George Robertson

George Robertson enlisted at Worksop on 27 August 1914 and was sent to 3rd reserve Battalion. He was sent as a reinforcement to the 1st Battalion on 17 December 1914. The 1st Battalion had seen intense fighting since its arrival in November 1914. On 11 March 1915, George was wounded in action (gunshot wound to the neck) during the Battle of Neuve Chapelle. The 1st Battalion advanced through an orchard on the left of their line and occupied some broken down houses, taking casualties. They were then shelled throughout the day. At 4 pm 'D' company charged the enemy's breastwork but suffering heavy losses from machine gun fire were forced to abandon the enterprise. At some point during the day George was shot but luckily for him it was not serious. He returned to the UK and after recovery was sent to the 9th Battalion at Gallipoli. Arriving as a reinforcement on 28 August 1915. George served in Gallpoli, in Egypt and on the Somme, he survived Messines and the first torrid weeks of 3rd Ypres. On 4 October 1917 the battalion was tasked with taking Poelcappelle and despite encountering concrete blockhouses with machine guns and artillery fire, they took all of the objectives. The division on their left fell back 400 yards and this forced the 9th Battalion to put out a flank for protection. The enemy attacked at 1pm but this was seen off and the battalion held its gains. It had been a major success and the gallantry awards, including a VC, show this but the casualties were also very high and one of these was George. He has no known grave and is commemorated on the Tyne Cot Memorial.

Tyne Cot Memorial Panel 99 to 102 & 162 to 162A Research by John Morse