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William Edward Sanders (7 February 1883 – 14 August 1917) was a New Zealand recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Born in Auckland, Sanders took up a seafaring career in 1899. He initially worked aboard steamships before transferring to sailing ships working around New Zealand waters to enhance his career prospects. After the outbreak of the First World War, he earned a master's certificate in late 1914. He then served in the Merchant Navy working aboard troopships until April 1916, when he was commissioned in the Royal Naval Reserve. He completed his military training in the United Kingdom after which he served aboard the ''Helgoland'', a Q-ship which operated against German submarines. He performed well on his first two patrols and was given his own command, , in February 1917. He was awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions while on his first patrol as captain, when the ''Prize'' engaged and saw off a German U-boat that had earlier attacked and damaged his own ship. He was killed in action during the ''Prizes fourth patrol when his ship was sunk by a U-boat. His Victoria Cross was presented to his father and is currently held by the Auckland War Memorial Museum. Several memorials exist to Sanders' memory, including the Sanders Cup, a sailing trophy for 14-foot (4.3 m) centerboard X-class yachts. ==Early life== William Sanders was born in the Auckland suburb of Kingsland on 7 February 1883. His father, Edward Helman Cook Sanders, was a boot maker, who with his wife Emma Jane Sanders (née Wilson), would have three more children. His maternal grandfather was a sea captain and worked for the family's shipping company. Sanders attended Nelson Street School but in 1894, when his family moved to Takapuna, he shifted to Takapuna School. The school was close to Lake Pupuke, where he learned to sail. He earned the nickname ''Gunner Billy'' for his exploits with a small cannon that a classmate brought to school. He left school at the age of 15, and due to the influence of his parents was apprenticed to a mercer in Auckland. He was not particularly interested in the profession and, desiring a career at sea, would go down to the wharfs to inspect the berthed ships and chat with their captains and crewmen. In 1899, Sanders joined the ''Kapanui'' as a cabin boy. An officer on the ship, a coastal steamer which worked the coast north of Auckland, was an acquaintance and advised Sanders of the availability of a position on board as a cabin boy, which he promptly applied for. He remained with the company that operated the ''Kapanui'' for three years. In 1902 he joined the ''Aparima'', operated by the Union Steam Ship Company, which traded between New Zealand and India. He transferred to the NZGSS ''Hinemoa'' in 1906 as an ordinary seaman. The ''Hinemoa'' was a government steamer which serviced lighthouses along the New Zealand coast and depots on offshore islands. With his seafaring career to date spent working on steamships, Sanders decided to spend time under sail with the Craig Line. At the time, steam was looked down upon by seafarers with sailors being regarded as more skillful. After taking his mate's certificates, he sailed aboard the ''Joseph Craig''. However, the ship foundered on the Hokianga bar on 7 August 1914. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「William Edward Sanders」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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