Robert Grierson Combe (5 August 1880 – 3 May 1917) was a

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recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...

, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to

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and

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forces. Combe is also considered Scottish since he was born in

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Details

Combe was 36 years old, and a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

in the 27th Battalion,

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) was the expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed following Britain’s declaration of war on Germany on 15 August 1914, with an initial strength of one infantry divisi ...

during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. On 3 May 1917, south of

Acheville Acheville is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. Geography Acheville is situated some 4 miles (7 km) southeast of Lens, on the D33. Population See also Communes of the Pas-de-Calais department The following ...

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, Lieutenant Combe steadied his company under intense fire and leading them through the enemy barrage reached the objective with only five men. He proceeded to bomb the enemy, inflicting heavy casualties and then, collecting small groups of men, succeeded in capturing the objective, together with 80 prisoners. He repeatedly charged the enemy, driving them before him, but while personally leading his bombers he was killed by a sniper. Combe was buried in a battlefield cemetery near Acheville close where he was killed, but later fighting saw the cemetery destroyed and his grave site lost. As such, R.G. Combe's name is inscribed on the

Canadian National Vimy Memorial The Canadian National Vimy Memorial is a war memorial site in France dedicated to the memory of Canadian Expeditionary Force members killed during the First World War. It also serves as the place of commemoration for Canadian soldiers of the Fir ...

along with the names of the other Canadian soldiers who were killed in France and whose bodies were never recovered or identified or whose graves were lost. The battlefield on which Lt. Combe fell is just over seven kilometres away from the Vimy Monument, and on a clear day Acheville can be seen from the monument itself.

The medal

Combe's medal is held by the Provincial Archives in Regina,

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and is displayed on special occasions. It is the only publicly held Victoria Cross in the province.

References

External links

Robert Grierson Combe digitized service file

Legion Magazine article on Robert Combe
{{DEFAULTSORT:Combe, Robert Grierson 1880 births 1917 deaths Canadian Expeditionary Force officers Canadian military personnel killed in World War I Canadian World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross Military personnel from Aberdeen Scottish emigrants to Canada

Details

The medal

References

Further reading

External links