A glorious war hero of Yorkshire, described as the "bravest lad ever seen", was to be honoured with the Victoria Cross for his great gallantry in battle.

Now Sergeant Arnold Loosemore's most prestigious of medals is to be offered at auction with a guide price topping a six-figure sum. Auctioneers Noonans said his raft of ribbons were a "phenomenal achievement" - with none more sought after than the Victoria Cross (VC).

Born in Sharow in Sheffield in 1896, Loosemore was the son of a gardener at the Sheffield General Cemetery and the sixth of seven brothers who all served in the Great War.

It was in the Third Battle of Ypres, in 1917, that he fought with "every means at his disposal" to rescue a wounded comrade under heavy fire. With two members of his section killed beside him, he had taken up a machine gun, then a bomb, a rifle and revolver, to thwart an almost overriding attack.

Sgt Arnold Loosemore, who served with the 8th Battalion Duke of Wellington’s West Riding Regiment, helped thwart a vicious enemy counter-attack before returning to his post with a wounded comrade during the Third Battle of Ypres in August 1917. Image: Noonans.

Officers, in a letter to the young soldier's parents, said he was 'the bravest lad I have ever seen', adding that 'his magnificent gallantry undoubtedly saved the whole of the company'.

Loosemore's exploits that day had come just hours after he also shot down a German fighter - with just his Lewis gun - to save a British pilot under fire in a torturous dog-fight. He was then awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM) for his gallantry in a raid at Zillebeke in 1918, helping to capture 11 prisoners alongside a machine gun.

Loosemore was to lose a leg, after being wounded by machine gun fire in France later that year. He never fully recovered from his war wounds, and died of TB in 1924.

Thousands had crowded the steps at Sheffield Town Hall, after the King presented him with the Western Front VC, the highest military award in Britain. They had lined the streets from Hillsborough to Ecclesall once more, in tribute, for his funeral procession.

Christopher Mellor-Hill, head of client liaison at Noonans, said Loosemore's achievements in war had been quite remarkable.

A farm worker at Fulfood when war was declared, he had been turned down for enlistment because of a 'frail' physique, so he took a job with a coal merchant to build up his strength.

Serving in the 8th Battalion, Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding Regiment), he later was promoted to Corporal in August 1917.

Mr Mellor-Hill said: “Loosemore’s medals are a phenomenal achievement with only 19 men receiving both the Victoria Cross and the Distinguished Conduct Medal during the Great War.

Sgt Arnold Loosemore. The Victoria Cross of a celebrated WWI hero is to go on sale later this month - and could fetch up to a quarter of a million pounds. Image: Noonans

"No other medal is as desirable and sought-after by collectors as the Victoria Cross," he added. "This example was sold by the recipient’s son in 1996.”

It is expected to reach between £180,000-£220,000 at auction on July 26.

Sheffield war hero Arnold Loosemore's Victoria Cross medal to be auctioned for six-figure sum