Second Lieutenant Geary led his men across exposed open ground which was swept by fierce enemy fire to join up with survivors of the Bedfordshire Regiment in a crater at the top of Hill 60 near Ypres. During the evening of 20 April 1915 and all night he showed great courage and leadership, defending this precarious position against artillery and grenade attacks. He stood up to attract fire from the Germans so that he could locate the enemy position by the light of flares. Just before daylight on 21 April he was severely wounded in the head, losing the use of his left eye.
Benjamin Handley Geary was born in London on 29 June 1891. He was educated at Dulwich College Prep School, St Edmunds Canterbury and Keble College, Oxford. Before the war he worked as a teacher in Walthamstow. He survived the First World War despite being wounded again later in France. He served with the 4th Battalion East Surreys, attached to the 1st Battalion. By 1918 he was a captain. He decided to take holy orders and studied at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, and in 1926, became a chaplain to the Forces. In the Second World War he served with the Canadian Army as a major. He died in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario on 26 May 1976 and is buried there. His medals are displayed at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa.
