YOUNG, Robert Alfred
(Service number 7/486)
| First Rank | Trooper | Last Rank | Second Lieutenant |
|---|
Birth
| Date | 14 November 1882 | Place of Birth | Wanganui |
|---|
Enlistment Information
| Date | Age | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Address at Enlistment | Hermitage, Mt Cook | ||
| Occupation | Guide | ||
| Previous Military Experience | |||
| Marital Status | Single | ||
| Next of Kin | Robert Hunter YOUNG (father), Hamilton, New Zealand | ||
Military Service
| Served with | NZ Armed Forces | Served in | Army |
|---|
Embarkation Information
| Body on Embarkation | Main Body | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit, Squadron, or Ship | Canterbury Mounted Rifles | ||
| Date | 16 October 1914 | ||
| Transport | Tahiti or Athenic | ||
| Embarked From | Destination | ||
| Other Units Served With | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Last Unit Served With | |||
Military Awards
| Campaigns | Egyptian; Balkan (Gallipoli); Egyptian Expeditionary Force | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Service Medals | 1914-1915 Star; British War Medal; Victory Medal | ||
Award Circumstances and Date
For gallantry on the field of action. While in charge of the advance troop at Amman Egypt. He went forward with such dash that he demoralized superior numbers of the enemy which resulted in many prisoners falling into our hands. At one period under very heavy fire, he manoeuvred his troops with such skill that he checked the enemy's advance and although dangerously wounded, continued to encourage his men until reinforcements arrived. (London Gazette, 8 March 1919)
Prisoner of War Information
| Date of Capture | |
|---|---|
| Where Captured and by Whom | |
| Actions Prior to Capture | |
| PoW Serial Number | |
| PoW Camps | |
| Days Interned | |
| Liberation Date |
Death
| Date | 4 August 1952 | Age | 69 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Death | Christchurch | ||
| Cause | |||
| Memorial or Cemetery | |||
| New Zealand Memorials | |||
Biographical Notes
Robert Alfred Young was born on 14 November 1882 (not 1887 as recorded on enlistment) at Wanganui, the son of Robert Hunter and Margaret Clara Young. In 1911 Robert was a musterer at Lumsden, but by 1914 he was employed as a guide for the New Zealand Tourist Department at the Hermitage, Mount Cook. He left by the train from Fairlie on 12 August 1914 with the 8th South Canterbury Mounted Rifles men from Fairlie. He was one of about 8,500 New Zealanders who left for war on 16 October 1914.
Robert Alfred Young was awarded the Military Cross on 8 March 1919, for gallantry in the field of action. [Refer Otago Daily Times, 10 November 1920.] On his return to New Zealand he was hospitalised in Christchurch. As a result of his injuries, he suffered 60% disability, having had his left leg amputated. He had given four years and 185 days service overseas. He was invested with the Military Cross by the Governor General in November 1920. He later took up farming at Kyeburn Diggings and moved to Christchurch in later years.
Robert married Noeline Mary Robinson in 1921. A portrait of Second Lieutenant R. A. Young, M.C., tken in 1919 in Christchurch, is held by Te Papa. A younger brother, Norman Stewart Young, who also served in World War I and embarked with the Main Body, was killed in action at Gallipoli in 1915. Another younger brother, Richard Gordon Young, who was also a guide at the Hermitage, enlisted for service in World War I.
Sources
Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database [11 May 2020]; NZ BDM Indexes (Department of Internal Affairs) [11 May 2020]; NZ Electoral Rolls (ancestry.com.au) [11 May 2020]; Otago Daily Times, 8 February 1919 (Papers Past) [11 May 2020]
External Links
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Researched and Written by
Teresa Scott, SC branch NZSG
Currently Assigned to
Not assigned.
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License unless otherwise stated.
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