Robert Hill Hanna
Robert Hill Hanna | |
|---|---|
 Cadet R. Hanna, V.C. | |
| Born | 6 August 1886 Kilkeel, Ireland |
| Died | 15 June 1967 (aged 80) Mount Lehman, British Columbia, Canada |
| Buried | Masonic Cemetery, Burnaby, British Columbia |
| Allegiance |  Canada |
| Service | Canadian Expeditionary Force |
| Rank | Lieutenant |
| Unit | 29th Battalion (British Columbia Regiment) |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | Victoria Cross |
Robert Hill Hanna VC (6 August 1886 – 15 June 1967), was a Presbyterian[1] Irish-born naturalised immigrant to Canada. He was a soldier in the Canadian Expeditionary Force and recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
Hanna joined the Canadian Expeditionary Force in November 1914.[2] He was a Company Sergeant-Major in the 29th Battalion, CEF, Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War when the following deed took place during the Battle of Hill 70 for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross. The citation published in the London Gazette, of November 8, 1917, detailed the event as follows:-
On August 21, 1917, at Hill 70 Lens, France, Company Sergeant-Major Hanna's company met with most severe enemy resistance at a heavily protected strong point, which had beaten off three assaults and all the officers of the company had become casualties. This warrant officer, under heavy machine-gun and rifle fire, coolly collected and led a party against the strong point, rushed through the wire and personally killed four of the enemy, capturing the position and silencing the machine-gun. This courageous action was responsible for the capture of a most important tactical point.[3]
Hanna was decorated for his courageous actions with the Victoria Cross by His Majesty King George V, at a ceremony held at Buckingham Palace on December 5, 1917. He later achieved the rank of lieutenant.
He was born near Hanna's Close in Kilkeel, County Down, in the province of Ulster in Ireland, near to the Mourne Mountains. His personal sword is on the wall of Kilkeel Royal British Legion club. In Kilkeel he belonged to Aughnahoory Loyal Orange Lodge No 343 [4] and upon moving to Canada he joined the Orange Order in Canada Vancouver based Ontario L.O.L. No. 2226.[5]
He died in Mount Lehman, British Columbia, Canada on 15 June 1967. Hanna is buried at the Masonic Cemetery, Burnaby, British Columbia (plot 49, section C, grave 2).
References
[edit]- ^ "The Dictionary of Ulster Biography".
- ^ Canadian Great War Project
- ^ "No. 30372". The London Gazette (Supplement). 6 November 1917. p. 11568.
- ^ "Aughnahoory". Archived from the original on 17 May 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
- ^ Grand Orange Lodge of Western Canada Gallantry
Further reading
[edit]Listed in order of publication year
- The Register of the Victoria Cross (1981, 1988 and 1997)
- Clarke, Brian D. H. (1986). "A register of awards to Irish-born officers and men". The Irish Sword. XVI (64): 185–287.
- Ireland's VCs (Dept of Economic Development, 1995)
- Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
- Irish Winners of the Victoria Cross (Richard Doherty & David Truesdale, 2000)
External links
[edit]- Robert Hill Hanna's digitized service file
- Robert Hill Hanna biography on DND's Directorate of History and Heritage
- VC Burials - Canada - British Columbia
- Robert Hill Hanna at Find a Grave
- Legion Magazine Article on Robert Hill Hanna
- [1]
- 1886 births
- 1967 deaths
- Canadian Expeditionary Force officers
- Canadian people of Ulster-Scottish descent
- Canadian World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross
- Irish emigrants to Canada
- Military personnel from County Down
- Naturalized citizens of Canada
- People from Kilkeel
- 20th-century Irish military personnel