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{{short description|Recipient of the Victoria Cross}}
{{Short description|Recipient of the Victoria Cross}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2014}}
{{Use New Zealand English|date=January 2014}}
{{Use New Zealand English|date=January 2014}}
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|image_size=
|image_size=
|alt=a head and torso portrait of a male in military uniform
|alt=a head and torso portrait of a male in military uniform
|caption= Cyril Basset, April 1916
|caption= Cyril Bassett, April 1916
|nickname=
|nickname=
|birth_date= {{Birth date|df=yes|1892|01|03}}
|birth_date= {{Birth date|df=yes|1892|01|03}}
|birth_place= [[Mount Eden]], [[Auckland]], New Zealand
|birth_place= [[Mount Eden]], [[Auckland]], [[Colony of New Zealand]]
|death_date= {{Death date and age|df=yes|1983|01|09|1892|01|03}}
|death_date= {{Death date and age|df=yes|1983|01|09|1892|01|03}}
|death_place= [[Stanley Bay, New Zealand|Stanley Bay]], New Zealand
|death_place= [[Stanley Bay, New Zealand|Stanley Bay]], [[New Zealand]]
|placeofburial=
|placeofburial=
|allegiance= New Zealand
|allegiance= New Zealand
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|unit=
|unit=
|commands=
|commands=
|battles= [[First World War]]
|battles=
{{tree list}}
* [[First World War]]
* [[Gallipoli Campaign]]
** [[Gallipoli Campaign]]
** [[Battle of Chunuk Bair]]
*** [[Battle of Chunuk Bair]]
* [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]]
** [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]]
** [[Battle of the Somme]]
*** [[Battle of the Somme]]
** [[Spring Offensive]] {{WIA}}
*** [[German spring offensive]]{{WIA}}
[[Second World War]]
* [[Second World War]]
* [[Military history of New Zealand during World War II#Home front|Home Front]]
** [[Military history of New Zealand during World War II#Home front|Home Front]]
{{tree list/end}}
|awards= [[Victoria Cross]]
|awards= [[Victoria Cross]]
|relations=
|relations=
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}}
}}


'''Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett''', [[Victoria Cross|VC]] (3 January 1892{{snd}}9 January 1983) was a New Zealand recipient of the [[Victoria Cross]] (VC), the highest award for gallantry "in the face of the enemy" that could be awarded to British and [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] forces at the time. He was the only soldier serving with the [[New Zealand Expeditionary Force]] (NZEF) to be awarded the VC in the [[Gallipoli Campaign]] of the [[First World War]].
'''Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett''', [[Victoria Cross|VC]] (3 January 1892{{snd}}9 January 1983) was a [[New Zealand]] recipient of the [[Victoria Cross]] (VC), the highest award for gallantry "in the face of the enemy" that could be awarded to British and [[British Empire|Empire]] forces at the time. He was the only soldier serving with the [[New Zealand Expeditionary Force]] (NZEF) to be awarded the VC in the [[Gallipoli Campaign]] of the [[First World War]].


Born in [[Auckland]], Bassett was a bank worker when the First World War began. A member of New Zealand's [[Territorial Force (New Zealand)|Territorial Force]], he volunteered for service abroad with the NZEF and was posted to the New Zealand Divisional Signal Company as a [[sapper]]. He saw action on the opening day of the Gallipoli Campaign, and during the [[Battle of Chunuk Bair]] he performed the actions that led to his award of the VC. Medically evacuated due to sickness shortly after the battle, he later served on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] and finished the war as a [[second lieutenant]]. Bassett returned to the banking profession but was recalled to active duty during the Second World War. He served on the [[Military history of New Zealand during World War II#Home front|Home Front]] and by the time he was taken off active duty in December 1943, he had been promoted to the rank of [[lieutenant colonel]] and was commander of signals in the Northern Military District. When he retired from his banking career he became a [[justice of the peace]] in [[Devonport, Auckland|Devonport]]. He died in 1983 at the age of 91.
Born in [[Auckland]], Bassett was a bank worker when the First World War began. A member of New Zealand's [[Territorial Force (New Zealand)|Territorial Force]], he volunteered for service abroad with NZEF and was posted to the New Zealand Divisional Signal Company as a [[sapper]]. He saw action on the opening day of the Gallipoli Campaign, and during the [[Battle of Chunuk Bair]] he performed the actions that led to his award of the VC. Medically evacuated due to sickness shortly after the battle, he later served on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] and finished the war as a [[second lieutenant]]. Bassett returned to the banking profession but was recalled to active duty during the [[Second World War]]. He served on the [[Military history of New Zealand during World War II#Home front|Home Front]] and by the time he was taken off active duty in December 1943, he had been promoted to the rank of [[lieutenant colonel]] and was commander of signals in the Northern Military District. When he retired from his banking career he became a [[justice of the peace]] in [[Devonport, Auckland|Devonport]]. He died in 1983 at the age of 91.


