William Napier ( VC ) William Napier VC ( 20 August 1828 – 2 June 1908 ) was an English 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 . William Napier was born at Keighley in Yorkshire , England on 20 August 1828 , the son of Samuel Napier of the Scottish Napiers and his wife Mary ( née Horsfall ) . William was educated at a private school and grew up in a military family . His uncle William Napier was a Grenadier Guard ( 2nd Battalion ) , who fought at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 and was awarded the Waterloo Medal which he gave to William . By the time William had left school he had the urge to join the army . On 10 December 1846 he enlisted at Leeds , Yorkshire with the 13th Light Infantry . Crimea . In 1855 William Napier left the England with the 1st Battalion , 13th ( 1st Somersetshire ) ( Prince Albert ' s Light Infantry ) Regiment of Foot under General Lord Mark Kerr , G . C . B . , and arrived at Balaklava , Crimean Peninsula , by sea on 29 June 1855 . William described Sevastopol as follows in 1897 : The French had the honour of sealing the fate of Sevastopol . On 8 September 1855 , they captured the Malakoff , the most formidable of its fortresses . The war was now virtually over . A treaty was concluded in March 1856 . Following the battle at Sevastopol , Sergeant William Napier was awarded the Crimea Medal with clasp and the Turkish Medal . He fought in the following battles in the Crimea : Indian Mutiny . In May 1857 the native troops at Meerut mutinied , and the remainder of troops throughout Bengal soon followed their example . On 30 August 1857 , the 1st Battalion under the command of Lord Mark Kerr , embarked at Port Elizabeth ( South Africa ) at 24 hours notice , for India , and landed at Calcutta on 3 October 1857 . On 27 March 1858 , Lord Mark Kerr received orders from the Viceroy to march to the relief of Azimghur , which is about 50 miles north of Benares . They arrived at Azimghur on 5 April 1858 , and commenced fighting the next morning . In this action Sergeant William Napier saw Private Benjamin Milnes lying severely wounded and went to his rescue . While surrounded by Sepoys he bandaged Private Milnes wounds . Suddenly he was shot at , leaving a gaping wound over his left eye . Blinded by the blood pouring down his face , Sergeant Napier continued to fight back until he finally picked up Private Milnes and carried him to safety . This daring act was sufficient to induce Lord Mark Kerr to ask the sergeant whether he would like a commission . The sergeant declined that honour . For his heroism he was specially mentioned in dispatches and received the Victoria Cross and promotion to the rank of Sergeant Major . Through to December 1858 he fought in the following battles in India : In October 1862 , Sergeant - Major William Napier VC , was in transit to Calcutta , and on 8 December 1862 , he was discharged . Australia . He left Calcutta on 21 December 1862 at 8 : 38pm on the " Madras " and arrived in Melbourne , Australia in January 1863 . William found work as a clerk and later met and married Elizabeth Slater , the daughter of William and Margaret Slater of Ripon , Yorkshire , England , on 16 September 1863 in Melbourne . William and Elizabeth had a son , Alfred Stephen Slater Napier , and a daughter , Mary Elizabeth Napier , who both died in infancy . Elizabeth Napier died 25 April 1867 , age 37 . William Napier married secondly , Ruth Ann Hirst , widow of Joseph Graham Hirst of Thornes by Wakefield , Yorkshire and daughter of Thomas Crompton Booth of Sowerby , Yorkshire , on 5 November 1869 , at Bendigo , Victoria . William Napier worked as a clerk and then a miner for a short time before he became a cordial manufacturer based in Mackey Street , Rochester . William was a member and treasurer of the Rochester branch of the Masons . He was involved in many duties in Rochester and was listed as a pioneer of the district . Sergeant - Major William Napier moved to Melbourne after his property burnt down . After a few years in Melbourne he became sick and returned to Rochester in 1907 . He stayed with John and Ethel Abbey in Mackey Street next to where his home once was . He died on 2 June 1908 at the Abbey home , leaving his wife Ruth Ann Napier and his adopted stepdaughter Eliza . Ruth Ann Napier and her daughter moved to Western Australia . Ruth died at her grandson Ernest Alfred Winch ' s home in 1924 . Further information . His adopted stepdaughter Eliza married William Henry Winch , ancestor of Lord John Napier - Winch of Western Australia . William Napier ' s personal belongings are now held by Lord John Napier - Winch . The medal . His Victoria Cross is displayed at Somerset Military Museum , Taunton , Somerset , England .