‘Most gallant' WWII officer's Victoria Cross to be put up for auction
Lieutenant Willward Alexander Sandys-Clarke, whose family called him Peter, in April 1943 cleared three German machine-gun posts and an anti-tank pit, capturing numerous prisoners in the process. All the while, his wife heavily pregnant with their first child.
When his platoon came under fire from two enemy snipers, Lt Clarke advanced towards them alone only to be shot and killed.
Robin, Sandys-Clarke's son, was born back in England just over a week later. Two days after Robin's birth Irene Deakin, his widow, received the telegraph telling her he had died.
Mrs Deakin, who was known as Renee, went to Buckingham Palace to meet King George VI to collect the posthumous Victoria Cross (VC) – Britain's highest award for gallantry – in his honour.
Eight decades on, his medals and other prized mementos are estimated to sell for £300,000 to £500,000 at London-based auctioneers Spink & Son.
Alongside the VC is an emotive letter penned by Lieutenant Edward Deakin, his brother-in-law, to his sister telling her that Sandys-Clarke had died on the battlefield.
Lt Deakin, who served alongside Lt Clarke in the 1st Battalion, The Loyals, during the North African campaign, wrote: 'Peter was killed in action at about noon yesterday, Friday, April 23, towards the end of one of the most gallant and courageous actions, led by himself, which I am ever likely to see.'
He added: 'All I know is that I, and we all, have lost one of the finest and bravest of us all, and that he died as he always lived, in the highest interpretation of courage and honour.'
The auctioneers said the family had decided now is the right time to part with Sandys-Clarke's belongings as they want to bring his story to a wider audience.
A fierce counter-attack
Lt Clarke was born in Southport, Lancashire, in 1919. He was almost killed in a motorcycle accident in September 1940, leaving him nearly blind in one eye and deaf in one ear.
But he refused an honourable discharge and against the surgeon's advice landed with the 1st Battalion in North Africa.
The Loyals were tasked to take Gueriat-el-Atach in Tunisia, one of the strongest points in the line of German defences on the route to Tunis and a key proponent of Operation Vulcan.
The Loyals launched a 2am offensive, only to be met with a fierce German counter-attack which left Sandys-Clarke as the only officer standing in 'B' Company.
He was wounded in the neck and head by shell splinters but immediately returned to the battlefield when he was bandaged up could form a composite platoon to recapture the ridge that controlled the line of advance.
His VC citation states: 'Without hesitating, Lieutenant Clarke advanced single-handed to clear the opposition, but was killed outright within a few feet of the enemy.
'This officer's quick grasp of the situation and his brilliant leadership undoubtedly restored the situation, whilst his outstanding personal bravery and tenacious devotion to duty were an inspiration to his company and were beyond praise.'
Sandys-Clarke, who was the fifth member of the Clarke family to receive the VC, was laid to rest in Massicault War Cemetery, near Tunis.
Marcus Budgen, head of the medals department at Spink & Son, said: 'This is without a doubt one of the most important Victoria Crosses to come to market for the past decade, it is certainly the most poignant story I have ever told in my career.'
He added: 'It is a simply breathtaking and tear-jerking story that should inspire us all.'
The sale takes place on July 24.
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