==Early life==
==Early life==


Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett was born on 3{{nbsp}}January 1892 in the [[Auckland]] suburb of [[Mount Eden, New Zealand|Mount Eden]],{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}} to a printer, Frederick Bassett, and his wife Harriet, {{nee}} Powley.<ref name="DNZB Bassett">{{DNZB|title=Bassett, Cyril Royston Guyton 1892–1983|first= Laurie|last= Barber|id=3b15/1|url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/3b15/bassett-cyril-royston-guyton|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130045125/https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/3b15/bassett-cyril-royston-guyton|url-status=dead|archivedate=30 January 2018|accessdate=28 December 2012}}</ref> Bassett attended Auckland Grammar School and then Auckland Technical College. After completing his formal education in 1908, he worked as a clerk for the [[National Bank of New Zealand]].{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}} In 1909, he joined what later became the [[Territorial Force (New Zealand)|Territorial Force]], the part-time military reserve, and was posted to the Auckland College Rifles. Two years later he transferred to the Auckland Divisional Signal Company.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}}
Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett was born on 3{{nbsp}}January 1892 in the [[Auckland]] suburb of [[Mount Eden, New Zealand|Mount Eden]],{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}} to a printer, Frederick Bassett, and his wife Harriet, {{nee}} Powley.<ref name="DNZB Bassett">{{DNZB|title=Bassett, Cyril Royston Guyton 1892–1983|first= Laurie|last= Barber|id=3b15/1|url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/3b15/bassett-cyril-royston-guyton|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130045125/https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/3b15/bassett-cyril-royston-guyton|url-status=dead|archive-date=30 January 2018|access-date=28 December 2012}}</ref> Bassett attended [[Auckland Grammar School]] and then [[Auckland University of Technology|Auckland Technical College]]. After completing his formal education in 1908, he worked as a clerk for the [[National Bank of New Zealand]].{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}} In 1909, he joined what later became the [[Territorial Force (New Zealand)|Territorial Force]], the part-time military reserve, and was posted to the Auckland College Rifles. Two years later he transferred to the Auckland Divisional Signal Company.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}}


==First World War==
==First World War==
When the [[First World War]] broke out in the summer of 1914, it was Bassett's intention to join the [[Royal Navy]], but his mother, whose family had a history of service in the [[British Army]], convinced him to enlist in the [[New Zealand Military Forces]]. Bassett was not particularly tall and was initially rejected on the grounds of height. He persisted with his attempt to enlist,{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} and joined the [[New Zealand Expeditionary Force]] (NZEF) as a [[sapper]] in the [[Corps of Royal New Zealand Engineers|Corps of New Zealand Engineers]], assigned to the [[New Zealand Divisional Signal Company]].<ref name="DNZB Bassett" />

When the [[First World War]] broke out, it was Bassett's intention to join the [[Royal Navy]], but his mother, whose family had a history of service in the [[British Army]], convinced him to enlist in the [[New Zealand Military Forces]]. Bassett was not particularly tall and was initially rejected on the grounds of height. He persisted with his attempt to enlist,{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} and joined the [[New Zealand Expeditionary Force]] (NZEF) as a [[sapper]] in the [[Corps of Royal New Zealand Engineers|Corps of New Zealand Engineers]], assigned to the [[New Zealand Divisional Signal Company]].<ref name="DNZB Bassett" />


===Gallipoli===
===Gallipoli===
Bassett embarked with the main body of the NZEF for the [[Middle East]] in October 1914. Initially based in Egypt, after a period of training, he [[landing at Anzac Cove|landed at ANZAC Cove]] on 25 April 1915, the opening day of the [[Gallipoli campaign]]. Along with the other signallers of his unit, he was immediately set to work laying communication lines to the headquarters of the [[New Zealand and Australian Division]].<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/>{{sfn|Ellis|1968|p=7}} In early May, he, along with two other signallers, was noted in consideration for a gallantry award for their efforts in laying telephone wires while under heavy fire.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}}{{sfn|Ellis|1968|p=12}}


Later in the campaign, Bassett was promoted to [[corporal]]. In August 1915, a series of offensives against [[Ottoman Empire|Turkish]] positions along the Gallipoli front was planned to break the stalemate that had developed since the initial landing. On 7{{nbsp}}August, the [[New Zealand and Australian Division#Formation|New Zealand Infantry Brigade]] [[Battle of Chunuk Bair|attacked Chunuk Bair]], a prominent hill overlooking the battlefield. The battle lasted for three days. Chunuk Bair was captured by the brigade's [[Wellington Infantry Regiment (NZEF)|Wellington Infantry Battalion]] on the second day, during which Bassett, in command of a section of five other signallers of his unit, laid down and maintained telephone lines between brigade headquarters and the front lines.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} Working on the exposed slopes leading up to Chunuk Bair, he braved continuous gunfire during this time armed with only a revolver and a bayonet. A bullet struck his boot and two more passed through the fabric of his tunic during the fighting, but he was not wounded.{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}}
Bassett embarked with the main body of the NZEF for the [[Middle East]] in October 1914. Initially based in Egypt, after a period of training, he [[landing at Anzac Cove|landed at ANZAC Cove]] on 25 April 1915, the opening day of the [[Gallipoli Campaign]]. Along with the other signallers of his unit, he was immediately set to work laying communication lines to the headquarters of the [[New Zealand and Australian Division]].<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/>{{sfn|Ellis|1968|p=7}} In early May, he, along with two other signallers, was noted in consideration for a gallantry award for their efforts in laying telephone wires while under heavy fire.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}}{{sfn|Ellis|1968|p=12}}


