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THEY STOOD ON GUARD WOUNDED TWICE, BUT HE WOULDN’T LEAVE HIS MEN — THE STORY OF SERGEANT WILLIAM ALEXANDER MUNRO SERGEANT WILLIAM ALEXANDER MUNRO, MM April 30, 1886 – November 6, 1917 3rd (Toronto) Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force Aged 31 On November 6, 1917, as Canadian soldiers fought their way across the shattered battlefield of Passchendaele, Sergeant William Alexander Munro was among those who would never return home. He left behind a wife, two little boys, and a remarkable record of courage under fire. Born in Invergordon, Scotland, Munro eventually settled in Toronto, where he married Sarah Macready and started a family. On November 22, 1915, he enlisted with the 123rd Battalion before eventually serving overseas with the 3rd Canadian Infantry Battalion. MAY 3, 1917 — COURAGE AT FRESNOY Six months before his death, Munro demonstrated the extraordinary determination that would earn him the Military Medal. During the Canadian assault on Fresnoy, France, Munro, then a lance corporal, was severely wounded while advancing with his section. But he refused to abandon his responsibilities. Despite his injury, he continued toward the objective, directing his men with what his official citation described as great coolness and skill. Then came a German counterattack. Munro was wounded a second time. Still, he remained with his soldiers until the enemy attack had been beaten off. Only then was he ordered away for treatment. Even while making his way back, he stopped at Battalion Headquarters and provided valuable information about the situation at the front. For his conspicuous gallantry, Munro was awarded the Military Medal. His courage also earned him promotion to sergeant in the field. NOVEMBER 6, 1917 — PASSCHENDAELE By November, Munro was back in action with the 3rd Battalion as Canadian forces advanced toward Passchendaele village. On November 6, Canadian troops launched another major assault against German positions on the ridge. It was a day of hard fighting, with machine-gun fire, artillery and devastated terrain making every advance dangerous. Somewhere amid that fighting, Sergeant William Alexander Munro was killed in action. He was just 31 years old. A contemporary Toronto newspaper reported that Munro had been expected to receive a commission as an officer within days. He would never have that opportunity. THE FAMILY HE LEFT BEHIND Back in Toronto, his wife Sarah was left to raise their two sons. Ian was five years old. His younger brother, James, had only just turned one on the day his father was killed. The loss extended through the Munro family. A newspaper reported that two of William’s brothers had also attempted to enlist, but both had been rejected because of poor eyesight. In May 1918, the Toronto Evening Telegram reported on the presentation of Munro’s Military Medal to his mother, Mrs. Andrew Munro, months after his death. It was a decoration earned by a man who had continued leading his soldiers despite being wounded twice, but who would never live to wear it at home. Sergeant Munro has no known grave. His name is inscribed on the Menin Gate Memorial in Ypres, Belgium, among the thousands of soldiers who died in the Ypres Salient and whose final resting places remain unknown. His name is also remembered on the war memorial in his birthplace of Invergordon, Scotland. More than a century later, the surviving photographs tell their own story: a smiling soldier carrying his equipment, and a young father standing proudly beside his wife and little boy. Behind the uniform and the Military Medal was a husband, a father, and a man whose family would spend the rest of their lives without him. Today, we remember Sergeant William Alexander Munro, MM, who gave his life at Passchendaele on November 6, 1917. Lest We Forget. Photos: Veterans Affairs Canada / Operation: Picture Me. #TheyStoodOnGuard #LestWeForget #WWI

THEY STOOD ON GUARD “SINGING PETE” — THE RAILWAYMAN WHO BECAME A VICTORIA CROSS HERO PRIVATE JAMES PETER ROBERTSON, VC October 26, 1883 – November 6, 1917 27th (City of Winnipeg) Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force On this day in 1917, Private James Peter Robertson was killed at Passchendaele, Belgium, after an extraordinary display of courage that would earn him the Victoria Cross, the British Empire’s highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy. Born in Pictou County, Nova Scotia, Robertson eventually settled in Medicine Hat, Alberta, where he worked for the Canadian Pacific Railway. A locomotive engineer known for his cheerful singing and whistling, he earned the affectionate nickname “Singing Pete.” In June 