Robert
Gibson was born 8th January 1895 at 139 Downshire Hill in Hampstead,
the son of the Reverend Thomas William Gibson of Cranham Rectory,
Upminster. His mother was Frances eorgina Gibson, nee Currey.
Robert was baptised at St Sepulchre's, Holborn, March 25th 1895
and confirmed at St Giles, Oxford,
April 15th 1908 by the Bishop of Oxford.
Robert’s
education started at the Oxford Preparatory
School (Lynam's) between 1904 and 1908, after
which he attended the Winchester
College
from September 17th 1908. In 1913 he won a scholarship at New
College Oxford. Whilst at Oxford,
Robert had double pneumonia, which was when the photograph of
him in bed was taken.
On
the outbreak of war, he originally enlisted into the Territorial
28th London’s
(the “Artists Rifles”) as Private 2605 on the 8th
September 1914 and was discharged to Commission on the 26th
October, into the 3rd South Staffs, aged 19 yrs 9 months. On
the 3rd November 1914 Robert was posted to B Company of the
2nd Battalion of the Bedfordshire’s, arriving with them
in France
on the 20th May 1915.
2/Lt
Gibson was mentioned in dispatches on the 16th June 1915 for
his role in operations around Givenchy, when he was the only
Officer to come out of the fight unscathed, and again by Sir
John French on the 1st January 1916. He was evacuated sick to
Merville Hospital
between the 12th and 18th July 1915 as well as being admitted
to CCS1 on the 29th August 1915 with appendicitis. He was discharged
again on the 3rd September 1915.
As
a result of the attack near Vermelles 25th September 1915, he
took command of B Company, being the most senior Officer left
after the attack and was the Captain I/C of B Company by November. His
Captaincy reverted to 2/Lt the following month, along with Lt
de Burriatte of the famous Xmas truce 1914 fame & was granted
leave between the 11th December 1915 and 15th February 1916.
Having returned from leave on the 26th February, he took command
of A Company, then C Co a month later. In April, he was moved
to Officer Commanding B Company but the next day was off to
hospital sick again. After a short respite, he was back in charge
of B Company again & had another spell of leave towards
the end of May 1916.
The
brave and much loved Robert was twice recommended for a Military
cross (at Givenchy and Vermelles in 1915) but was sadly killed
in action on the 11th July 1916 at Trones Wood on
the Somme. A letter held in
his record dated 14th August 1916 said he was buried at Maricourt
Cemetery, near the Napiers Redoubt t 2.30am on Sunday 16th July
1916 after three men from his platoon volunteered to go and
find his body.
The
Battalion War Diary for 11th July 1916 reads:
"11 Jul 1916 - Trones Wood The Battalion were in position
by 1.30 a.m. formed up in lines of 1/2 Companies with an interval
of five paces between the men, and a distance of 150 yards between
platoons, in the following order: - "A" Company commanded by
Captain C.G.TYLER "B" Company commanded by Lieutenant H.A.CHAMEN
"C" Company commanded by Captain L.F.BEAL "D" Company commanded
by Captain R.O.WYNNE."
Orders had been received that the Battalion was to enter
the wood at 3.27 a.m., so the leading line commenced to advance
at 3.10 a.m. towards the South eastern edge of TRONES WOOD.
It being almost dark, the advance was not observed until the
leading line was 400 yards from the wood, when enemy Machine
Guns opened fire from Points Z and R marked on Sketch (Appendix
"B").
The enemy quickly got their artillery to work and the Battalion
suffered many casualties entering the WOOD, but by 3.45 a.m.
the whole Battalion had gained the inside of the WOOD, but owing
to Machine Gun and shell fire, had entered rather too much at
the SOUTHERN END. Owing to the denseness of the undergrowth,
it was not possible to see more than 4 yards in front of you,
so the Companies had great difficulty in keeping touch. Lieut.R.B.GIBSON was killed entering the
wood and 2nd Lieut.F.E.PLUMMER wounded and it was found that
the WOOD was strongly held and full of Trenches and Dug-outs.”
Robert
Gibson fell in the area shown on the trench map, just as his
platoon entered the wood. Most of his men were killed or wounded
in the burst of machine gun fire that claimed his life, with
very few of tem making it into the wood itself.
