John Gray likeness

John Gray cap badgePrivate John Gray

1/9th (Highlanders) Battalion Royal Scots (Lothian Regiment)
Service No: 352338

John Gray grave

1300

3

2

0

35
Click here for a frameable A4 print
Personal details

Family Information

Son of James and Margaret Rutherford Gray. Elder brother of Private Thomas Gray of the 16th (Service) Battalion (2nd Edinburgh) Royal Scots who was Killed in Action on the 26/04/1917 at the Battle of Arras 17 days after his brother fell in the same battle. 5 brothers served from this family, 3 with the Royal Scots, 1 with the Royal Field Artillery and 1 with the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. From the 1891 Census - Address - 11 Kirkwood St, Coatbridge - James Gray aged 48, Margaret Gray aged 42, Wiliam Gray aged 16, John Gray aged 15, Robert Gray aged 13, Agnes Gray aged 12, Joseph Gray aged 9, Thomas Gray aged 7, Letitia Gray aged 6, David Gray aged 4, Peter Gray aged 2. From the 1901 Census - Address - 9 Kirkwood St, Coatbridge - James Gray aged 59, Margaret Gray aged 52, John Gray aged 25, Robert Gray aged 23, Joseph Gray aged 19, Thomas Gray aged 17, Letitia Gray aged 16, David Gray aged 14, Peter Gray aged 12, James Gray aged 8.

Born / Resided

Dundee / 18 Bank St, Coatbridge.

Died

Killed in Action on the 09/04/1917 at the 1st Battle of the Scarpe (opening day of the Battle of Arras)

Enlisted

Dundee 18/11/1914

Employed

Miner in Rosehall Colliery No 12 Pit (20 years).

Age

41

Buried / Remembered

Roclincourt Military Cemetery (I. B. 34), Pas de Calais, France.

Cemetery / Memorial Information

The French troops who held this front before March 1916 made a military cemetery (now removed), on the south-west side of which the present Commonwealth cemetery was made. It was begun by the 51st (Highland) and 34th Divisions in April 1917, and contains many graves of 9 April, the first day of the Battles of Arras. It continued in use, as a front-line cemetery, until October 1918 and after the Armistice graves, mostly from the battlefield north of Roclincourt, were brought into Plot IV, Row F. Roclincourt Military Cemetery contains 916 Commonwealth burials of the First World War, 32 of them unidentified. There are also four German war graves.

Additional Information

The Royal Scots : the senior line infantry regiment of the British Army, it is often referred to as “Pontius Pilate’s Bodyguard”. John is listed as 3rd BATTALION on the Memorial. John enlisted in the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion (16139) on the 18/11/1914. He was posted to the 13th Battalion and went to France on the 09/07/1915. John was wounded and invalided and was back in France after recovering in mid October 1916. He was posted to the 1/9th Battalion (5669 then renumbered 352338 on 01/03/1917). The Battalion were part of the 154th Brigade, 51st (Highland) Division when he fell on the opening day of the Battle of Arras (the Arras offensive) : 9th April -16th June 1917 : the Arras offensive. Once again the British are called upon to launch an attack in support to a larger French offensive : the battles of the Chemin des Dames and the hills of Champagne. The opening Battle of Vimy and the First Battle of the Scarpe are very encouraging, but once again the offensive – often known as the Battle of Arras – bogs down into an attritional slog. Final attempts to outflank the German lines at Bullecourt prove terribly costly. SEE PHOTOS x 7 FOR THE 51st (HIGHLAND) DIVISION BOOK 9th - 17th APRIL 1917. John was Killed in Action at the First Battle of the Scarpe, 9th – 14th April 1917 which was the opening phase of the Arras offensive and a parallel phase of the Battle of Vimy, 9th - 14th April 1917. The attack was launched at 5.30 a.m. The Battalion and the Brigade (on the left) took all their objectives according to plan although they were engaged in stiff fighting. By 01.40 p.m. the Brigade had pushed forward. At 06.30 p.m. a message was received that the Brigade had reached the Canadians at Commandant House. SEE PHOTOS x 21 FOR THE BATTALION WAR DIARY APRIL 1917. The War Diary (5) states : "Casualties from the 9th - 12th April - 2 Officers Killed, 1 Died of Wounds on the 10th, 8 Wounded, 69 Other Ranks Killed, 138 Wounded and 27 Missing (see photos). See Directory for John's elder brother Private Thomas Gray's page. He is also remembered on the Free Church Roll of Honour (see photos). See photos for John's Medal Index Card, his Newspaper clippings x 2, his Army Register of Soldiers Effects, his Service Medal and Award Rolls, his CWGC Grave Registration x 2, his Headstone Report, Roclincourt Military Cemetery and the Royal Scots Cap Badge.

Photos
John Gray Medal Index CardJohn Gray newspaper clippingJohn Gray newspaper clippingJohn Gray newspaper clippingJohn Gray remembered at homeJohn Gray remembered at homeJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photoJohn Gray additional photo

War Diaries

The battalion War Diary is available on the National Archives website.

Creative Commons License

We have made this information and the images available under a Creative Commons BY-NC license. This means you may reuse it for non-commercial purposes only and must attribute it to us using the following statement: © coatbridgeandthegreatwar.com

Comments

There are no comments yet for Private John Gray. Be the first to leave one.

Do you have any information about or memories of Private John Gray that you would like to share?

Or even if you would just like to leave a message to say you've been here, please leave a comment below.

*Please note that all comments are verified by a moderator before appearing on the site. All fields are required except links to photos.