Page 31 - Chiron Issue 2 2014

damage and destruction, resulting in the death of Lieutenant Fox. His family were later to receive reports that his dead body was found, ‘without a mark or scar on it’, features indicating that he died as a result of primary blast injury.
Fox was initially buried by the Germans in Audencourt British Cemetery in a plot containing 66 British casualties, mostly from 2nd Royal Scots and 1st Gordons. After the armistice his body was exhumed on 24 September 1920, and records detail how he was identified by reference to ‘Uniform: General Service, Boots: Nil and Buttons: Army Veterinary Service.’ He was re-interred at the Commonwealth War Grave Cemetery at Caudry (British Cemetery) which contains the remains of many other men who died at the Battle of Le Cateau, including 2nd Lieutenant Ronald Ross, the
Lieutenant Fox were to be left in the church, since it was deemed to be strong enough to withstand shell fire, although it was believed that the Germans would not fire on the building. At 2.30pm the Germans commenced to shell the town of Audencourt vigorously, with disastrous consequences. Shelling of the orchard led to the death of all the horses held there. The order was given to start to retreat, but in the late afternoon the church was shelled. Witnesses described how the spire was hit, followed by an explosion and the building caught fire. At last one high explosive shell entered the building, causing substantial
son of Sir Ronald Ross, Nobel Laureate, who served with 2nd Royal Scots Regiment.
Vincent Fox died whilst treating human, not animal, patients, and in doing so clearly demonstrated his commitment to the treatment of the sick, regardless of circumstance or species. Although so little was written about his actions at the time in the veterinary press, an obituary in his local paper, the Dundalk Democrat, described that he was:
Killed whilst in pursuit of his humane duty behind the British firing line. A man could not well die a nobler death.
On 22 August 2014, James Tierney a great grand-nephew of Vincent Fox, presented a portrait of the officer, drawn by the artist Dave Gleeson, to the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.
Private Alfred Walker rescuing a casualty from the church at Audencourt
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Chiron Calling 31
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