HE received the highest military honour for valour.
Yet his achievements have never before been recognised in Hampshire – until now.
Portchester is to finally celebrate the courage of Victoria Cross winner and once Portchester resident Thomas Adair Butler with a commemorative stone.
But it was only by pure chance that they ever knew of his existence.
The stone, made specially by the VC Trust, will be laid in Portchester precinct right in front of the war memorial and will have his name, regiment and VC engraved.
Born in 1836 in Soberton, Thomas grew up there as his father was vicar at St Peter’s Church in Soberton. The Butler family home remains in Hambledon and his mother’s family the Thistlethwaytes still own the nearby Southwick estate.
He trained at Gosport Military Academy, joined the army and was involved in relieving the second siege at Lucknow in India in 1858 as a Lieutenant in the 1st Bengal European Fusiliers, when at 22 his actions earned him the VC.
According to the citation, he swam to the other side of a river, climbed the parapet and remained in that position under heavy fire until reinforcements arrived.
He retired with the rank of Honorary Major in 1874.
But the census of 1881 reveals he returned to Portchester, where he was living in Castle Street near to the castle opposite The Cormorant pub with his second wife Anna and two servants.
He later moved to Surrey where he died and was buried in 1901.
The monument came about after Derek Pearce, archivist of Portchester Society, happened to be looking through the 1881 census for something else and came across an ‘Thomas Adair Butler VC retired’.
“As far as we know at Camberley he might have some memorial but this is going to be the first official recognition of what he did to be a VC,” he said.
“I think that it’s a great gesture by the people of Portchester to recognise this hero who at one time lived among them.”
The Portchester Society has funded the honorary stone costing around £750, with help from a county council grant.
Some of Thomas’ living relatives will be present at the official unveiling at 3pm today with an open air service, an army officer to read the citation and a bugle to play The Last Post.
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