After the battle, Basset's name, along with those of the other five signallers of his section, was collected by [[Major (rank)|Major]] Arthur Temperley of brigade headquarters, who nominated Bassett to receive the [[Victoria Cross]] (VC).{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} A few days later, Bassett was evacuated from Gallipoli due to poor health. Suffering from [[dysentery]], he spent several months recuperating at a hospital in Leicester and it was here that he was advised of his VC award.{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}} Instituted in 1856, the VC is the highest gallantry award that can be bestowed on a soldier of the [[British Empire]].{{sfn|O'Shea|2000|pp=558–559}} The citation read:
Later in the campaign, Bassett was promoted to [[corporal]]. In August 1915, a series of offensives against [[Ottoman Empire|Turkish]] positions along the Gallipoli front was planned to break the stalemate that had developed since the initial landing. On 7{{nbsp}}August, the [[New Zealand and Australian Division#Formation|New Zealand Infantry Brigade]] [[Battle of Chunuk Bair|attacked Chunuk Bair]], a prominent hill overlooking the battlefield. The battle lasted for three days. Chunuk Bair was captured by the brigade's [[Wellington Regiment|Wellington Infantry Battalion]] on the second day, during which Bassett, in command of a section of five other signallers of his unit, laid down and maintained telephone lines between brigade headquarters and the front lines.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} Working on the exposed slopes leading up to Chunuk Bair, he braved continuous gunfire during this time armed with only a revolver and a bayonet. A bullet struck his boot and two more passed through the fabric of his tunic during the fighting, but he was not wounded.{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}}
{{Blockquote|No. 4/515 Corporal Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett, New Zealand Divisional Signal Company. For most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty on the Chunuk Bair ridge in the Gallipoli Peninsula on 7th August, 1915. After the New Zealand Infantry Brigade had attacked and established itself on the ridge, Corporal Bassett, in full daylight and under a continuous and heavy fire, succeeded in laying a telephone line from the old position to the new one on Chunuk Bair. He has subsequently been brought to notice for further excellent and most gallant work connected with the repair of telephone lines by day and night under heavy fire.|''The London Gazette'', No. 29328, 15 October 1915<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=29328|date=15 October 1915|page=10154|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215000000*/https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/29328/page/10154|archive-date=7 January 2017}}</ref>}}


The citation incorrectly refers to Bassett's actions on 7{{nbsp}}August; it was not until the following day that the Wellington Infantry Battalion captured Chunuk Bair. His VC was the first to be awarded to a soldier of the NZEF and he was the only one to receive it for actions during the Gallipoli Campaign.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} [[King George&nbsp;V]] presented him the VC at an investiture held at [[Buckingham Palace]] on 3{{nbsp}}February 1916.<ref>{{cite news|title=New Zealanders Decorated|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19160204.2.68.2|access-date=25 February 2018|work=Evening Post|volume=XCI|issue=29|date=4 February 1916}}</ref> Bassett later remarked of the VC action, "I reckon there must be some guardian angel looking after me, especially as one man was shot dead in front of me and another wounded just behind."<ref name=NZH/>
After the battle, Basset's name, along with those of the other five signallers of his section, was collected by [[Major]] Arthur Temperley of brigade headquarters, who nominated Bassett to receive the [[Victoria Cross]] (VC).{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} A few days later, Bassett was evacuated from Gallipoli due to poor health. Suffering from [[dysentery]], he spent several months recuperating at a hospital in Leicester and it was here that he was advised of his VC award.{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}} Instituted in 1856, the VC is the highest gallantry award that can be bestowed on a soldier of the [[British Empire]].{{sfn|O'Shea|2000|pp=558–559}} The citation read:
{{Quote|No. 4/515 Corporal Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett, New Zealand Divisional Signal Company. For most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty on the Chunuk Bair ridge in the Gallipoli Peninsula on 7th August, 1915. After the New Zealand Infantry Brigade had attacked and established itself on the ridge, Corporal Bassett, in full daylight and under a continuous and heavy fire, succeeded in laying a telephone line from the old position to the new one on Chunuk Bair. He has subsequently been brought to notice for further excellent and most gallant work connected with the repair of telephone lines by day and night under heavy fire.|''The London Gazette'', No. 29328, 15 October 1915<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=29328|date=15 October 1915|page=10154|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215000000*/https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/29328/page/10154|archivedate=7 January 2017}}</ref>}}

The citation incorrectly refers to Bassett's actions on 7{{nbsp}}August; it was not until the following day that the Wellington Infantry Battalion captured Chunuk Bair. His VC was the first to be awarded to a soldier of the NZEF and he was the only one to receive it for actions during the Gallipoli Campaign.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} [[King George&nbsp;V]] presented him the VC at an investiture held at [[Buckingham Palace]] on 3{{nbsp}}February 1916.<ref>{{cite news|title=New Zealanders Decorated|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19160204.2.68.2|accessdate=25 February 2018|work=Evening Post|issue=Vol. XCI, issue 29|date=4 February 1916}}</ref> Bassett later remarked of the VC action, "I reckon there must be some guardian angel looking after me, especially as one man was shot dead in front of me and another wounded just behind."<ref name=NZH/>


===Western Front===
===Western Front===
[[File:Cyril Bassett, 1917.jpg|thumb|left|Sergeant Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett eating a meal in the trenches, 1917.]]


