Private John ROBERTSON (267014)
1/6th (Morayshire) Battalion Seaforth Highlanders

Date of birth: 5th May 1890
Date of death: 9th April 1917

Killed in action aged 26
Buried at Highland Cemetery Roclincourt Plot II Row D Grave 20
John Robertson was born at Nether Borlum, Knockando on the 5th of May 1890 the eldest son of George and Helen Margaret Robertson of Robertstown, Archiestown.

He was educated at the public school in Archiestown and, on leaving, became a farm labourer at Wester Elchies Home Farm.

He enlisted in Elgin on the 9th of August 1916 and went to France on the 20th of November.

The 9th of April 1917 was the opening day of the British offensive at Arras and the 1/6th Seaforths were detailed to attack German positions near the village of Roclincourt on the outskirts of Arras.

Orders were given at 5.25am to fix bayonets and at 5.30am the British bombardment intensified and the Seaforths went over the top into no-man?s-land, staying close behind the curtain of artillery fire ahead of them.
At 5.34am the artillery moved forward to the parapet of the German trench and the Scots overcame the defenders very quickly. A and B Companies on the left and centre of the attack fared reasonably well but C Company lost a number of men to snipers as they consolidated their gains but these defenders were hunted down and killed.

The third and fourth waves of Seaforths passed through them with the objective of capturing the second line German trench beyond. By now there was heavy machine gun fire coming from the second line and the Highlanders began taking casualties but after capturing a gun position and killing a number of snipers thay carried the second line in twenty minutes.

The final two wave of Seaforths now advanced to attack the third German line but lost 15 men to a shell early in their attack. The survivors rallied and managed to get a small number of men into the third line but it took a further three hours of bitter close fighting before it was theirs. The 1/6th Seaforths settled down to reverse their trenches in case of counterattack and the 1/5th Seaforths then passed through them to continue the advance.
Robertstown

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