Major Charles Allix Lavington Yate, born on 14 March 1872 the son of Prebendary George Edward Yate (Vicar of Madeley from 1859 to 1908).

The Major belonged to a Berkshire family, a branch of which settled at Madeley Hall around the middle of the 18th century. He was educated at Weymouth College. He passed out of Sandhurst and joined the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, seeing active service in the Tirah expedition of 1897 to 1898. He was seriously wounded in the Boer War. On returning to Madeley for a spell of convalescence, local miners took the place of the horses drawing his carriage and pulled him around the streets in celebration of his many acts of bravery.

He married Florence Helena Brigg from Greenhead Hall, Yorkshire in St Georges Church, Hanover Square in 1903 – there were no children.

He became a major in 1912 and won his VC on 26 August 1914 at the Battle of Le Cateau, where Major General Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien fought his famous delaying action to check the German pursuit after Mons.

When Major Yate’s 220 men were reduced to 19 and ammunition exhausted, he led a charge of his survivors against the enemy in which he was severely wounded. He was taken as a prisoner of war and, it is believed, died from injuries sustained whilst attempting to escape.