Thread: Major Peter BADCOE VC, - 49th anniversery of his death.

Yesterday marked the 49th anniversary of the death of Major Peter BADCOE VC, in Vietnam.

Sadly today many would have no idea who he was or what he did.

Peter John Badcoe was born on 11 January 1934 at Malvern, Adelaide, son of Leslie Allen Badcock, public servant, and his wife Gladys Mary Ann May, n?e Overton. After being educated at Adelaide Technical High School, in 1950 Peter entered the South Australian Public Service as a clerk.

He enlisted in the Australian Regular Army on 10 June 1950. Graduating from the Officer Cadet School, Portsea, Victoria, on 13 December 1952, he was allocated to the Royal Australian Artillery. Postings to the 14th National Service Training Battalion (1953 and 1955-57) and the 1st Field Regiment (1953-55 and 1957-58) followed.

On 26 May 1956 he married 17-year-old Denise Maureen MacMahon in the Methodist Church, Manly, Sydney. They would go on to have three daughters.

Promoted temporary captain, in December 1958 Badcock was sent to Army Headquarters as a staff officer. In 1961 he changed his surname to Badcoe. While serving in Malaya with the 103rd Field Battery from September 1961 to November 1963, he spent a week (7-14 November 1962) in the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam). He saw the conditions under which the South resisted communist insurgency which was led by the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam).

Back in Australia, Badcoe returned to the 1st Field Regiment, but in 1965 transferred to the infantry; in June 1966 he was promoted provisional major. He arrived in Saigon on 6 August to join the Australian Army Training Team Vietnam. S

hort, round and stocky, with horn-rimmed spectacles, Badcoe did not look a hero. He was a quiet, gentle and retiring man, with a dry sense of humour. His wife was his confidante. Badcoe neither drank alcohol nor smoked; bored by boisterous mess activities, he preferred the company of a book on military history. To his colleagues he was an enigma, yet many humoured his boundless enthusiasm in field exercises and his off-duty discourses on martial matters. He was known to his peers and men as "The Galloping Major" becuase he was "always on the go".

Serving in Thua Thien province, in December 1966 Badcoe became operations adviser at provincial headquarters, Hue.

On 23 February 1967, during a small operation in the Phu Thu district, he ran across almost 650 yards (594 m) of fire-swept ground to assist a platoon of the South Vietnamese Popular Forces. Taking charge of the unit, Badcoe led it in a frontal attack, averting defeat and inflicting heavy casualties. He collected the corpse of an American adviser and braved further volleys to rescue one who was wounded and move him to a lace of safety.

Commanding the province's reaction company on 7 March, Badcoe conducted a series of fierce assaults which put to flight a strong People's Liberation Armed Forces (Viet Cong) formation and saved the district headquarters of Quang Dien and its defenders.

On 7 April 1967 he wrote his last letter to his wife: 'It's time I came home. I'm getting bitter and cynical . . . I can see more and more good about the Vietnamese and less and less about the US advisers'. This letter was unfinished when delivered to his wife with his property and effects later.

That day he learned that the 1st Division Reaction Company was in difficulty near the hamlet of An Thuan. Knowing that the company would be denied air support unless advisers were present, he drove there by jeep with a United States Army sergeant. On arrival, Badcoe found that the force had fallen back.

He took charge and rallied the men in the face of withering fire. Crawling ahead, he made several attempts to silence a machine-gun with grenades. His sergeant at one stage pulled him out of the line of fire. Knowing the risks but determined to stop the machine gun against his men he continued, Rising again to throw another grenade, Badcoe was shot and killed.

He was of the most decorated Australian soldiers of the Vietnam conflict.
For his feats of gallantry and leadership, he won the Victoria Cross and the United States Silver Star; the Republic of Vietnam awarded him its National Order, three Crosses for Gallantry and the Armed Forces Honour Medal.


His VICTORIA CROSS Medal Citation (1967 London Gazette) reads:

41400 Major Peter John BADCOE
Australian Army Training Team Vietnam.
23 February to 7 April 1967.
Thua Thien Province, South Vietnam

On 23 February, in Phu Thu District, Major Badcoe with complete disregard for his own safety moved alone across 600 metres of fire swept ground and reached a United States Medical Adviser wounded by enemy fire, attended to him and ensured his future safety. He then organised a force of one platoon and led them towards the enemy post. His personal leadership, words of encouragement, and actions in the face of hostile enemy fire, forced the platoon to successfully assault the enemy position and capture it.

On 7th March 1967, in Quang Dien District, Major Badcoe led a company in an attack over open terrain to assault and capture a heavily defended enemy position. In the face of certain death and heavy losses his personal courage and leadership turned certain defeat into victory and prevented the enemy from capturing District Headquarters.

On 7th April 1967, in Huong Tra District, Major Badcoe was with a South Vietnamese company which came under heavy small arms fire and withdrew to a cemetery for cover. This left Major Badcoe and his radio operator about 50 metres in front of the leading elements, under heavy mortar fire. Seeing this withdrawal, Major Badcoe ran back to them, moved amongst them and by encouragement and example got them moving forward again. He then set out in front of the company to lead them on and when getting up to throw a grenade he was hit and killed by a burst of machine gun fire.

"Major Badcoe's conspicuous gallantry and leadership on all these occasions was an inspiration to all, each action, ultimately, was successful, due entirely to his efforts, the final one ending in his death. His valour and leadership were in the best traditions of the military profession and the Australian Regular Army".

[London Gazette: 13 October 1967; Supplement, 17 October 1967]


Badcoe had been highly respected by his Vietnamese and American comrades-in-arms.

Survived by his wife and three daughters, he was buried in the Terendak military cemetery, Malacca, Malaysia. This was unusual as in 1966 The Australian Government began a policy of repatriation for our fallen back to Australia. In 2015 the then Australian Prime Minister Tony ABBOTT announced that the Government would repatriate the fallen from the Vietnam War to Australia at the families request.

In February 2016, his widow presented his decorations to the Australian War Memorial. They are the 71st medal set containing a VC in the AWM collection and now displayed in the Hall of Honour.

Every Anzac weekend the Port Power AFL team play for the "MAJOR PETER BADCOE VC memorial medal" to be awarded to the best player in the game. It is presented by one of Peter BADCOEs daughters.

The actions and bravery of BADCOE and all those who have served or who continue to serve should also be remembered and honoured.

BADCOE was an extraordinarily brave man amongst brave men. His memory should be kept alive.

Digger, I thought it might be appropriate to mention here about a TV program that will air tomorrow night (10/4/16) on SBS at 8.30pm.

VIETNAM: THE WAR THAT MADE AUSTRALIA.

"This is the story of the Australian Army Training Team (Vietnam) who, from 1962 to 1972, fought shoulder to shoulder with the Vietnamese army and became the most decorated unit in Australian military history."

I will be watching, as that unit won quite a few VC's along with Maj. Peter Badcoe VC, I am sure you are aware of WO Kevin Wheatley VC, WO Keith Payne VC and WO Ray Simpson VC. All very brave men.