1918 signed by Victoria Cross winner Jack Counter

Title - May you never be in want of a stamp
 
Date - 19/6/18 for 1918 
 
Medium - Pen and Ink on paper
 
Signed - J. T. Counter VC
                   Signed in Blandford, (Dorset, UK).
 
Picture size - 14.5cm x 9cm / 5.75" x 3.5"
 
Outside frame size - 31cm x 26cm / 12.25" x 10.25"
 
Condition - Excellent
 
Frame - Antique Victorian / Edwardian oak picture frame with period glass
 
Jack Thomas Counter was 19 years old and a Private in the King's (Liverpool) Regiment when he became one of the youngest recipients of the Victoria Cross.         
The German Army had launched their Spring Offensive in March 1918 and Jack's Regiment was near St Marc in France on the 'Western Front' a month later on April 16th.
In the chaos of battle the telephone lines were cut and Battalion HQ couldn't communicate with the Front Line positions about what was happening.
It was imperative the British received this information but the ground between HQ and the Front Line was swept by continuous German machine gun fire.
Five brave British Soldiers separately attempted the mission and all lost their lives. 
Jack Counter was the sixth volunteer. He made the journey of a few hundred meters crawling face down in the mud. Somehow he made it, gathered the required intelligence and then had to make the return journey under the same circumstances.
He returned to Battalion HQ an hour later. Acting on the information brought back a British counter attack was launched and the German Forces were forced back.
Jack Counter made the return journey to the Front Line and back five more times that same day.
His Commanding Officer recommended Jack for the VC on his return from the sixth journey and the award was confirmed in the London Gazette on May 22nd.
Jack Counter returned home to a great crowd and a hero's welcome at Blandford Railway Station and was delighted when the crowd gave his brother Percy, who had lost a leg earlier in the War a huge cheer.  He received his Cross from King George V at Buckingham Palace on June 27th 1918.
Jack Counter moved to the Island of Jersey after the War ended and spent the rest of his life there, becoming known as the 'Jersey VC'.
He passed away in 1970, on a short trip back to his hometown Blandford in Dorset to visit his brother Percy's widow.
This piece is extra special because it is signed and dated 19/6/18, during the priod he is home in Blandford before travelling to Buckingham Palace. He was officially awarded the Cross a month earlier in May but this piece is signed eight days before he has the Medal pinned on his chest by the King.