Rugby Player Ypres Reservoir Cemetery
Captain Lewis Robertson, 1st Battalion, The Queens Own (Cameron Highlanders), 1st Infantry Brigade, 1st Division. Died of wounds 3 November 1914, age 31. Grave II.A.4. Son of James and Agnes Rae Robertson, 7 Eglinton Crescent, Edinburgh. He was educated at Cargilfield School, Fettes College, and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He was gazetted Second Lieutenant in December 1902 and joined the 1st Battalion Cameron Highlanders in April 1903, and was promoted to Lieutenant in March 1909. In June 1911 he was appointed Assistant Superintendent of Gymnasia, Eastern Command stationed at Shorncliffe. He was gazetted Captain, from 30 September 1914, from 16 January 1915. He played rugby for Fettesian-Lorettonian, London Scottish for ten seasons, Monkstown, Edinburgh Wanderers, and United Services. He was Captain of the Army Officers Rugby Club in 1914 and played for the team in every match. He earned nine caps for Scotland between 1908 and 1913. The first was against England in March 1908, and three years passed before he was selected a second time, for the match against Wales in February 1911. The following year, 1912, he played in every game for Scotland, with the exception of the match v except France, including one against the South African side which was touring the Home Nations. In 1913, he played in the three matches against the Home Nations, his last against England in a close-fought match at Twickenham. On the outbreak of the war, Robertson was recalled to the depot in Inverness, and was then briefly at Aldershot before his regiment crossed to France in September 1914 and took part in the Battle of the Aisne. On 1 November the Battalion was in the line between Zonnebeke and Veldhoek with their positions being heavily shelled the War Diary recording: ‘We were told that the Kaiser had come to command.’ On the 2 November a heavy artillery dual lasted from 6.45am to 5pm and about noon the Battalion was left exposed when the Battalions on their left and right retired however, the situation was saved when the Battalion right and some French troops came up in support. Lewis was wounded in the arm but left the dressing station and went back to his Company and was wounded again later in the day and subsequently died of his wounds. His body was exhumed from the garden of the Convent of the Blessed Virgin on Wennick Street, Wenninckstraat, in Ypres, and reburied here. When his body was exhumed they found a body of an unidentified British soldier beneath his.
Comments