[3] Corbett was 28 years old and a private in the 3rd Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps in Egypt when discontented Egyptian officers under Ahmed ‘Urabi rebelled against the administration of Khedive Tewfik, which was influenced by the British and French governments.

It was during this service that the following deed took place for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross: The citation in The London Gazette of 16 February 1883, read During the reconnaissance upon Kafr Dowar, Egypt, on 5 August 1882, the Mounted Infantry, with which Private Corbett was serving, came under a hot fire from the enemy and suffered some loss, including Lieutenant Howard Vyse, mortally wounded.

Subsequently, when Kafr-el-Dawwar surrendered following the British victory in Egypt, the works there were found to be strong and well-stocked with modern artillery and arms and ammunition.

The original royal warrant for the Victoria Cross involved an expulsion clause that allowed for a recipient's name to be erased from the official register in certain wholly discreditable circumstances and his pension cancelled.

"[1] Corbett's Victoria Cross was sold at auction by Glendining's on 17 June 1924 for £50 and now resides in the Royal Green Jackets (Rifles) Museum in Winchester.

[1] Howard Vyse, the man he tried to save, was buried with three other fatalities shortly after the battle at the English cemetery outside the (now demolished) Rosetta Gate of Alexandria.