Memorial to Lieutenant Colonel William Henry Dick-Cunyngham, VC, 2nd Battalion the Gordon Highlanders. He was the fifth and youngest son of Sir William Hanmer Dick-Cunyngham, eighth baronet, of Prestonfield and Lambrughtoun, Ayr, Scotland and Dame Susan Alston Dick-Cunyngham (nee Stewart). He was educated at Trinity College, Glenalmond. Gentleman Cadet at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He was commissioned into the 92nd Highlanders on 17 Feb 1872. He was promoted to Lieutenant on 17 Feb 1873, to Captain on 10 Oct 1881, Major 4 Mar 1891, and to Lieutenant Colonel on 12 Feb 1897. He served in the Afghan War, 1878-80, and was present on transport duty in the advance on Kandahar and Khelat-i-Gilzai under Sir Donald Stewart; with the Thul Chotiali Force under Major General Biddulph (mentioned in despatches); under Earl (then Sir Frederick) Roberts in the Koorum Valley Field Force in the 92nd Gordon Highlanders, including the engagement at Ali Kheyl; he also took part in the operations round Kabul, December 1879, including the attack on the Sherpur Pass, being mentioned in despatches and awarded the VC. His Victoria Cross Citation reads: "For the conspicuous gallantry and coolness displayed by him on the 13th December, 1879, at the attack on the Sherpur Pass, in Afghanistan, in having exposed himself to the full fire of the enemy, and by his example and encouragement rallied the men who, having been beaten back, were, at the moment, wavering at the top of the hill." He was with the Maidan Expedition in 1880 as acting adjutant of a wing of the 92nd Gordon Highlanders, including the engagement at Charasiah, April 25th (mentioned in despatches); accompanied Earl Roberts in the famous march to Kandahar, and was present at the reconnaissance of August 31st, and at the battle of Kandahar (mentioned in despatches, and received the medal with two clasps and bronze star). In 1881 he was Adjutant of his battalion when they deployed to South Africa for the 1st Boer War. In 1893 he returned to India, serving as the Station Officer in Bengal until 1894 and as Deputy Assistant Adjutant General until 1896. In Feb 1897 he returned to the Gordon Highlanders. He commanded the Battalion when they were sent from India to Natal in Sep 1899 just before the Second Anglo Boer War started, along with 3 other infantry battalions, three cavalry regiments and three batteries of artillery. They were sent to Ladysmith and fought at the battle of Elandslaagte on 21 Oct 1899 (32 killed and 91 wounded). Lieutenant Colonel Dick-Cunyngham fell early in a charge against the Boer attackers when he was wounded by a bullet in the leg. He completely recovered from this wound, and returned to duty. The Battalion were part of the garrison in Ladysmith throughout the siege and during the great attack on 6 Jan 1900 they reinforced Caesar's Camp and helped repel the Boer attackers (18 killed and 32 wounded). Lieutenant Colonel Dick-Cunyngham was hit by a stray bullet 3,000 yards from the enemy during the attack and died of his wounds the following day aged 48 years. He was buried in Ladysmith Cemetery, Ladysmith, uThukela District Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
Actual burial here
He was uncle to Sir William Dick-Cunyngham and married in 1883, Helen, daughter of Mr Samuel Wauchope CB. He is also commemorated on the Gordon Highlanders Boer War memorial on the Edinburgh Castle Esplanade, Edinburgh, Scotland (see: https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/251858, on the Glenalmond College Boer War memorial at Glenalmond College, Back Avenue, Glenalmond, Perth And Kinross, Tayside, Scotland (see: https://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/68861) and on a memorial cross in Duddingston Kirkyard, City of Edinburgh, Scotland.
Cenotaph here

His Victoria Cross is on display at the Gordon Highlanders Museum at Aberdeen, Scotland.