Trooper John Bisdee V. C.Print Page 
The plaque commemorates Trooper John Bisdee who was awarded the Victoria Cross in the South African (Boer) War. He was the first Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross.
In April 1900, Bisdee enlisted for service in the South African War as a trooper in the 1st Tasmanian Imperial Bushmens` Contingent. Bisdee sailed on 26 April and served in operations in Cape Colony, the Transvaal and the Orange River Colony. On 1 September, near Warmbad, Transvaal, he was with a scouting party ambushed by Boers in a rocky defile; six of its eight men were wounded, including an officer whose horse broke away and bolted.
Bisdee dismounted, put the wounded man on his own horse and ran alongside, then mounted behind him and withdrew under heavy fire. For this action he received the Victoria Cross—the first awarded to a Tasmanian. Wounded during the ambush, he was invalided home but, on recovering, went back to South Africa as a lieutenant in No.1 Company, 2nd Tasmanian Imperial Bushmens` Contingent, and served from March 1901 until the end of the war.
He is buried in the Oatlands Anglican cemetery
Location
| Address: | High Street, Oatlands Town Hall , Oatlands, 7120 |
|---|---|
| State: | TAS |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -42.299893 Long: 147.371911 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Plaque |
|---|---|
| Monument Theme: | People |
| Sub-Theme: | Military |
| Actual Event Start Date: | 01-September-1900 |
| Actual Event End Date: | 01-September-1900 |
Dedication
Tpr. John Hudson Bisdee
Tasmanian Imperial Bushmen
Born : 28th. September 1869 Hutton Park, Tasmania
Awarded VC: 1st. September 1900
Warm Bad, Transvaal South Africa
