3585 Lance Corporal William Harold Coltman VC DCM* MM*  

William Harold Coltman was the most decorated enlisted soldier of the First World War, being Mentioned in Dispatches prior to being awarded the Victoria Cross, the Distinguished Conduct Medal and Bar, and Military Medal and Bar. 

Coltman was member of the Plymouth Brethren, a non-conformist Christian low church with roots going back to 1820s Dublin in Ireland and was a deeply religious man and a pacifist . He was born at Rangemore on the outskirts of Burton upon Trent in Staffordshire on 17th November 1891. He was a market gardener who taught in the village's Sunday School. 

He enlisted in The North Staffordshire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's) in January 1915, and was p[osted to the 1/6th Battalion (Bn).

Coltman volunteered to be. stretcher bearer, and was 26 years old when he was awarded the Victoria Cross. 

Awards of Medals For Gallantry. 

Military Medal - February 1917

Private Coltman w3a sawarded the MM for rescuiing a wounded officer from No Man's Land in Feb 1917. The officer was in command of a wiring party durign a misty night when the mist cleared and the party were observed by the enemy, coming under fire. The officer was wounded in the thigh and Pte Coltman went forward immediately to bring the officer back to the British Lines. 

Distinguished Conduct Medal - July 1917

Coltman was awared the DCM for his gallantry over a period of days in July 1917. His citation in the London Gazette reads;

for conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty in evacuating wounded from the front line at great personal risk under shell fire. His gallant conduct undoubtedly saved many lives, and he continued throughout the night to search for wounded under shell and machine gun fire, and brought several in. His absolute indifference to danger had a most inspiring effect upon the rest of his men.

Bar to the Military Medal - August 1917 

Again this award was made for Coltman's gallantry over a period of days, in June 1917. On 6th June, several casualties were sustained when an ammunition dump was hit by enemy mortar fire. Coltman took responsibility for removing highly flammable Verey lights from the amunition dump to prevent further casualties being caused in the event of other munitions exploding in the heat / fires caused by the mortars. On 7th June Coltman's company headquarters was mortared and Coltman organised and led the medical treatment of injured soldiers. The following week, Colman organised and led a rescue party to dig out men trapped when a trench tunnel collapsed. 

Bar to the Distinguished Conduct Medal - September 1918

A week before the actions that earned Coltman the award of the Victoria Cross, on 28th September 1918, L/Cpl Coltman tended to and then physically evacuated several men wounded near the St. Quentin Canal near Bellenglise, all unde heavy enemy shellfire. The following day, without having slept, he continued tending to the wounded during the advance, not rsting until he was positive that his sector was clear of wounded soldiers. The London Gazette citation included:

He set the highest example of fearlessness and devotion to duty to those with him

Victoria Cross - 3/4 October 1918 

L/Cpl Coltman's VC citation read;

For most conspicuous bravery, initiative and devotion to duty. During the operations at Mannequin Hill, north-east of Sequehart, on the 3rd and 4th of Oct. 1918, L.-Corp. Coltman, a stretcher bearer, hearing that wounded had been left behind during a retirement,  went forward alone in the face of fierce enfilade fire, found the casualties, dressed them and on three successive occasions, carried comrades on his back to safety, thus saving their lives. This very gallant NCO tended the wounded unceasingly for 48 hours.

L/Cpl Coltman received his VC from His Majesty King George V at Buckingham Palace on 22 May 1919. 

After the War William Coltman returned to Burton on Trent and became a gardener with the town's Parks Department. During World War Two he was commissioned in he Army Cadet Force (1943) and commanded the Burton Detachment of the ACF. He resigned his commission in 1952, and retired in 1963. 

LIeutenant WIlliam Coltman VC DCM* MM* died in 1974 at the age of 82, and was buried inteh the churchyard of St. Mark's parish church in Winshill, alongside his wife Eleanor May (nee Dolman).