John Croak award received Victoria Cross
First World War
In 1915, Croak enlisted in the Canadian Army and volunteered for service abroad with the Canadian Expeditionary Force. Posted to the 55th Battalion as a private, he embarked for Europe in November 1915. He soon transferred to the 13th Battalion, which was serving on the Western Front as part of 3rd Brigade, 1st Canadian Division. Through 1917 and the early part of 1918, Croak participated in several engagements as part of 13th Battalion; these included the Battles of Vimy Ridge, Hill 70 and Passchendaele.On 8 August 1918, the opening day of the Battle of Amiens, and the beginning of the Hundred Days Offensive, the 3rd Brigade, accompanied by a battalion of tanks, was at the forefront of the 1st Division's advance. The 13th Battalion became held up by machine gun posts in the vicinity of Hangard Wood. Croak attacked a machine gun post and took several prisoners whom he escorted to his company headquarters. Ignoring instructions to seek medical treatment for a wound to his arm, he carried out an attack on another machine gun post nearby. He was wounded again, this time fatally, in the act, and died that same day. He was recognised for his actions with an award of the Victoria Cross (VC). The VC, instituted in 1856, was the highest award for valour that could be bestowed on a soldier of the British Empire. The citation for Croak's VC read:
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