Victoria
Cross winner Lance-Corporal - 13 th. Battalion, Royal Canadian
Highlanders Regiment, demonstrated his valour on both April 22nd
& 23rd 1915 at St. Julien, Belgium. 
On
the 22nd of April he was coming forward from St. Julien when
he discovered some of the guns of Major W.B.M. King's field battery were
being fired upon by German infantry located very close to them.
It seemed the capture of these guns was imminent, but Fisher set
up his machine gun in advance of the Battery, and with the assistance of
a few men, held off the enemy until the guns got away. During this
encounter Fisher's small section was under intense fire and four of his
six men were killed. Lance-Corporal Fisher returned to St. Julien.
Meanwhile
Lieut. Ross, with his machine guns, made a determined effort to cut down
the enfilade fire that was causing the Battalion such heavy losses.
Accompanied by Lance-Corporal Fisher, who had already rendered
exceptionally distinguished service, who crawled out a shallow trench
and, setting up a gun, was shot dead.
A moment later Sgt. McLeod , who had taken Fisher's place, was
killed in the same way. Leaving
this particular gun. Lieut. Ross crawled to a spot where he ordered
Lance-Corp. Parkes and
Private Glad to set up another gun and open fire.
From this location he gained the advantage over the most
devastating fire from the German trenches and maintained the Canadian
superiority for the rest of the day.
For
his valour in the Second Battle of Ypres, Lance Corporal Fred Fisher was
awarded the Victoria Cross (see thumbnail on left), posthumously, the first VC awarded to a
Canadian during the First World War.
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