshires.org.uk/vc-winners-yorkshires/html-files/vcgc-white.htm