Basuto War Victoria Cross Recipient. He was gazetted for the award on June 28, 1881 for his actions as a surgeon in the 1st Cape Mounted Yeomanry of the British South African Forces at Tweetfontein, Basutoland, South Africa on January 14, 1881 during the 1880-1881 Basuto conflict. Born in Fort St. George, Madras, British India, his parents died when he was only a year old and he was raised by an aunt on the British island of Guernsey in the English Channel. Following his education at Elizabeth College in St. Peter Port, Guernsey, he studied medicine at Guy's Hospital in London, England and in 1878 he became a member of the Royal College of Surgeons of England and Edinburgh. The following year he went to South Africa where he served as Civilian Surgeon to Her Majesty's Forces at the Military Hospital in Cape Town. In 1880 he became a surgeon with the 1st Regiment of the Cape Mounted Yeomanry and participated in the Basuto conflict, for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross for gallantry. He was promoted to the rank of surgeon major and in February 1882 he transferred to the Cape Mounted Rifleman. He died from heart failure at his home in Kokstad, Cape Colony, South Africa at the age of 40. His Victoria Cross citation reads: "1st Regiment Cape Mounted Yeomanry. Surgeon John Frederick McCrea. For his conspicuous bravery during the severely contested engagement with the Basutos on the 14th January, 1881, at Tweefontein, near Thaba Tsen, when, after the enemy had charged the Burghers in the most determined manner, forcing them to retire with a loss of sixteen killed and twenty-one wounded, Surgeon McCrea went out for some distance, under a heavy fire, and, with the assistance of Captain Buxton of the Mafeteng Contingent, conveyed a wounded Burgher named Aircamp to the shelter of a large ant-heap, and having placed him in a position of safety returned to the Ambulance for a stretcher. Whilst on his way thither Surgeon McCrea was severely wounded in the right breast by a bullet, notwithstanding which, he continued to perform his duties at the Ambulance, and again assisted to bring in several wounded men, continuing afterwards to attend the wounded during the remainder of the day, and scarcely taking time to dress his own wound, which he was obliged to do himself, there being no other Medical Officer in the Field. Had it not been for this gallantry and devotion to his duty on the part of Surgeon McCrea, the sufferings of the wounded would undoubtedly have been much aggravated, and greater loss of life might very probably have ensued." His Victoria Cross in on display in the Lord Ashcroft Collection at the British Imperial War Museum in London, England.