1915, he enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force. He eventually joined the 27th Battalion and went overseas to fight in the Great War. NOVEMBER 6, 1917 — PASSCHENDAELE As Canadian troops advanced toward the shattered Belgian village, Robertson’s platoon was stopped by uncut barbed wire and a German machine gun that was inflicting heavy casualties. Rather than remain pinned down, Robertson found an opening along the enemy flank and charged the machine-gun position. In a desperate struggle, he killed four members of the German gun crew, seized their weapon, and turned it against the remaining enemy soldiers as they retreated. His actions allowed his platoon to advance. Carrying the captured machine gun forward, Robertson helped lead his comrades to their objective. He then positioned the weapon to fire upon retreating German troops and suppress enemy snipers. But his greatest act of courage was still to come. Later, two Canadian snipers lay badly wounded in front of their trench, exposed to intense enemy fire. Robertson went out into the open, reached the first wounded man, and carried him back to safety. Then he went back for the second. As he was returning with his wounded comrade, Robertson was killed. He was just 34 years old. A VICTORY HE NEVER SAW That same morning, the 27th (City of Winnipeg) Battalion captured Passchendaele village. By approximately 8:45 a.m., Canadian forces held the village and its eastern ridge. Robertson’s extraordinary actions had helped his platoon reach its objective, but he was among the men who would never return home. For his bravery and devotion to duty, Private James Peter Robertson was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. Today, he rests at Tyne Cot Cemetery in Belgium, Plot LVIII, Row D, Grave 26. His courage has never been forgotten. In 2012, the Canadian Coast Guard named a Hero-class patrol vessel CCGS Private Robertson V.C. in his honour. From a cheerful railway engineer in Alberta to a soldier who gave his life trying to save a comrade, “Singing Pete” left behind a remarkable legacy of courage and sacrifice. We remember Private James Peter Robertson, VC. Lest We Forget. Photo: Veterans Affairs Canada. #TheyStoodOnGuard #LestWeForget #WWI

THEY STOOD ON GUARD Private Gerald MacIntosh Johnston November 5, 1944 Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada Before he became a Canadian soldier, Gerald MacIntosh Johnston was known to Broadway audiences as Gerald Kent, an actor whose career had taken him from Winnipeg to the stages of New York. But when the Second World War came, Johnston traded the theatre for a military uniform, joining the Black Watch of Canada. On August 19, 1942, he took part in the disastrous Dieppe Raid. Johnston survived the fighting but was captured by German forces, becoming one of the thousands of Allied servicemen taken prisoner that day. For more than two years, he endured captivity in Germany, eventually being held at Stalag II-D, near Stettin, where Canadian prisoners complained of harsh treatment and were assigned to forced labour. On November 5, 1944, Johnston’s life came to a violent end. The 40-year-old Canadian was reportedly shot while on a prisoner-of-war working party near Breitenstein, Germany. The circumstances of his death soon became the subject of an extraordinary controversy. In January 1945, Britain’s Sunday Pictorial reported that Johnston had led an uprising involving 1,500 Canadian prisoners attempting to escape. According to the newspaper, German guards opened fire, killing Johnston and several others. The sensational story spread across the Atlantic, appearing in Canadian newspapers. But Canadian authorities investigated and subsequently rejected the account of a mass uprising as fabricated. Johnston’s death was real, but the alleged revolt was not substantiated. Behind the headlines was a grieving mother in New York, desperately seeking answers. Military correspondence reveals that Johnston’s mother appealed to Canadian authorities for information about how her son had died. Officials arranged for a clergyman to visit her personally, while the Canadian Red Cross sought further details from Germany. In a surviving letter, she described her son’s years of service and the financial hardship she faced following his death. The Broadway actor who had survived Dieppe and more than two years as a prisoner of war never returned to the stage. Eighty-two years ago today, Private Gerald MacIntosh Johnston died in German captivity, far from the family and audiences who had known him. His final moments remain uncertain, but his service and sacrifice are not forgotten. Lest We Forget. #TheyStoodOnGuard #LestWeForget #WWII