FAIRBROTHER, Robert Edmund
(Service number 6/451)
| First Rank | Private | Last Rank | Sergeant |
|---|
Birth
| Date | Unknown | Place of Birth |
|---|
Enlistment Information
| Date | Age | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Address at Enlistment | Timaru, New Zealand | ||
| Occupation | Carter | ||
| Previous Military Experience | |||
| Marital Status | Single | ||
| Next of Kin | E. Fairbrother (Father), Timaru, New Zealand | ||
Military Service
| Served with | NZ Armed Forces | Served in | Army |
|---|
Embarkation Information
| Body on Embarkation | New Zealand Expeditionary Force | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit, Squadron, or Ship | 10th Reinforcements Canterbury Infantry Battalion, C Company | ||
| Date | 3 April 1916 | ||
| Transport | Willochra or Tofua | ||
| Embarked From | Wellington | Destination | Suez, Egypt |
| Other Units Served With | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Last Unit Served With | Canterbury Infantry Regiment, 2nd Battalion | ||
Military Awards
| Campaigns | Western European | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Service Medals | |||
Award Circumstances and Date
Citation: "For the taking of the grid support trench, north west Of Flers, (1/10/1916). After the 2nd Canterbury Battalion had gained their objective in the grid support trench and were consolidating their position, Private Fairbrother stood on the parapet of the trench giving his shoulder as a rest for a Lewis gun. The gunner was subsequently killed. He did this for a considerable amount of time, Heedless of the danger while a bomb stop was being constructed. Owing to the boldness of these two men a field of fire could be obtained and a large number of the enemy killed than would have been the case had they merely stood in the trench itself." - Londo Gazette, 9 december 1916, Pg 12058, Rec No 244.
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 | 16 August 1917 | Age | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Death | Ypres, Belgium | ||
| Cause | Killed In action | ||
| Memorial or Cemetery | Messines Ridge (New Zealand) Memorial, Messines Ridge British Cemetery, Belgium | ||
| New Zealand Memorials | On Memorial wall, Timaru; Waimataitai School War Memorial; Memorial plaque, St Mary's Church, Timaru | ||
Biographical Notes
Son of Mr And Mrs Edmund Fairbrother of York St., Timaru, New Zealand
Sources
Auckland War Memorial Cenotaph Database [9/9/2013];
External Links
Related Documents
No documents available.
Researched and Written by
Patrina Buchanan
Currently Assigned to
Not assigned.
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License unless otherwise stated.