1900: During an assault on a stockaded village during the Third Ashanti Expedition, Sergeant Mackenzie of The Seaforth Highlanders first commanded a pair of machine-guns to good effect despite being wounded, then volunteered to lead the assault on the stockade, which he successfully captured. He received the Victoria Cross and rose to the rank of Major, but was killed in France fifteen years later.

1944: A few minutes after midnight, British airborne forces began landing in Normandy as the spearhead of Operation Overlord. The first to land were the Pathfinders of 22nd Independent Parachute Company to mark drop zones, and six gliders of the 6th Airborne Division, carrying D Company, 2nd Battalion, Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, under Major Howard .

The latter were tasked with seizing vital bridges over the River Orne and the Caen Canal. The bridge over the Canal, the first part of France to be liberated, has ever since been known as Pegasus Bridge. The 9th Battalion, The Parachute Regiment, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Otway, was tasked with neutralising the coastal battery at Merville. Despite only being able to muster 150 men after the confusion of a night parachute descent in high winds, Otway led an assault across a minefield and into machine-gun fire to storm the bunkers.

The bombardment by Allied naval forces began at 0530, and the first US troops came ashore on Utah and Omaha beaches an hour later Another hour later, British troops began landing on Sword and Gold beaches, whilst the Canadians attacked Juno beach. By the end of the day, despite fierce German opposition, some 75,200 British and Canadian troops, and 57,500 US soldiers had been landed by amphibious assault from over 6,000 ships, and 23,400 Allied airborne forces had been flown in.

As the troops pushed inland, Company Sergeant-Major Hollis of The Green Howards went to investigate two pill-boxes that had been bypassed. They proved to be still heavily defended, but Hollis rushed each in turn, capturing them single-handed. He was awarded the Victoria Cross.

On the other side of the world in Burma, Sergeant Turner commanded a platoon of the West Yorkshire Regiment which came under attack from Japanese forces Turner pulled his men back a few yards, then held the new position all night against overwhelming odds. The next morning, he went over to the attack, six times going out alone armed with grenades. He inflicted very heavy casualties, before falling in action on his sixth raid. He was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross.