James Allen Ward
Recipient of the Victoria Cross (1919-1941)
James Allen Ward, VC (14 June 1919 – 15 September 1941) was a New Zealand aviator and a recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest award for gallantry "in the face of the enemy" that could be awarded at the time to personnel of the British and Commonwealth forces.
Born in Wanganui, Ward was a teacher when the Second World War began. He immediately volunteered for the Royal New Zealand Air Force and after completing flight training in New Zealand, travelled to England. In mid-1941, he was posted to No. 75 Squadron, which operated Vickers Wellington bombers. He participated in his first few bombing missions as a co-pilot, during the last of which, on 7 July 1941, he earned the VC for his feat in climbing out onto the wing of his Wellington bomber to extinguish an engine fire caused by a night fighter attack. Ward was the first of three New Zealand airmen to be awarded the VC during the Second World War. He was killed two months later commanding his own Wellington on a bombing mission to Germany.
Early life
James Allen Ward was born on 14 June 1919 in Wanganui, New Zealand, to English immigrants, Percy Harold and Ada May Ward (nee Stokes). He was educated at Wanganui Technical College and after graduation, trained as a teacher in Wellington.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “James Allen Ward” as recipient of the Victoria Cross (1919-1941). Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as recipient of the Victoria Cross (1919-1941). Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 31, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q6128652. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1919 and 1941.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “James Allen Ward”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow James Allen Ward primary sources, James Allen Ward archive and James research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “James Allen Ward”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “James Allen Ward” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.