 At 09 : 00 on 27 September 1918 , the 40th Battalion was ordered onto parade by the unit 's Commanding Officer , Lieutenant Colonel John Lord . Addressing the assembled crowd , Lord announced that that same day , the name of Sergeant Percy Statton would appear in the London Gazette announcing that he had been awarded the Victoria Cross . Described by the battalion 's history as a " reluctant hero " , Statton was granted three cheers before he was carried shoulder high through the ranks while the battalion band played . The full citation for Statton 's Victoria Cross appeared in a supplement to the London Gazette later that day , reading : 