Robert’s
obituary in the Times, dated Friday August 4th 1916, reads:
”Lt Robert Bowness Gibson, killed on July 11th, was
the 5th son of the Rev. T W Gibson, rector of Cranham. He was
educated at the Oxford
Preparatory School,
Winchester
and New College Oxford. He was gazetted second lieutenant in
the South Staffordshire Regiment in November, 1914, being attached
and later transferred to the Bedfordshire Regiment, with which
he had served at the front since May 1915. His name was noted
for conspicuous gallantry in the field on June 16 1915 and was
mentioned in Lord French's dispatch on January 1 last. His colonel
writes of him:- "I cannot tell you how much he was loved by
his brother officers and men. He was a most splendid officer,
quite the best subaltern I had".”
A
fellow Bedford Regiment enthusiast, John Wainwright, has a collection
of letters and photographs detailing the life of the obviously
brilliant and very popular Robert Gibson, a well as some of
the pressed flowers taken from his grave in 1923. Below are
a selection, including the circumstances surrounding his death
at Trones Wood on the Somme,
11th July 1916.
Extracts
from letters to Miss Clementson, written by Robert before he
went out to the front.
"Pray for me .....that I may prepose myself physically and
spiritually for the work, and may be ready to kill and if need
be to be killed in the service of God and our country"
"Of course our actual fate lies in God's hands and he will give
us what he thinks best"
"I can with absolute sincerity wish you a Happy New Year and
a Happy Birthday, feeling that though the war may bring us sorrow,
may even bring death among us, it will in the end bring greater
faith and greater peace in God"
"I like to think we are all united in worship, the Lord be with
you and me and with all those whom we love, and all who are
coming to England's help today. And may he overrule this war
to the good of the world".
Letter
from Lt Col
HS Poynty. Commanding 2nd Battn Bedfordshire Rgt, BEF, 15-7-16
"It is with the deepest regret I am writing to you how your
gallant son was killed. A braver and better fellow never stepped
(sic) and I can't tell you how much he was loved by his brother
officers and men. He was a most splendid officer and quite the
best subaltern I had. On July 11th at 3.27 am we were ordered
to attack Trones Wood, where very heavy fighting has been going
on. It had been taken by us and re taken by the Germans, so
we were ordered to re take it again. The distance from us to
the wood was about 1000 yards. D Coy in which your son was,
was the third company to go over, and unfortunately your son's
platoon was heavily fired into by a body of Germans hidden in
the wood, with the result that the whole platoon was knocked
out. Your son was shot through the head and I am thankful to
say could not have suffered as death must have been instantaneous.
Yesterday at 10.00 am the whole of the wood was captured, we
only secured the southern end of it, as it was too strongly
held. Your son's body lay on the edge of the wood about half
way up on the western side, and several attempts were made to
get him in, but each time we were driven back.
We have sent a party out to try to recover it and I am anxiously
awaiting the news that it has been recovered. We are going to
have him buried in Maricourt Cemetary and I will write and let
you know exactly.
I can't tell you how much we miss him, and how very popular
he was with everyone. We had terrific fighting in the wood and
the regiment did magnificently in establishing a footing in
the southern end of it. We lost 5 officers and 240 men in the
attack. Please accept the sincerest condolences of the officers
and all ranks of the battalion, a nicer and braver fellow never
lived"
From
Capt Beal 2nd Bedfordshire Rgt. 17-7-16
“By now you will have heard of the sad death of your son,
nothing I can say can in any way express the deep sorrow of
not only myself, but of every officer and man in this Regt.
I have served longer with this Regt out here than any other
officer and can safely say that your son’s death in action
has been felt more keenly than any other of the many this Regt
has suffered.
I can hardly realise yet what has happened, your son being my
oldest ad best friend in the Regt. Many and many a time have
we shared the same blanket and coat in trying to keep each other
warm. If anything can help you bear your great loss, I am sure
it will be the knowledge that his death was instantaneous and
that he died at the head of his men, with whom he was so well
liked.
His body has been recovered and buried and buried in the British
Cemetery
near where he fell. With sincere sympathy to you and your family”
From Major Bidder, 21st Brigade Machine Gun Coy.28-7-16
“I have just got our address from Capt Wynne and wish
to write to you about your son.
I commanded the 2nd Brigade (sic?) from the last day at Loos
(when they were holding Breslau Avenue) for a couple of months,
I got to know your son well in that time , for he was one of
my company commanders; and I got to think a great deal of him,
he was so able and so dependable. One knew that anything he
was given to do would be done and well done.
He was brave as a lion and such a clever and interesting man
as well.
I liked him very much indeed and it was a real blow to me when
I heard that he too had been called upon for the great sacrifice.
I should like if I may to express my very real sympathy with
you.