In June 1916, Bassett rejoined his unit, by then on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] in France as part of the [[New Zealand Division]]. Later that year, he participated in the [[Battle of the Somme]], and in 1917 was commissioned as a [[second lieutenant]].{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} He was wounded twice while on the Western Front;{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}} the first occasion was in October 1917,<ref>{{cite news|title=While Doing Their Duty: Casualties at the Front|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19171020.2.57|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303091138/https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19171020.2.57|archivedate=3 March 2018|accessdate=3 March 2018|work=Evening Post|issue=Vol. XCIV, issue 96|date=20 October 1917}}</ref> and the second was during the [[Spring Offensive]] in March 1918, when an artillery barrage destroyed the headquarters of the [[New Zealand Rifle Brigade]], where he was the signals officer. The same barrage killed the brigade's commander, [[Brigadier-General]] [[Harry Fulton]].{{sfn|Austin|1924|p=299}} On extracting himself from the rubble of the headquarters, Bassett immediately set about reestablishing communications for which he was recommended for, but was not awarded, the [[Military Cross]].{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}}{{sfn|Ellis|1968|p=67}} He returned to New Zealand in late 1918 as the New Zealand Division started demobilising and was formally discharged from the NZEF in 1919.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}}
In June 1916, Bassett rejoined his unit, by then on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] in France as part of the [[New Zealand Division]]. Later that year, he participated in the [[Battle of the Somme]], and in 1917 was commissioned as a [[second lieutenant]].{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} He was wounded twice while on the Western Front;{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}} the first occasion was in October 1917,<ref>{{cite news|title=While Doing Their Duty: Casualties at the Front|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19171020.2.57|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303091138/https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19171020.2.57|archive-date=3 March 2018|access-date=3 March 2018|work=Evening Post|volume=XCIV|issue=96|date=20 October 1917}}</ref> and the second was during the [[German spring offensive]] in March 1918, when an artillery barrage destroyed the headquarters of the [[New Zealand Rifle Brigade]], where he was the signals officer. The same barrage killed the brigade's commander, [[Brigadier-General]] [[Harry Fulton]].{{sfn|Austin|1924|p=299}} On extracting himself from the rubble of the headquarters, Bassett immediately set about reestablishing communications for which he was recommended for, but was not awarded, the [[Military Cross]].{{sfn|Snelling|1999|pp=181–187}}{{sfn|Ellis|1968|p=67}} With the war now over, he returned to New Zealand in late 1918 as the New Zealand Division started demobilising and was formally discharged from the NZEF in 1919.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}}


==Interwar period and Second World War==
==Interwar period and Second World War==


Bassett returned to his banking career after the war, managing branches of the [[National Bank of New Zealand|National Bank]] in Auckland and later in [[Paeroa]]. He retained a link to the military, rejoining the Territorial Force shortly after his discharge from the NZEF but was placed on the retired list of officers in 1929.<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/> Three years previously, he had married Ruth Louise Grant;<ref>{{cite news|title=Weddings|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZH19260120.2.7.5|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303100131/https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZH19260120.2.7.5|archivedate=3 March 2018|accessdate=3 March 2018|work=New Zealand|issue=Vol. LXIII, issue 19230|date=20 January 1926}}</ref> the couple had two children. By 1939 he was the manager of the Auckland Town Hall branch of the National Bank.<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/>
Bassett returned to his banking career after the war, managing branches of the National Bank in Auckland and later in [[Paeroa]]. He retained a link to the military, rejoining the Territorial Force shortly after his discharge from the NZEF but was placed on the retired list of officers in 1929.<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/> Three years previously, he had married Ruth Louise Grant in [[Kāhui St David's|St David's Church]], Auckland;<ref>{{cite news|title=Weddings|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZH19260120.2.7.5|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303100131/https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZH19260120.2.7.5|archive-date=3 March 2018|access-date=3 March 2018|work=New Zealand|volume=LXIII|issue=19230|date=20 January 1926}}</ref> the couple had two children. By 1939 he was the manager of the Auckland Town Hall branch of the National Bank.<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/>


Called up for the [[National Military Reserve (New Zealand)|National Military Reserve]] as a result of the outbreak of the Second World War, Bassett was placed on active duty in 1941 as a [[Captain (armed forces)|captain]] in the [[Royal New Zealand Corps of Signals]] (RNZSigs). He was not required to serve overseas and instead he worked in signals on the [[Military history of New Zealand during World War II#Home front|Home Front]] in New Zealand. Promoted to major in February 1942, his active war service ended in December 1943.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} By then he had achieved the rank of [[lieutenant-colonel]], and was commander of signals in the Northern Military District.<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/>
Called up for the [[National Military Reserve (New Zealand)|National Military Reserve]] as a result of the outbreak of the Second World War, Bassett was placed on active duty in 1941 as a [[Captain (armed forces)|captain]] in the [[Royal New Zealand Corps of Signals]] (RNZSigs). He was not required to serve overseas and instead he worked in signals on the [[Military history of New Zealand during World War II#Home front|Home Front]] in New Zealand. Promoted to major in February 1942, his active war service ended in December 1943.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} By then he had achieved the rank of [[lieutenant colonel]], and was commander of signals in the Northern Military District.<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/>


==Later life and legacy==
==Later life and legacy==
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[[File:VCCyrilRoystonGuytonBassettGrave.jpg|thumb|right|alt=a plaque of a grave headstone|Bassett's grave in the cemetery at North Shore Memorial Park]]
[[File:VCCyrilRoystonGuytonBassettGrave.jpg|thumb|right|alt=a plaque of a grave headstone|Bassett's grave in the cemetery at North Shore Memorial Park]]


Bassett returned to the National Military Reserve from which he retired in 1948. As a civilian, he resumed his banking profession. He retired in 1952 but remained active in the community of [[Devonport, Auckland|Devonport]], on Auckland's North Shore, as a [[justice of the peace]]. He died at [[Stanley Bay, New Zealand|Stanley Bay]], in Auckland, on 9 January 1983, shortly after his 91st birthday;<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/> his ashes were buried at [[North Shore Memorial Park]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/cemeteries/Pages/RecordDetails.aspx?recordId=0xDFA8E1DF8790BBCC5F82741159C0EA3C|title=Burial record for Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303014000/https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/cemeteries/Pages/RecordDetails.aspx?recordId=0xDFA8E1DF8790BBCC5F82741159C0EA3C|archivedate=3 March 2018|date= |website= |publisher=Auckland Council |accessdate=25 February 2018}}</ref> He was survived by his wife Ruth and their two daughters.<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/> His VC, gifted to the RNZSigs upon his death, is displayed at the [[Auckland War Memorial Museum]].{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}}<ref>{{Cite web|title = Medal, decoration|url = http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/collections-research/collections/record/am_humanhistory-object-716596|archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20180301071723/http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/collections-research/collections/record/am_humanhistory-object-716596|archivedate = 1 March 2018|website = Auckland War Memorial Museum|accessdate = 22 November 2015|url-status = live}}</ref> Several years earlier, Bassett had planted a [[pine tree]], reportedly cultivated from a seedling taken from the area of the [[Battle of Lone Pine]] at Gallipoli, in front of the museum as part of an Anzac Day service.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wilcox |first1=Mike |last2=Spencer |first2=David |title=Feature: Uncommon Exotic Species Stand up the Real Anzac Lone Pine of Gallipoli |journal=NZ Journal of Forestry |date=May 2007 |volume=52 |issue=1 |page=5 |url=https://www.nationalregisterofbigtrees.com.au/listing/180.pdf |accessdate=12 October 2019}}</ref>
Bassett returned to the National Military Reserve from which he retired in 1948. As a civilian, he resumed his banking profession. He retired in 1952 but remained active in the community of [[Devonport, Auckland|Devonport]], on Auckland's North Shore, as a [[justice of the peace]].<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/> In 1953, he was awarded the [[Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nzlii.org/nz/other/nz_gazette/1953/37.pdf |title=Coronation Medal |work=Supplement to the New Zealand Gazette |issue=37 |date=3 July 1953 |access-date=14 April 2021 |pages=1021–1035}}</ref> He died at [[Stanley Bay, New Zealand|Stanley Bay]], in Auckland, on 9 January 1983, shortly after his 91st birthday;<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/> his ashes were buried at [[North Shore Memorial Park]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/cemeteries/Pages/RecordDetails.aspx?recordId=0xDFA8E1DF8790BBCC5F82741159C0EA3C|title=Burial record for Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303014000/https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/cemeteries/Pages/RecordDetails.aspx?recordId=0xDFA8E1DF8790BBCC5F82741159C0EA3C|archive-date=3 March 2018|date= |website= |publisher=Auckland Council |access-date=25 February 2018}}</ref> He was survived by his wife Ruth and their two daughters.<ref name="DNZB Bassett"/> His VC, gifted to the RNZSigs upon his death, is displayed at the [[Auckland War Memorial Museum]].{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}}<ref>{{Cite web|title = Medal, decoration|url = http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/collections-research/collections/record/am_humanhistory-object-716596|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180301071723/http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/collections-research/collections/record/am_humanhistory-object-716596|archive-date = 1 March 2018|website = Auckland War Memorial Museum|access-date = 22 November 2015|url-status = live}}</ref> Several years earlier, Bassett had planted a [[pine tree]], reportedly cultivated from a seedling taken from the area of the [[Battle of Lone Pine]] at Gallipoli, in front of the museum as part of an Anzac Day service.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wilcox |first1=Mike |last2=Spencer |first2=David |title=Feature: Uncommon Exotic Species Stand up the Real Anzac Lone Pine of Gallipoli |journal=NZ Journal of Forestry |date=May 2007 |volume=52 |issue=1 |page=5 |url=https://www.nationalregisterofbigtrees.com.au/listing/180.pdf |access-date=12 October 2019}}</ref>


According to his daughter, Bassett rarely spoke about his achievements,<ref name="NZ_Herald_10568337">{{cite news |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10568337 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180923123956/https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10568337|archivedate=23 September 2018|title=Gallipoli hero downplayed his achievement |author=Eames, David |date=24 April 2009 |work=[[The New Zealand Herald]] |accessdate=26 September 2011}}</ref> and she did not learn of her father's award until she studied Gallipoli at primary school. He was modest and expressed embarrassment at being the only New Zealand VC recipient of the Gallipoli Campaign.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} He commented that "when I got my medal I was disappointed to find I was the only New Zealander to get one at Gallipoli, because hundreds of Victoria Crosses should have been awarded there."<ref name=NZH>{{cite web |title=Cyril Bassett wins VC on Chunuk Bair |url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/sound/cyril-bassett-and-chunuk-bair|archiveurl =https://web.archive.org/web/20190214234408/https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/sound/cyril-bassett-and-chunuk-bair|archivedate=14 February 2019 |website=NZ History |publisher=Ministry of Culture & Heritage |accessdate=8 September 2019}}</ref>
According to his daughter, Bassett rarely spoke about his achievements,<ref name="NZ_Herald_10568337">{{cite news |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10568337 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180923123956/https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10568337|archive-date=23 September 2018|title=Gallipoli hero downplayed his achievement |author=Eames, David |date=24 April 2009 |work=[[The New Zealand Herald]] |access-date=26 September 2011}}</ref> and she did not learn of her father's award until she studied Gallipoli at primary school. He was modest and expressed embarrassment at being the only New Zealand VC recipient of the Gallipoli Campaign.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} He commented that "when I got my medal I was disappointed to find I was the only New Zealander to get one at Gallipoli, because hundreds of Victoria Crosses should have been awarded there."<ref name=NZH>{{cite web |title=Cyril Bassett wins VC on Chunuk Bair |url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/sound/cyril-bassett-and-chunuk-bair|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20190214234408/https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/sound/cyril-bassett-and-chunuk-bair|archive-date=14 February 2019 |website=NZ History |publisher=Ministry of Culture & Heritage |access-date=8 September 2019}}</ref>


