Robert McBeath

Robert Gordon McBeath
McBeath's gravestone in Mountain View Cemetery in Vancouver.
Born	22 December 1898 Kinlochbervie, Scotland
Died	9 October 1922 (aged 23) Vancouver, Canada
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1915 - 1918
Rank	Lance corporal
Unit	The Seaforth Highlanders
Battles/wars	World War I
Awards	Victoria Cross
Other work	Canadian police officer

Robert Gordon McBeath, VC (22 December 1898 – 9 October 1922) was a Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious medal that can be awarded to members of British military forces. Following the end of World War I McBeath married and emigrated to Canada where he was killed in the line of duty while working as a police officer in Vancouver, British Columbia.

McBeath was a 19 years old lance-corporal in the 1/5th Battalion, The Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, Duke of Albany's) of the British Army during the First World War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.

On 20 November 1917 during the Battle of Cambrai in France, Lance-Corporal McBeath volunteered to deal with a nest of machine-gunners that checked the advance of his unit and which had caused heavy casualties. He moved off alone, armed with a Lewis gun and a revolver. Finding that several other machine-guns were in action, McBeath attacked them with the assistance of a tank and drove the gunners to ground in a deep dug-out. McBeath rushed in after them, shot the first man who opposed him and then drove the remainder of the garrison out of the dug-out. He captured three officers and 30 men.

McBeath's award was published in the London Gazette on 11 January 1918, which reads:

For most conspicuous bravery when with his company in attack and approaching the final objective, a nest of enemy machine-guns in the western outskirts of a village opened fire both on his own unit and on the unit to the right. The advance was checked and heavy casualties resulted.

When a Lewis gun was called for to deal with these machine-guns, L/Corpl. McBeath volunteered for the duty, and immediately moved off alone with a Lewis gun and his revolver. He located one of the machine-guns in action, and worked his way towards it, shooting the gunner with his revolver at 20 yards range. Finding several of the hostile machine-guns in action, he, with the assistance of a tank, attacked them and drove the gunners to ground in a deep dugout.