1342: During the struggle between England and France for control of Brittany in the Hundred Years War, Charles de Blois led his field forces in an attempt to relieve the port of Morlaix, besieged for a month by the Earl of Northampton and Robert of Artois. When the French advance was reported, Northampton broke off the siege and took up a strong defensive position a few miles away near Lanmeur.

The French and Breton knights led the attack on the English position, but suffered appalling casualties, not least from concealed pits into which their charge floundered. Some 200 knights were killed or captured, but the English army chose to retire with their captives, rather than tackle the French infantry which had taken no significant part in the fighting.

1822: HMS Eliza, on anti-slavery patrol, captured the slave ship Firme Union off Cuba.

1900: In Ghana, Colonel Willcock's column, having relieved the besieged fort at Kumasi in July, went over to the offensive against the Ashanti. At Obassa, his mixed force of British, African and West Indian troops caught the rebel Kumasi tribe and inflicted a significant defeat which persuaded many other tribal leaders to surrender.

Captain John Melliss gathered together a party of men and charged into the bush at the head of them, into the thick of the enemy. Although wounded in a hand-to-hand encounter, his bold rush caused panic among the enemy who were at the same time charged by the Sikhs.

Melliss survived the engagement and went on to achieve the rank of Major General

1901: In an action against Boers, Private William Bees of the Derbyshire Regiment ran through heavy fire to within a hundred yards of the enemy to fill a kettle with water from a stream, then returned with it to slake the thirst of wounded men suffering badly in the heat. He received the Victoria Cross.

His citation reads:

Private Bees was one of the Maxim-gun detachment which, at Moodwil, on the 30th September 1901, had six men hit out of nine. Hearing his wounded comrades asking for water, he went forward, under a heavy fire, to a spruit held by Boers, about 500 yards ahead of the gun, and brought back a kettle full of water. In going and returning he had to pass within 100 yards of some rocks, also held by Boers, and the kettle which he was carrying was hit by several bullets

1918: On the Western Front, despite being wounded, Private James Crichton of the Auckland Infantry Regiment swam a river under fire to carry back an urgent message, then defused demolition charges on an enemy-held bridge.

His citation reads:

For most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty, when although wounded in the foot, he continued with the advancing troops, despite difficult canal and river obstacles. When his platoon was subsequently forced back by a counter-attack he succeeded in carrying a message which involved swimming a river and crossing an area swept by machine-gun fire, subsequently rejoining his platoon.

Later he undertook on his own initiative to save a bridge which had been mined, and although under close fire of machine-guns and snipers, he succeeded in removing the charges returning with the fuses and detonators. Though suffering from a painful wound, he displayed the highest degree of valour and devotion to duty

Elsewhere, a German bombing party broke into the rear of an Australian position, causing havoc with their grenades. Private Ryan led a small group in a counter-attack. Fierce fighting whittled down his party, but finally, Ryan, the last man standing, succeeded in clearing the position of enemy before collapsing from wounds sustained. Ryan and Crichton both received the Victoria Cross.

Another Australian infantryman, Lance-Corporal Corey, won the third Bar to his Military Medal that day; the only man ever to win the MM four times. The four awards had been gained in an eighteen month period of service as a stretcher-bearer.

1940: The Luftwaffe mounted six large daylight attacks in the south and south-east. London was again the main night target, although attacks were also experienced in the Midlands, Merseyside and South Wales.

Wing Commander Sinclair rescued an airman from the burning wreck of a crashed aircraft at RAF Wattisham. Despite Sinclair's heroism, the airman later died of his injuries. Sinclair received the George Cross, as did Mr Alderson, an air raid warden who was on this day gazetted with the first ever George Cross in recognition of his bravery in leading numerous rescue efforts, including digging a fourteen foot tunnel through rubble to rescue six people.