Bassett remains the only New Zealand signaller to have been awarded the VC and was a lifetime member of the Corps of Signals Association. In recognition of Bassett's rank at the time of his award, the Bassett Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the most outstanding corporal in the RNZSigs. The trophy is a statue of Bassett on Chunuk Bair.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} An annual speech competition, run by the [[Royal New Zealand Returned and Services' Association]] and sponsored by the [[Australia and New Zealand Banking Group|ANZ Bank]], formerly the National Bank, for secondary school students is named for him. The winner travels to Gallipoli to attend the [[ANZAC Day]] commemorations.<ref>{{cite web|title=Honouring New Zealand's only Gallipoli VC|author=Returned Services Association|url=http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/ED0911/S00044/honouring-new-zealands-only-gallipoli-vc.htm|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180227034255/http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/ED0911/S00044/honouring-new-zealands-only-gallipoli-vc.htm|archivedate=27 February 2018|website=Scoop|date=11 November 2009|publisher=|accessdate=26 February 2018}}</ref>
Bassett remains the only New Zealand signaller to have been awarded the VC and was a lifetime member of the Corps of Signals Association. In recognition of Bassett's rank at the time of his award, the Bassett Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the most outstanding corporal in the RNZSigs. The trophy is a statue of Bassett on Chunuk Bair.{{sfn|Harper|Richardson|2007|pp=113–118}} An annual speech competition, run by the [[Royal New Zealand Returned and Services' Association]] and sponsored by the [[Australia and New Zealand Banking Group|ANZ Bank]], formerly the National Bank, for secondary school students is named for him. The winner travels to Gallipoli to attend the [[ANZAC Day]] commemorations.<ref>{{cite web|title=Honouring New Zealand's only Gallipoli VC|author=Returned Services Association|url=http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/ED0911/S00044/honouring-new-zealands-only-gallipoli-vc.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180227034255/http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/ED0911/S00044/honouring-new-zealands-only-gallipoli-vc.htm|archive-date=27 February 2018|website=Scoop|date=11 November 2009|publisher=|access-date=26 February 2018}}</ref>


==Notes==
==Notes==


{{reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


==References==
==References==

{{Commons category|Cyril Bassett}}
{{Commons category|Cyril Bassett}}
{{refbegin}}
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book|last=Austin|first=Lieut.-Col. W. S.|title=The Official History of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade|url=http://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-WH1-NZRi.html|year=1924|publisher=L. T. Watkins Limited|location=Wellington, New Zealand|oclc=220312361|ref=harv}}
* {{cite book|last=Austin|first=Lieut.-Col. W. S.|title=The Official History of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade|url=http://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-WH1-NZRi.html|year=1924|publisher=L. T. Watkins Limited|location=Wellington, New Zealand|oclc=220312361}}
* {{cite book|last=Ellis|first=R. F.|title=By Wires to Victory: Describing the Work of the New Zealand Divisional Signal Company in the 1914–1918 War|year=1968|publisher=1st NZEF Divisional Signal Company War History Committee|location=Auckland, New Zealand|oclc=973687335|ref=harv}}
* {{cite book|last=Ellis|first=R. F.|title=By Wires to Victory: Describing the Work of the New Zealand Divisional Signal Company in the 1914–1918 War|year=1968|publisher=1st NZEF Divisional Signal Company War History Committee|location=Auckland, New Zealand|oclc=973687335}}
* {{cite book|last=Harper|first=Glyn|authorlink=Glyn Harper|last2=Richardson|first2=Colin|title=In the Face of the Enemy: The Complete History of the Victoria Cross and New Zealand|year=2007|publisher=HarperCollins|location=Auckland, New Zealand|isbn=978-1-86950-650-6|ref=harv}}
* {{cite book|last1=Harper|first1=Glyn|author-link=Glyn Harper|last2=Richardson|first2=Colin|title=In the Face of the Enemy: The Complete History of the Victoria Cross and New Zealand|year=2007|publisher=HarperCollins|location=Auckland, New Zealand|isbn=978-1-86950-650-6}}
* {{cite book|editor-last=McGibbon|editor-first=Ian|author-last=O'Shea|editor-link=Ian McGibbon|author-first=Phillip|chapter=Victoria Cross|pages=558–561|title=The Oxford Companion to New Zealand Military History|year=2000|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Auckland, New Zealand|isbn=0-19-558376-0|ref=harv}}
* {{cite book|editor-last=McGibbon|editor-first=Ian|author-last=O'Shea|editor-link=Ian McGibbon|author-first=Phillip|chapter=Victoria Cross|pages=558–561|title=The Oxford Companion to New Zealand Military History|year=2000|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Auckland, New Zealand|isbn=0-19-558376-0}}
* {{cite book|last=Snelling|first=Stephen|title=VCs of the First World War: Gallipoli|year=1999|publisher=Sutton Publishing|location=Stroud, United Kingdom|isbn=0-7509-2271-0|ref=harv|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/gallipoli0000snel}}
* {{cite book|last=Snelling|first=Stephen|title=VCs of the First World War: Gallipoli|year=1999|publisher=Sutton Publishing|location=Stroud, United Kingdom|isbn=0-7509-2271-0|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/gallipoli0000snel}}
{{refend}}
{{Refend}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Featured article}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Bassett, Cyril}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bassett, Cyril Royston Guyton}}
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[[Category:1983 deaths]]
[[Category:1983 deaths]]
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[[Category:Burials at North Shore Memorial Park]]
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[[Category:New Zealand justices of the peace]]
[[Category:New Zealand justices of the peace]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Auckland]]
[[Category:New Zealand Army soldiers]]

