World War I Victoria Cross Recipient. A native of Scotland, he received the award from British King George V on August 2, 1919 at Buckingham Palace in London, England for his actions as a sergeant in the 2nd Battalion, Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment, British Army for his actions on October 14, 1918 near Moorsele, Belgium during the Hundred Days Offensive in the final stages of World War I. Born in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, Scotland, he joined the Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment following the outbreak of World War I in July 1914 and was sent to the Western Front in France. Following the end of the war, he returned to England and later served in the British Royal Air Force as an armored sergeant. In 1940, following the outbreak of World War II, he was commissioned a lieutenant into the Auxiliary Military Pioneer Corps and served in Liverpool, England. He died from a heart attack in Hoylake, Cheshire, England at the age of 45. His Victoria Cross citation reads: "For most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty near Moorseele on 14th October 1918, when the advance of his company was checked by two machine guns and an enemy field battery firing over open sights. At the head of eleven men only he charged the battery, capturing four field guns, two machine guns and sixteen prisoners. Again, on the morning of the 20th October 1918, Sjt. O'Neill, with one man, rushed an enemy machine-gun position, routing about 100 enemy and causing many casualties. Throughout the operations he displayed the most remarkable courage and powers of leadership." In addition to the Victoria Cross, he also received the Military Medal, the 1914-15 Star, the British War Medal (1914-20), the Victory Medal (1914-19), the Belgian Order of Leopold II (Knight), the French Legion d'Honneur, and the King George VI Coronation Medal (1937). His medals were stolen while in the care of a numismatic company in February 1962 and were never recovered (as of October 2004).