Lieutenant John Edgar Burch (February 8, 1874 – July 16, 1900) was an officer of the

Canadian Militia The Canadian Militia is a historical title for military units raised for the defence of Canada. The term has been used to describe sedentary militia units raised from local communities in Canada; as well as the regular army for the Province of Ca ...

(now the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...

). Serving with the 1st Canadian Mounted Rifles (later

The Royal Canadian Dragoons The Royal Canadian Dragoons (RCD) is the senior armoured regiment of the Canadian Army by precedence. It is one of three armoured regiments in the Regular Force and forms part of the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps. The colonel-in-chief of the RC ...

) during the

Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic an ...

, he was killed in action at the

Battle of Witpoort The Battle of Witpoort was fought during the Second Anglo-Boer War. Major Frederick Henry Munn commanded the detachment of the Royal Irish Fusiliers at Witpoort which was attacked on 16 July 1900, his orders being to "hold his position at all ...

alongside Lieutenant

Harold Lothrop Borden Lieutenant Harold Lothrop Borden (23 May 1876 – 16 July 1900) was from Canning, Nova Scotia and the only son of Canada's Minister of Defence and Militia, Frederick William Borden and related to future Prime Minister Robert Laird Borden. S ...

while leading a counter-attack on the Boer positions.

Early life

John Edgar Burch was born on February 8, 1874, in St. Ann's, Ontario, the youngest son of Major F.O. Burch of the 2nd Dragoons. He attended High School at Smithville and later received training in business principles at Hamilton Business College.

Military career

Burch’s military career began in 1893, when at age 18 he enlisted in the

as a Trooper (a Private in the Cavalry) with B Squadron of the 2nd Dragoons, his father’s regiment. Showing great promise, he was eventually promoted to Sergeant and attended the militia’s cavalry school at

Stanley Barracks New Fort York, later the Stanley Barracks, is a former British and Canadian military base in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It was built in 1840–1841 to replace Toronto's original Fort York at the mouth of Ga ...

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, and after being commissioned as a lieutenant he attended the cavalry school a further 3 times. From his time attending the cavalry school, He became very popular with the officers stationed at Stanley Barracks and was well known for his horsemanship, swordsmanship and leadership abilities. He was also considered within his own regiment as one of its best officers and would later be promoted from the senior lieutenant of B Squadron to the regimental adjutant of the 2nd Dragoons.

South Africa

With the outbreak of the Second Boer War and the Second Contingent was being raised, Burch volunteered for service and accepted a position as a lieutenant with the

1st Battalion, Canadian Mounted Rifles The 1st Battalion, Canadian Mounted Rifles, CEF, was an infantry battalion of the Canadian Army. Raised for service during the First World War as part of the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF), it was formed in November 1914, in Brandon, Manitob ...

(later The Royal Canadian Dragoons (Special Service Force)). Assigned to A Squadron of the battalion, Burch would see constant action in South Africa and was well known as a cool-headed, quick-witted and brave officer. His letters and the reports of those who fought and lived with him give sufficient evidence that he was a born soldier. Lieutenant John Edgar Burch was killed in action on July 16, 1900, during the Battle of Witpoort. Fighting alongside Lieutenant

(who also killed the same day and is the most famous Canadian casualty of the Boer War), Lieutenants Burch and Borden lead a counter-attack on Boer positions in support of the

Royal Irish Fusiliers The Royal Irish Fusiliers (Princess Victoria's) was an Irish line infantry (later changed to light infantry) regiment of the British Army, formed by the amalgamation of the 87th (Prince of Wales's Irish) Regiment of Foot and the 89th (Princess ...

and the New Zealand Mounted Rifles. Leading their men to within a few yards of the enemy, Lieutenant Borden was killed and Lieutenant Burch along with 4 other Canadians soon found themselves surrounded. When the Boers called for them to surrender, Burch and his men refused and held off at least 40 Boers before Lieutenant Burch was killed. John Reeves, the colonel of the Royal Irish Fusiliers, wrote, “In the few words I spoke to you ( Colonel Lessard) last night at the funeral of your two very gallant officers I am afraid I failed to convey the deep gratitude my regiment owes to the 1st Canadian Mounted Rifles for their gallantry in going so nobly and fearlessly to the succour of our beleaguered detachment at Witpoort yesterday. The counterattack your regiment made occurred at a most critical moment, and doubtless saved many of the lives of our detachment.” Lord Roberts would later mention in his report to the War Office that Borden and Burch "were killed while gallantly leading their men in a counter attack upon the enemy's flank at a critical juncture of his assault upon our position."

Legacy

Burch is commemorated with various monuments and plaques. At

CFB Petawawa 4 Canadian Division Support Base Petawawa, commonly referred to as Garrison Petawawa, is located in Petawawa, Ontario. It is operated as an army base by the Canadian Army. Current use The Garrison is located in the Ottawa Valley in Renfrew ...

in Ontario, his name along with that of Borden appears on a Memorial Plaque – Brass Tablet located at the entrance of the Headquarters of The Royal Canadian Dragoons. In St. Catharines, ON, his name appears on a memorial plaque at the Lake Street Armoury and on the war memorial at the St. Catharines Municipal Building. He is remembered on page 6 of the South African War Book of Remembrance on Parliament Hill. Finally, there is also a plaque to Borden, Burch and others who died at Witpoort at Braamfontein Cemetery in South Africa where he is buried.

References

1874 births 1900 deaths Royal Canadian Dragoons officers Canadian Militia officers Canadian Army officers Canadian military personnel killed in the Second Boer War Canadian military personnel from Ontario

External links

ROYAL CANADIAN DRAGOONS ROLL OF HONOUR
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