Latest revision as of 06:09, 31 August 2024

Cyril Bassett
a head and torso portrait of a male in military uniform
Cyril Bassett, April 1916
Born(1892-01-03)3 January 1892
Mount Eden, Auckland, Colony of New Zealand
Died9 January 1983(1983-01-09) (aged 91)
Stanley Bay, New Zealand
AllegianceNew Zealand
Service / branchNew Zealand Military Forces
Years of service1909–29
1941–43
RankLieutenant-Colonel
Battles / wars
AwardsVictoria Cross

Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett, VC (3 January 1892 – 9 January 1983) was a New Zealand recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest award for gallantry "in the face of the enemy" that could be awarded to British and Empire forces at the time. He was the only soldier serving with the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) to be awarded the VC in the Gallipoli Campaign of the First World War.

Born in Auckland, Bassett was a bank worker when the First World War began. A member of New Zealand's Territorial Force, he volunteered for service abroad with NZEF and was posted to the New Zealand Divisional Signal Company as a sapper. He saw action on the opening day of the Gallipoli Campaign, and during the Battle of Chunuk Bair he performed the actions that led to his award of the VC. Medically evacuated due to sickness shortly after the battle, he later served on the Western Front and finished the war as a second lieutenant. Bassett returned to the banking profession but was recalled to active duty during the Second World War. He served on the Home Front and by the time he was taken off active duty in December 1943, he had been promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel and was commander of signals in the Northern Military District. When he retired from his banking career he became a justice of the peace in Devonport. He died in 1983 at the age of 91.

Early life

[edit]

Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett was born on 3 January 1892 in the Auckland suburb of Mount Eden,[1] to a printer, Frederick Bassett, and his wife Harriet, née Powley.[2] Bassett attended Auckland Grammar School and then Auckland Technical College. After completing his formal education in 1908, he worked as a clerk for the National Bank of New Zealand.[1] In 1909, he joined what later became the Territorial Force, the part-time military reserve, and was posted to the Auckland College Rifles. Two years later he transferred to the Auckland Divisional Signal Company.[3]

First World War

[edit]

When the First World War broke out in the summer of 1914, it was Bassett's intention to join the Royal Navy, but his mother, whose family had a history of service in the British Army, convinced him to enlist in the New Zealand Military Forces. Bassett was not particularly tall and was initially rejected on the grounds of height. He persisted with his attempt to enlist,[3] and joined the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) as a sapper in the Corps of New Zealand Engineers, assigned to the New Zealand Divisional Signal Company.[2]

Gallipoli

[edit]

Bassett embarked with the main body of the NZEF for the Middle East in October 1914. Initially based in Egypt, after a period of training, he landed at ANZAC Cove on 25 April 1915, the opening day of the Gallipoli campaign. Along with the other signallers of his unit, he was immediately set to work laying communication lines to the headquarters of the New Zealand and Australian Division.[2][4] In early May, he, along with two other signallers, was noted in consideration for a gallantry award for their efforts in laying telephone wires while under heavy fire.[3][5]

Later in the campaign, Bassett was promoted to corporal. In August 1915, a series of offensives against Turkish positions along the Gallipoli front was planned to break the stalemate that had developed since the initial landing. On 7 August, the New Zealand Infantry Brigade attacked Chunuk Bair, a prominent hill overlooking the battlefield. The battle lasted for three days. Chunuk Bair was captured by the brigade's Wellington Infantry Battalion on the second day, during which Bassett, in command of a section of five other signallers of his unit, laid down and maintained telephone lines between brigade headquarters and the front lines.[3] Working on the exposed slopes leading up to Chunuk Bair, he braved continuous gunfire during this time armed with only a revolver and a bayonet. A bullet struck his boot and two more passed through the fabric of his tunic during the fighting, but he was not wounded.[1]

After the battle, Basset's name, along with those of the other five signallers of his section, was collected by Major Arthur Temperley of brigade headquarters, who nominated Bassett to receive the Victoria Cross (VC).[3] A few days later, Bassett was evacuated from Gallipoli due to poor health. Suffering from dysentery, he spent several months recuperating at a hospital in Leicester and it was here that he was advised of his VC award.[1] Instituted in 1856, the VC is the highest gallantry award that can be bestowed on a soldier of the British Empire.[6] The citation read:

No. 4/515 Corporal Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett, New Zealand Divisional Signal Company. For most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty on the Chunuk Bair ridge in the Gallipoli Peninsula on 7th August, 1915. After the New Zealand Infantry Brigade had attacked and established itself on the ridge, Corporal Bassett, in full daylight and under a continuous and heavy fire, succeeded in laying a telephone line from the old position to the new one on Chunuk Bair. He has subsequently been brought to notice for further excellent and most gallant work connected with the repair of telephone lines by day and night under heavy fire.

— The London Gazette, No. 29328, 15 October 1915[7]

The citation incorrectly refers to Bassett's actions on 7 August; it was not until the following day that the Wellington Infantry Battalion captured Chunuk Bair. His VC was the first to be awarded to a soldier of the NZEF and he was the only one to receive it for actions during the Gallipoli Campaign.[3] King George V presented him the VC at an investiture held at Buckingham Palace on 3 February 1916.[8] Bassett later remarked of the VC action, "I reckon there must be some guardian angel looking after me, especially as one man was shot dead in front of me and another wounded just behind."[9]

Western Front

[edit]
Sergeant Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett eating a meal in the trenches, 1917.

