"Major St Clair Tisdall, who has died aged 92, was awarded an MC in Holland in 1944, when he was commanding a troop of the 8th King’s Royal Irish Hussars (8 KRIH). At two o’clock on the morning of October 22, the battle for s’Hertogenbosch began with a tremendous softening-up barrage. At first light, Tisdall’s squadron advanced up the sandy tracks to the south-east of the town in support of an infantry attack on the village of Middlerode. They came under heavy fire from an enemy position; two attempts were made to capture it but without success. It was then decided that two troops of tanks should attack at the same time from different directions. Some of the tanks were knocked out by mines. Others were held up by a dyke. One of the troop leaders was wounded by a sniper. In what was fast becoming a critical situation, Tisdall drove his troop forward at full speed. Despite being engaged by an anti-tank gun, he pressed on and overran the enemy position. Heavy fire was brought down on him, but he remained firing his guns until the infantry arrived to mop up. He was awarded an Immediate MC. The citation for the award paid tribute to his courage and offensive spirit. Wilfrid St Clair Tisdall, who came to hate his first name and always went by St Clair, was born on April 2 1921 at Altrincham, Cheshire. The son of a rural dean, he was educated at Dean Close School, Cheltenham, where he was head boy and captain of the rugby XV. He went up to Wadham College, Oxford, to read Modern Languages and earned pocket money fire-watching at night on the roofs of prominent buildings. In 1942 he was commissioned into 8 KRIH and embarked in a troopship bound for Egypt. His bunk was in one of the empty swimming pools." http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/10673680/Major-St-Clair-Tisdall-obituary.html
