For Bravery in the Field – a follow up

Yesterday I wrote about the men of the 10th Scottish Rifles who went on a patrol into no man’s land on 21st December 1917. Sergeant John Wilson, from Hamilton, was one of the two men who returned to the British lines three days later, on Christmas Eve.

This morning I found some additional information that sheds some light on what happened to the brave Sergeant in the years following the First World War.

While searching through online newspaper articles, I came across an account in The Scotsman of King George and Queen Elizabeth’s Royal visit to Lanarkshire on 4th May 1938. The article recounted that, following a reception at Hamilton Town House, Their Majesties were making their way to their car when they observed in the crowd, a group of 14 men wearing medals. The King enquired who the men were, and was introduced to them by the Provost. The men were all limbless ex-servicemen from the area, and among them was none other than Sergeant John Wilson MM:

Mr Dodd [the leader of the group of ex-servicemen] drew His Majesty’s attention to John Wilson, holder of the Military Medal, who lost both his legs while serving in France. “How do you manage to get along?” inquired His Majesty, and Mr Wilson modestly replied. “Oh, fine.”

I then started looking through the regimental magazine of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), titled The Covenanter, and found an obituary notice for John Wilson, published in the January 1945 edition. It reads:

Death of Old Cameronian

We Regret to Record the death of Mr John Wilson, a linotype operator on the staff of “The Hamilton Advertiser” for over 35 years. Mr Wilson served as a non-commissioned officer in the Great War with the 6^th Battalion The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles). He was twice wounded, once at Festubert and again in 1918 in an action in which he was awarded the Military Medal. He lost one of his fingers at Festubert. In 1918, he received a severe gunshot wound and suffered severely from frost-bite through forced to remain in “no-man’s-land” for three days. He had both legs amputated below the knee as a result of this experience. Following his discharge from the Forces, he returned to his civilian occupation and, because of his disability, was trained as a linotype operator. Even with two artificial legs he was very agile and served the firm faithfully and well up till the time of his death. There is no doubt that his general health suffered as a result of his war service, but “Jock”, as he was familiarly called, bore his illness with true Cameronian fortitude and was never heard to utter one word of complaint. Mr Wilson was one of the pioneers in the formation of Hamilton and District Branch of the British Limbless Ex-Servicemen’s Association, and was also an enthusiastic member of the Regimental Association of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles). “Jock” also took a keen interest in “The Covenanter”, and in his capacity as a linotype operator he was given the job of setting-up the type for the magazine. This afforded him a great deal of pleasure and kept him very much in touch with the activities of his old Regiment. At the funeral to Bent Cemetery, Hamilton, his old Battalion was represented by the presence of its honorary colonel, Lieut. Col. J. C. E. Hay, C.B.E., M.C., T.D., D.L.

Further notifications in The Covenanter reveal that John Wilson bequeathed his medals to The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) regimental museum, and also bequeathed a sum of money to the Regimental Museum Fund.

South Lanarkshire Council’s Bereavement Services were very helpful when I made enquiries about the whereabouts of Sergeant Wilson’s grave, and armed with plot details and a map I made my way there to pay my respects. It would appear, however, that Sergeant Wilson’s grave lies unmarked; perhaps not surprising as his obituary notice made no mention of any surviving family who might have arranged a headstone. I placed a memorial cross in a tree as near as I could estimate where Sergeant Wilson’s grave might lie.

On Christmas Day, safe and warm and in the company of my family, I’ll raise a glass and spare a thought for Lieutenant Ewen, Lance Corporal Thomson, Private Aberdeen, and of course, Sergeant John Wilson, and what they went through in no man’s land 100 years ago.

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