On May 31, 1916, during the Battle of Jutland, 16-year-old Jack Travers Cornwell was serving aboard the Royal Navy light cruiser HMS Chester.

Holding the rank of Boy 1st Class, Cornwell served as a sight-setter on a gun crew when the ship came under heavy fire from four German cruisers.

In minutes, HMS Chester was struck 18 times. Shells exploded around Cornwell’s position, killing the rest of his gun crew.

Shrapnel tore into his chest. He was gravely wounded.

But he did not move.

When officers later found him, Jack Cornwell was still standing at his post—waiting for orders.

He died two days later from his wounds.

For his extraordinary courage under fire, Jack Travers Cornwell was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross, the United Kingdom’s highest award for bravery in combat.

At just 16 years old, he became one of the youngest recipients of the Victoria Cross in history.

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