In June 1916, Bassett rejoined his unit, by then on the Western Front in France as part of the New Zealand Division. Later that year, he participated in the Battle of the Somme, and in 1917 was commissioned as a second lieutenant.[3] He was wounded twice while on the Western Front;[1] the first occasion was in October 1917,[10] and the second was during the German spring offensive in March 1918, when an artillery barrage destroyed the headquarters of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade, where he was the signals officer. The same barrage killed the brigade's commander, Brigadier-General Harry Fulton.[11] On extracting himself from the rubble of the headquarters, Bassett immediately set about reestablishing communications for which he was recommended for, but was not awarded, the Military Cross.[1][12] With the war now over, he returned to New Zealand in late 1918 as the New Zealand Division started demobilising and was formally discharged from the NZEF in 1919.[3]

Interwar period and Second World War

[edit]

Bassett returned to his banking career after the war, managing branches of the National Bank in Auckland and later in Paeroa. He retained a link to the military, rejoining the Territorial Force shortly after his discharge from the NZEF but was placed on the retired list of officers in 1929.[2] Three years previously, he had married Ruth Louise Grant in St David's Church, Auckland;[13] the couple had two children. By 1939 he was the manager of the Auckland Town Hall branch of the National Bank.[2]

Called up for the National Military Reserve as a result of the outbreak of the Second World War, Bassett was placed on active duty in 1941 as a captain in the Royal New Zealand Corps of Signals (RNZSigs). He was not required to serve overseas and instead he worked in signals on the Home Front in New Zealand. Promoted to major in February 1942, his active war service ended in December 1943.[3] By then he had achieved the rank of lieutenant colonel, and was commander of signals in the Northern Military District.[2]

Later life and legacy

[edit]
a plaque of a grave headstone
Bassett's grave in the cemetery at North Shore Memorial Park

Bassett returned to the National Military Reserve from which he retired in 1948. As a civilian, he resumed his banking profession. He retired in 1952 but remained active in the community of Devonport, on Auckland's North Shore, as a justice of the peace.[2] In 1953, he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal.[14] He died at Stanley Bay, in Auckland, on 9 January 1983, shortly after his 91st birthday;[2] his ashes were buried at North Shore Memorial Park.[15] He was survived by his wife Ruth and their two daughters.[2] His VC, gifted to the RNZSigs upon his death, is displayed at the Auckland War Memorial Museum.[3][16] Several years earlier, Bassett had planted a pine tree, reportedly cultivated from a seedling taken from the area of the Battle of Lone Pine at Gallipoli, in front of the museum as part of an Anzac Day service.[17]

According to his daughter, Bassett rarely spoke about his achievements,[18] and she did not learn of her father's award until she studied Gallipoli at primary school. He was modest and expressed embarrassment at being the only New Zealand VC recipient of the Gallipoli Campaign.[3] He commented that "when I got my medal I was disappointed to find I was the only New Zealander to get one at Gallipoli, because hundreds of Victoria Crosses should have been awarded there."[9]

Bassett remains the only New Zealand signaller to have been awarded the VC and was a lifetime member of the Corps of Signals Association. In recognition of Bassett's rank at the time of his award, the Bassett Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the most outstanding corporal in the RNZSigs. The trophy is a statue of Bassett on Chunuk Bair.[3] An annual speech competition, run by the Royal New Zealand Returned and Services' Association and sponsored by the ANZ Bank, formerly the National Bank, for secondary school students is named for him. The winner travels to Gallipoli to attend the ANZAC Day commemorations.[19]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f Snelling 1999, pp. 181–187.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barber, Laurie. "Bassett, Cyril Royston Guyton 1892–1983". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Archived from the original on 30 January 2018. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper & Richardson 2007, pp. 113–118.
  4. ^ Ellis 1968, p. 7.
  5. ^ Ellis 1968, p. 12.
  6. ^ O'Shea 2000, pp. 558–559.
  7. ^ "No. 29328". The London Gazette. 15 October 1915. p. 10154.
  8. ^ "New Zealanders Decorated". Evening Post. Vol. XCI, no. 29. 4 February 1916. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  9. ^ a b "Cyril Bassett wins VC on Chunuk Bair". NZ History. Ministry of Culture & Heritage. Archived from the original on 14 February 2019. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
  10. ^ "While Doing Their Duty: Casualties at the Front". Evening Post. Vol. XCIV, no. 96. 20 October 1917. Archived from the original on 3 March 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
  11. ^ Austin 1924, p. 299.
  12. ^ Ellis 1968, p. 67.
  13. ^ "Weddings". New Zealand. Vol. LXIII, no. 19230. 20 January 1926. Archived from the original on 3 March 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
  14. ^ "Coronation Medal" (PDF). Supplement to the New Zealand Gazette. No. 37. 3 July 1953. pp. 1021–1035. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  15. ^ "Burial record for Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett". Auckland Council. Archived from the original on 3 March 2018. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  16. ^ "Medal, decoration". Auckland War Memorial Museum. Archived from the original on 1 March 2018. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  17. ^ Wilcox, Mike; Spencer, David (May 2007). "Feature: Uncommon Exotic Species Stand up the Real Anzac Lone Pine of Gallipoli" (PDF). NZ Journal of Forestry. 52 (1): 5. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
  18. ^ Eames, David (24 April 2009). "Gallipoli hero downplayed his achievement". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 23 September 2018. Retrieved 26 September 2011.
  19. ^ Returned Services Association (11 November 2009). "Honouring New Zealand's only Gallipoli VC". Scoop. Archived from the original on 27 February 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2018.

References

[edit]