Robert McBeath

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Robert McBeath
Local World War 1 Hero
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Why this story?

• This mans life would make a good film.
• It involves adoption, a new life, war, horror and
  bravery, emigration and death under unfortunate
  circumstances.
• This is so tragic because he actually survived
  the war, to die at the hands of a thug.

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The Start of the Story

• Born in Rosehearty on 22nd December 1897
• The wife of Hugh Mackintosh of Kinlochbervie
  adopted Robert while she was working in the east
  coast.

Rosehearty near Fraserburgh.
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Kinlochbervie
Kinlochbervie is a very small fishing village in
the far north west of Scotland. In McBeaths
time, the population was only about 200 people.
Kinlochbervie Harbour Early 20th Century
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Robert McBeaths Connection with Kinlochbervie

• Robert was brought up in the village of
  Kinlochbervie
• Lived in Burnside (Kinlochbervie) with his new
  family
• Educated at nearby Inshegra School

The house in which Robert McBeath grew up.
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Signing Up

• He enlisted with the 1st Battalion of the 5th
  Seaforth Highlanders.
• Joined on the 12th Aug 1914
• Sixteen years old

• These are typical young recruits
• Ready for War?
• Fit enough for the conditions of fighting?

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Boy Soldiers

• The minimum age for a soldier in WW1 was 19.
• Young boys were so keen to fight they signed up
  under age. Robert McBeath was one of them.

Officer (to boy of thirteen who in his effort to
into the army has given his age as nineteen). Do
you know where boys go who tell lies? Applicant.
To the front sir.
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Conditions Of the Battlefields

• The battlefield near Cambrai looked like
  this
• Mud to slog through.
• Shell holes to drown in.
• Destroyed trees no hiding places.
• Utter devastation.

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Conditions of the Trenches

• The trenches near Cambrai looked like this
• Mud dirt
• Waterlogged
• Sleeping in dug outs
• Rats
• Constant shell fire and sudden death

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Earning the VC

• Robert McBeath earned his VC
• during the battle of Cambrai. When
• he was 19, on the 20th of
• November 1917, a nest of enemy
• machine gunners opened fire on
• his unit and the unit to the right
• of him. The attack resulted in
• many casualties. Robert
• volunteered for the duty of
• seeing to the machine gunners
• with a Lewis gun and a revolver.

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• He managed to find one of the
• machine gunners and worked
• his way forward while
• shooting the gunner with his
• revolver. After finding several
• more of the enemy machine
• gunners, he, along with the
• assistance of a tank, drove the
• gunners into a deep dug out.

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• Without thinking for his own
• safety he rushed in after them,
• shooting an enemy who
• opposed him. He drove the
• remainder of the garrison
• out of the dug out, capturing 3
• officers and 30 men. By putting
• these men out of action he
• cleared the way for the advance
• of both units.

The 51st Highland Division advancing in Cambrai
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After fighting in the battle of Cambrai, Robert
McBeath earned his V.C
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After the War
After earning the VC Robert McBeath went back to
his home town of Kinlochbervie. He married a
local girl called Barbara Mackay . The locals of
the village raised money between them so that he
and his wife could emigrate to Vancouver in
Canada and start a sheep business. When the
business failed Robert decided to join the
Vancouver police.
Vancouver Policeman 1920
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Single shot fatal to VC winner

• 10th of October 1922
• McBeath ran into a detective named Quirk at the
  Davie tram stop.
• They stood chatting for a while then they heard a
  loud auto horn.
• There was a drunk driver beeping his horn.
• They also noticed the car swinging from curb to
  curb as it came south on Granville Street.

Tram on Granville Street
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• The driver was Fred Deal - an American who had
  been in the city a short time.
• The two policemen jumped on the running boards.
• The car stopped and a struggle followed.

• There was a flash of a gun shot.
• It wounded the other detective.

1920s Car in Vancouver
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• McBeath then took a fatal shot to the chest.
• They were both rushed urgently to St. Paul's
  Hospital. The other detective survived.
• However Robert McBeath died minutes later.

Granville Street where the fatal event took place
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Funeral Of Robert Gordon McBeath

• On Thursday, October 10, 1922 Robert Gordon
  McBeath was laid to rest.
• The funeral was one of its largest ever to be
  held in Vancouver.
• Thousands of people attended to pay their
  respect including the police, some Seaforth
  Highlanders and many, many more Vancouver
  citizens.

                         
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Monument In Vancouver

• After his death the police found that Robert
  Gordon McBeath was still in their hearts.
• They gave him a monument in Vancouver.

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Kinlochbervie
There isn't a monument to Robert Gordon McBeath
in Kinlochbervie.
We are also hoping to get a monument or statue
for him beside the war memorial. (above)
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McBeath Court
The name of McBeath Court, a small housing
development, is the only way that McBeath is
recognised in Kinlochbervie. Here we are at
McBeath Court on a typical Kinlochbervie day!!
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Produced by-

• Kinlochbervie High School S3 History Pupils,
• Emma Adam
• Miranda Macdonald
• Danielle Mackay
• Donna Mackinnon
• Siobhan MacLeod
• With thanks to
• Murdo MacPherson, Margaret Meek, Kim Campbell and
  A Corra Glas, the school based band for providing
  music.