Henry James Raby Rear - Admiral Henry James Raby VC , CB ( 26 September 1827 – 13 February 1907 ) was a recipient of the Victoria Cross , the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces . Early Life and Career . Henry James Raby was born on 26 September 1827 , the son of Mr A . T . Raby of Llanelly , Carmarthen . He attended Sherborne School from 1841 to 1842 , during which time he was a member of Abbey House . After leaving Sherborne School , he entered the Royal Navy in 1842 as a 1st Class Volunteer in H . M . S . Monarch . He served for 11 months with the Naval Brigade in the Crimea being promoted Commander for his services . VC action . Raby was 27 years old , and a lieutenant in the Royal Navy serving with the Naval Brigade during the Crimean War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC . On 18 June 1855 in the Crimea , immediately after the assault on Sebastopol , a soldier of the 57th Regiment , who had been wounded in both legs , was observed sitting up and calling for help . At once Lieutenant Raby and seamen Henry Curtis and John Taylor left the shelter of their battery works and ran forward a distance of 70 yards , across open ground , through heavy gunfire and succeeded in carrying the wounded man to safety . Raby was the first man to receive the VC from The Queen at the first investiture on 26 June 1857 . The Queen pinned the crosses on the recipients in strict order of Service precedence and seniority . Commander Raby therefore came first as the senior officer in the senior service on parade , although his V . C . deed had been performed after that of the midshipman , Lucas , who certainly stands as the first winner of the cross . Similarly in the army contingent , Sergeant - Major Grieve was the first soldier on the parade to receive the cross , because he belonged to the Cavalry , an arm senior to the Infantry , although his VC deed was later than those of the four infantry soldiers who earned it at the Alma . Subsequent career and death . In command of H . M . S . Medusa and later of H . M . S . Alecto in the 1860s he played a prominent part in the suppression of the slave trade on the West Coast of Africa and was present at the attack and destruction of Porto Novo in Dahomey . He was promoted Captain for his services in 1862 . He was awarded C . B . in 1875 and commanded H . M . S . Aventure on the China Stattion 1868 – 71 . He retired as a Rear Admiral 1878 , and devoted the remaining years of his life to service charities . Raby died on 13 February 1907 . Raby ' s obituary appeared in " The Shirburnian " in March 1907 [ Reprint from " The Times " , 14 February 1907 ] : " REAR - ADMIRAL H . J . RABY , V . C . , C . B . Born September 21st , 1827 ; died February 13th , 1907 . Rear - Admiral Henry James Raby , V . C . , C . B . ( retired ) , died yesterday morning at his residence , 8 Clarence Parade , Southsea . Admiral Raby had resided in Southsea since his retirement from the Navy . He took a great interest in the Royal Seamen and Marines ' Orphanage , the Royal Sailors ’ Home , and in various other philanthropic Institutions in the town . Rear - Admiral Raby was a son of Mr . Arthur Turnour Raby of Llanelly , Carmarthen , and was educated at Sherborne . He was born in September , 1827 , and entered the Navy as a first - class Volunteer on board ' The Monarch ' in 1842 . In 1848 he was rated mate , and two years later received his commission as lieutenant , in this grade he served for some time in the ‘ Wasp ' on the West Coast of Africa , and on the outbreak of war with Russia in 1854wassentto the Black Sea . There he was landed with the Naval Brigade and served in the trenches from October23rd , 1854 , until September 16th , 1855 . As second - in - command of a ladder party at the attack of the Redan , he performed the act of gallantry for which he received the Victoria Cross and which was thus described in the Gazette : - ' On June 18th , 1855 , immediately after the assault on Sevastopol , a soldier of the 57th regiment , who had been shot through both legs , was observed sitting up and calling for assistance . Climbing over the breastwork of the advanced sap , Lieutenant Raby and two seamen proceeded upwards of 70yards across the open space towards the salient angle of the Redan , and in spite of the heavy fire which was still continuing , succeeded in carrying the wounded soldier to a place of safety at the imminent risk of their own lives . Lieutenant Raby was the sole survivor to reap the reward and wear the Cross . ' For his services in the trenches he was in September , 1855 , promoted to commander and received the Crimean , Sardinian , and Turkish Medals , with Clasps for Sevastopol and Inkerman , the 5th class of the Medjidie , and the ribbon of the Legion of Honour . His next appointment was to the command of the ' Allecto ' on the West Coast of Africa from 1859 to 1862 , during which period he commanded the boats of the squadron at the capture of Porto Novo in April , 1861 , whenhe was wounded , and for this and other services in the oppression of the slave trade was repeatedly mentioned in despatches . He received his promotion to the rank of Captain in November , 1862 , for his services on the West Coast , and subsequently commanded the ' Adventure ' in China from 1868to 1871 . In 1877 he retired from the active list , and his subsequent step was gained in retirement . He had in 1875beenmadea Companion of the Bath , and in 1895 was granted a good service pension , which is by the Admiral ' s death placed at the disposal of the Admiralty . Admiral Raby married in 1863 , Judith , daughter of the late Colonel Watkin Forster of Holt Manor , Trowbridge . H . J . R . entered Mr . James ' House in 1841 , he left the same year . " The medal . His medal is on display at the Royal Naval Museum in Portsmouth .