Remembrance Day Talk: Unflappable John 'Jack' Edmondson - Australia’s First WW2 VC Recipient

Join former LTCOL Christopher Holcroft OAM RFD JP (Retd) as he discusses the story of Australia’s first World War Two Victoria Cross recipient, Corporal John Edmondson, who was killed three days into the eight-month long siege of Tobruk, on the eastern coast of Libya, North Africa, on April 13th, 1941.

German soldiers had broken through the Australian defences, armed with heavy machine guns and mortars. Corporal Edmondson and five soldiers from the Ninth Division’s 2/17th Infantry Battalion decided to stage an attack. Under the command of Lieutenant Austin Mackell, the group fixed bayonets and charged the Germans. In the stoush, Edmondson was seriously wounded in the neck and stomach but kept fighting. When Lieutenant Mackell was attacked from the rear by a German soldier, Edmondson went to his aid, saving his Commanding Officer’s life.

Edmondson died of his wounds shortly after returning to the Australian lines.

A Victoria Cross was posthumously awarded to Edmondson in July 1941. It was the first VC to be awarded to an Australian in World War 2.

Christopher served in the Australian Army Reserve for more than 43 years and later in the Australian Cadet Forces for another five years. While working for the Australian Defence Force, he was sent to Bougainville and later deployed to East Timor with the United Nations, Iraq, and the wider Middle East.

While working in Military Public Affairs, Christopher served in most major Australian military headquarters, including Headquarters Australian Theatre (now Joint Operations Command), Headquarters Land Command, Headquarters Forces Command, Maritime Headquarters, Air Force Headquarters and Headquarters Second Division.

He has written and published seven books, four for Young Adults, three for Adults, with one unpublished in the editing process. Christopher received the Medal to the Order of Australia (OAM) in the 2023 Australia Day Honours and Awards for his services to Youth and the Community.

Image: John Edmondson Liverpool City Council Heritage Collection