Commemorated: | |||
| 1. Memorial: | Basra Memorial | Panel 18 and 63. Basra | |
| 2. Book: | The (1921) Masonic Roll of Honour 1914-1918 | Pg.121 | |
| 3. Memorial: | The (1940) Scroll - WW1 Roll of Honour | 48B GQS | |
Awards & Titles: | Mentioned in Despatches | ||
Early Life :
Born 1st May 1881 Clifton, Bristol. Baptised ST Paul’s, Clifton.Family :
Son of Nelson Congrave Dobson, Surgeon, and Louisa Alice (nee Pierce).Husband of Ethel Harriet Dobson, of 20, Milner St., Chelsea, London.
Brother Claude Congrave Dobson received a VC during WW1 and became a Rear Admiral in the Navy.
His other Brother, Brigade Major Montague Charles DOBSON RA was killed in action in June 1915. He was also an Old Cliftonian and a Mason, being a member of St Vincent No 1404.
Education & Career :
Clifton College 1892-1899.
Exeter College, Oxford.
A member of Clifton RFC.
Service Life:
Campaigns:
- The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.
| Unit / Ship / Est.: 9/Worcestershire Regiment |
9th (Service) Battalion Formed at Worcester in August 1914 as part of K1 and attached to 39th Brigade in 13th (Western) Division. Moved to Tidworth but by January 1915 was in billets in Basingstoke. Moved to Blackdown (Aldershot) in February 1915. Sailed from Avonmouth in June 1915 and landed on Gallipoli next month. January 1916 : Division evacuated from Gallipoli and moved to Egypt. July 1918 : Brigade transferred to North Persia Force. |
| Action : Mesopotamia |
At the outbreak of war the British, together with Indian troops, resolved to protect oil supply in the region by occupying the area around Basra at Abadan. This evolved into a series of campaigns towards Baghdad against the Turkish forces as Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) was part of the Ottoman Empire. Meetings in late 1914 and into 1915 led the Viceroy and Indian government at Simla to reconsider the limited involvement of troops and they decided to order further advances with a view to securing the Shatt-al-Hai, a canal connecting the Tigris and Euphrates river and potentially capturing Baghdad. The British government disagreed and wished to conserve forces for the Western front. The Viceroy was given permission to act as it wished, but told in no uncertain terms that no reinforcements should be expected.
The initial success experienced by the British and Indian forces quickly disintegrated in the face of Ottoman opposition. The Siege of Kut-Al-Amara began on 7th December with the besieging of an 8,000 strong British-Indian garrison in the town of Kut, 100 miles south of Baghdad, by the Ottoman Army. These campaigns produced few tactical benefits, indeed the catastrophic defeat at Kut in 1916 was a major setback. Badhdad was eventually taken in March 1917.
The conditions in Mesopotamia were dreadful. The climate, sickness and disease produced large losses in addition to battle casualties. About as many men died of disease as were killed in action. The Mesopotamia front was part of a strategy hoping for success at lower cost than the Western Front but no decisive victory was achieved.
Detail :
John Cotterill Capt Harold Pierce DOBSON 9th Bn. KIA 5/4/16. DOBSON was a notable pre-war Adjt of 2 WORC R. He joined 9 WORC R on Mudros in Jan 16 just after they had withdrawn from Gallipoli. He was KIA in a night attack on Turkish entrenchments on the Tigris at Falahiya 15 miles E of Kut al Amara. 9 WORC R lost 13 Offrs and 164 ORs in the 24 hour period of the attack. . DOBSON was gazetted MID for his last and other actions on 19 Oct 1916.
Masonic :
| Type | Lodge Name and No. | Province/District : |
|---|---|---|
| Mother : | Kitchener No. 2998 E.C. | Northern India |
Initiated | Passed | Raised |
7th October 1912 | 4th November 1912 | 2nd December 1912 |
Source :
The project globally acknowledges the following as sources of information for research across the whole database:
- The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
- The (UK) National Archives
- Ancestry.co.uk - Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History online
- ugle.org.uk - The records of the United Grand Lodge of England including the Library and Museum of Freemasonry
Additional Source:
- Founder Researchers : Paul Masters & Mike McCarthy
- Researcher : Bruce Littley