A mystery collector has paid £446,000 for a Scottish war hero’s Victoria Cross.
Walter Ritchie, a 24-year-old drummer from Glasgow, defied death to mount the parapet of a trench to rally his comrades under heavy fire at the battle of the Somme on July 1, 1916.
His medal group, including French military honour the Croix de Guerre, was sold by London-based auctioneers Spink & Son to an unidentified buyer.
The bravest bugle boy: Forgotten Sunday Post interview reveals Somme heroics as medals go to auction
Last week, we revealed that military historian Richard Pursehouse discovered forgotten details of Ritchie’s life in an interview with his mum and dad in The Sunday Post from the time.
Pursehouse said: “Although the medal group was originally sold for £1,700 in September 1970, they have changed hands a few times since then.
“The original estimate for them was £240,000 to £280,000. I had a feeling it might go for as much as £350,000 so this was quite a surprise.”
Ritchie’s heroism came on the bloodiest day in the British Army’s history, which saw almost 20,000 men killed in action.
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