I remember him so well under such varied circumstances. Cheerful
and muddy in the trenches, toiling at almost impossible tasks
in getting out ready made barbed wire obstacles; consolidating
craters in the little attack we made in November; enjoying the
comparative cleanliness of billets and (I don’t know why
one should be shy about it) kneeling to receive the communion
on the meadow grass of a sunlit orchard. His is one of the many
faces that will always stay by me, of my friends who have gone
before. Your son and Capt Wynne lunched with me just before
July 1st he was in the best of spirits”
From
Lieut B Primrose Wells, 2nd Bedfordshire Regt, BEF, 16-7-16
”RIP.
I must just write you a line and send you my sincerest sympathy
in your great loss and in ours also.
We all had a great affection for your son and considered him
the bravest, most gallant officer in the Regt. He was extremely
nice to me when I joined the battalion and the affection had
continued all the time.
We had a very hard job set us in attacking Trones Wood and received
a good deal of opposition at first. We estimate there were quite
300 Huns in the wood when we attacked. Your son was on my left
and he and his platoon were supposed to enter the wood a little
way up on the W side. He was in his exact position, with his
men round him when he got near the wood. The Germans had a trench
all down the W side of the wood which we did not know about,
and just where your son wanted to enter was one of their strong
points. He quite saw what was up against him, and his platoon
opened fire and he fired several shots himself with his revolver,
but the Huns had the advantage from the trenches, besides being
excellent shots. Your son was shot apparently through the head
absolutely instantaneously not making a sound. I had to advance
over the same ground and tried twice to get his body in, but
lost men both times, so left it until we could finally get the
whole wood. We were relieved after 48 hours of very hard fighting
hand to hand - and very nerve racking. Two days after, when
the wood was finally taken by the British, I asked the Colonel
if I might go up again to get our son’s body out and bury
it in the Maricourt
Cemetery, but he refused
to let me go, and our Chaplain with 4 volunteers went up and
found the body and buried him in Maricourt
Cemetery.
We are making and inscribing a cross down here as we are back
a few miles having a well earned rest, and when we get it up
I will try and get a photograph taken of the grave and send
it to you. He died as he would like to die, in action and having
done his duty to the fullest and with nearly all his platoon
round him, two sergeants and two men surviving, the remainder
killed or wounded. I have heard from Mr Turnbull, our chaplain
that he is writing you.
I take over your son’s platoon or the remainder with reinforcements.
I shall try and see you when I am in England,
but don’t expect any leave for sometime. Once again my
sincerest sympathy. We miss the vacant place as he was always
such a cheery fellow. Capt Beal, our company commander was quite
cut up as “Jaspey” as we called your son, was to
use the familiar phrase, was his :- “mucking in pal in
dug outs etc”, and were always seen together”
From
Mr Turnbull, Chaplain attached 2nd Bedfordshire Regt. 4th Sunday
after Trinity 1916
“I am writing to tell you that we have succeeded in
recovering the body of your son and he was buried last night
at 2.30 am, behind the line in a French village. When it was
known that the wood where he lost his life was in our hands,
we determined to try to recover him and so three of the remnants
of his platoon came up with me to do so.
I can only say that after a short search we found him where
we expected, and brought him back to the cemetery. I should
like to mention the magnificent spirit shown by those three
men, who gave up a night of their much needed rest to do the
last honour to a man that in their simple soldier’s way,
they loved. No greater tribute to your son’s life and
influence out here could be paid to him.
The names of the men who brought him down are Sergeant [comment;
9544 E.] Pepper, Private [comment; 50626 Harry Otto] Riddell
and Private [comment; unknown] Piggott, all of the 14th Platoon,
2nd Bedfordshire Regt. I am sure you will like to know who it
was that came forward so readily. It has been a great comfort
to us to have been able to do this and I feel sure it will help
you in a small measure in your great sorrow. I hope you will
allow me to say that his loss has been a great one to me personally.
Though I have only been with the battalion since April I have
learned to value his unselfishness and his wonderful cheerfulness,
and I miss him sorely. But for you the sadness must be infinitely
greater, and the only comfort I can assure you of is, that his
example will not be forgotten by the men he led. He was a true
soldier, and the men told me with pride that he never asked
hem to do what he would not do himself, and he was always in
the front to inspire them by his own personal example. You will
forgive me not writing further, as I believe the Colonel will
have sent you the particulars gathered from those who were near
him when at the time.
His grave will be photographed as soon as possible and the results
sent to you. May I ask as a favour that if you can spare some
small memento of him, I should be grateful, but knowing the
small claim I have to such an honour, I hope you will not let
those who knew him best be without them. He was present at the
last celebration that we had on the Saturday before he went
into action again.”
Robert’s
Officer’s Long Service Number is 906 & his record
is filed under WO339/446 at the National Archives.
