Parents of Christopher Maddison receive Elizabeth Cross medal (From York Press)

Parents of Christopher Maddison receive Elizabeth Cross medal

9:14am Saturday 31st July 2010 in

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A SOLDIER killed in Iraq has been honoured posthumously.

Christopher Maddison was killed in 2003 during a fierce gunfight.

His parents, Tony and Julie Maddison, of Pickering, have now received the Elizabeth Cross.

The medal is awarded to the next of kin of UK Armed Forces personnel who have died on operations or as a result of an act of terrorism, in recognition of their loss and sacrifice.

The cross was presented to Mr and Mrs Maddison by Susan Cunliffe-Lister, Lord Lieutenant of East Yorkshire, at a ceremony held at Burton Agnes Hall, near Driffield.

Mrs Maddison said: “Chris was a wonderful son who loved his job. We miss him every day.”

Christopher enlisted with the Royal Marines in 1996, and subsequently joined the 9 Assault Squadron on HMS Ocean, an amphibious assault ship, during which time he saw service in Sierra Leone on Operation Palliser in 2000 and Operation Veritas against the Taliban in 2001.

In January 2003, at the start of the conflict with Iraq, HMS Ocean arrived in the Gulf for its next mission.

In the early hours of March 30 Marine Maddison was returning to base after a routine waterborne patrol of the Kawallah ab dullah waterway in southern Iraq.

But the patrol came under fierce gun fire attack from Iraqi forces and during the skirmish several of Marine Maddison’s colleagues were injured. Despite the gunfire, Christopher remained on his radio, sending six messages during the firefight.

He was then hit and died as a result.

Later, at a Board of Inquiry, it was determined Marine Maddison had died as a result of “friendly fire”.