Gilbert Newnes Masterton (1892-1915)
World War I Casualty
Ian Young, researching the Battle of Aubers Ridge, has drawn my attention to a reference in "Haunting Years" by William Linton Andrews, to one of the many futile acts of bravery in the First World War. This one featuring a Masterton. Ian deduced that this was Gilbert Newnes Masterton of the Black Watch. Ian states: "I’m pretty sure this was your Gilbert Masterton, as Andrews was in the same battalion and I doubt he’d record a story about a man in another battalion without mentioning that fact. The passage quoted then immediately goes on to relate the death of Lt. Weinberg, also of the 4th battalion, who was killed in the same battle. In addition, the battalion’s pipers acted as stretcher-bearers, so the men Andrews spoke to were more likely than not men of his own battalion. That, to my mind, supports the conclusion that the Masterton mentioned is the Masterton from the 4th battalion."
"Assuming that the story is about Gilbert, then I think he was probably in A Company of the 4th battalion, Black Watch, as that was the only company of the 4th battalion that attacked that day, assaulting with the 4th battalion of the Seaforth Highlanders. The remaining companies, who’d been in reserve, were literally about to go over the top themselves (and had already suffered casualties just in getting into the front line trenches) when the order came calling off the attack."
Genealogy
Gilbert Newnes Masterton was the thirteenth child of John Masterton, Commercial Traveller, and Ellen Scollay. Ellen was 44 years old when Gilbert was born. There were two child-bearing age daughters in the family by then, so one might be justified in being mildly suspicious that Gilbert may have been a grandchild of John and Ellen, especially with a middle name that appears to be new to the family. However, Ellen was giving birth fairly regularly up till then, so Gilbert may have just been the last of her brood. Further details of Gilbert's extended family of Mastertons originating from Largo can be found at the following link.
Haunting Years
William Linton Andrews, 1930
Before dawn we moved off to the redoubts we had occupied the night before. We were disheartened at our failure to take any of the German trenches, and by the gloomy reports of the losses of our battalion. These were said to run to hundreds. We had never before had so grievous a day.
Nick and I were crammed together at a turn of the trench. We had lost our ration-bags in the congestion. I wrote in my diary: "Nothing to eat, nothing to do, will go to sleep. Men are saying battalion napoo-feenish."
In the morning I went to talk to some of the stretcher-bearers, and heard some heartrending stories of the wounded. One man, Masterton, misunderstanding an order, got over the parapet alone to charge, and going on bravely was killed.
Haunting Years
Commentaries of a War Territorial
William Linton Andrews
Naval and Military Press; new edition of 1930 edition
2001