Saturday, September 6, 2014

The Private Robertson VC on the Detroit River

I also was also treated to a new ship.
 In this case it is the Canadian Coast Guard Cutter Private Robertson V.C.
 The Robertson is the first of the Canadian Hero Class Cutters and she was built in 2012.  These cutters are all named after Canadian heroes.  She is 140 feet long and has a beam of 23 feet.  She carries a crew of 14 and can go 25 knots.
 Her namesake was Private James Robertson and he served in World War I.  He was awarded the Victoria Cross.  His citation is as follows:
Peter Robertson earned the Victoria Cross during the final assault on Passchendaele, Belgium, 6 November 1917 with the 27th Infantry Battalion. His platoon was held up by barbed wire and a German machine gun. He was able to dash round to an opening on the flank of the enemy position and rush the gun. After a desperate struggle, Robertson killed four of the crew, then turned the enemy gun on the remainder. This enabled his platoon to continue towards its objective, with Robertson still firing the captured gun at the enemy as it retreated. Later when two of his own snipers were wounded in front of their trench, he went out and carried one of them in under severe fire, but when he returned with the second man, he was killed by a bursting shell.
 He is buried near where he was killed.
The ship is similar to ships used by the US Coast Guard.

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