A Dumfriesshire-born soldier who fought and died in the Great War more than 100 years ago is to be given a full military funeral in France on Thursday.
Sergeant Richard Musgrave was a member of the 7th Infantry Battalion (British Columbia) Canadian Expeditionary Force.
The 32-year-old went missing and was presumed dead on August 15, 1917 – the first day of the Battle of Hill 70 near Lens in France, which occurred shortly after Vimy Ridge.
His remains were recovered with several artifacts – including a Military Medal ribbon and a whistle – when munitions were cleared north of Lens by Commonwealth War Graves Commission staff nearly six years ago.
They were formally identified by the Canadian Armed Forces Casualty Identification Program after a suite of scientific and archaeological techniques – including DNA testing carried out in Scotland – confirmed it was Sergeant Musgrave, who was born at Blackrigg near Langholm in 1844.
It is understood that he went to Canada to deliver two horses for his employer and, with a one-way ticket, stayed on working as a teamster in Calgary before enlisting in the Canadian Forces on April 30, 1915.
After training in England, he went to France in 1916 and graduated in rank from a private to a sergeant the following year. Though wounded in battle in April 1917, he remained on duty, and was awarded the Military Medal for bravery that July.
A full military burial will be held at the Loos British Cemetery in France, with five members of his family travelling from Scotland to be there, along with Canadian soldiers and officials.
Sergeant Musgrave’s great nephew and closest next of kin, 82-year-old James Coltman of Hawick, said: “It means a lot to us. I never knew him, of course, but I was always told about Dick when I was growing up.
“I remember a picture of him, hanging in my granny’s house. Every November 11, she would place a fresh poppy next to it.”
The Commanding Officer and Regimental Sergeant Major of the British Columbia Regiment flew to Scotland after the discovery was made to pay their personal respects.
Lawrence MacAulay, the Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence, said: “Canada will never forget the dedicated soldiers who served our country.
“ Though his name is chiselled into the white stone of the Vimy Memorial, identifying his remains gives his family and his country the opportunity to contemplate his courage and sacrifice in service to Canada.”
