Military service
Burial/memorial information
Son of David Milne of Cambusnethan, Lanarkshire, Scotland. Private Milne emigrated to Canada in 1910 and farmed near Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan prior to joining the army. Private Milne's body was not recovered from the battlefield. He is commemorated on the Vimy Memorial, France.
An extract from the Second Supplement to The London Gazette, dated June 8, 1917, records the following:
For most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty in attack. On approaching the first objective, Pte. Milne observed an enemy machine gun firing on our advancing troops. Crawling on hands and knees, he succeeded in reaching the gun, killing the crew with bombs, and capturing the gun. On the line re-forming, he again located a machine gun in the support line, and stalking this second gun as he had done the first, he succeeded in putting the crew out of action and capturing the gun. His wonderful bravery and resource on these two occasions undoubtedly saved the lives of many of his comrades. Pte. Milne was killed shortly after capturing the second gun.
Digital gallery of Private William Johnstone Milne
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Private W.J. Milne, V.C.
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Extract from the Canadian Daily Record, June 1917
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Personal Information Sheet
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Private William Johnstone Milne<br>
Lower right-hand picture<br>
Extract from the Canadian Daily Record, June 1917
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Canada's Vimy Memorial, located approximately 8 kilometres to the north-east of Arras, France. May the sacrifice of so many never be forgotten. (J. Stephens)
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Barrie Military Park, Canadian Victoria Cross Recipients, Cenotaph
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Two cases of gonorrhoea resulted in stoppage of pay totalling 19 days.
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Memorial plaque in front of the United Kingdom High Commission in Ottawa to commemorate Canadians who have been awarded the Victoria Cross.
Digital gallery of
Private William Johnstone Milne
Medals posthumously awarded to Private William Johnstone Milne, who was killed in action at Vimy Ridge, France, while serving in the 16th Canadian Battalion (The Canadian Scottish), Canadian Expeditionary Force. These medals, displayed at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa, are (left to right): the Victoria Cross, the British War Medal, and the Victory Medal. (Image taken by Gregory J. Barker of Barrie, Ontario, in 2024.)
Image gallery
-
Private W.J. Milne, V.C.
-
Extract from the Canadian Daily Record, June 1917
-
-
-
Personal Information Sheet
-
Private William Johnstone Milne<br> Lower right-hand picture<br> Extract from the Canadian Daily Record, June 1917
-
-
-
Canada's Vimy Memorial, located approximately 8 kilometres to the north-east of Arras, France. May the sacrifice of so many never be forgotten. (J. Stephens)
-
Barrie Military Park, Canadian Victoria Cross Recipients, Cenotaph
-
Two cases of gonorrhoea resulted in stoppage of pay totalling 19 days.
-
Memorial plaque in front of the United Kingdom High Commission in Ottawa to commemorate Canadians who have been awarded the Victoria Cross.
-
Medals posthumously awarded to Private William Johnstone Milne, who was killed in action at Vimy Ridge, France, while serving in the 16th Canadian Battalion (The Canadian Scottish), Canadian Expeditionary Force. These medals, displayed at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa, are (left to right): the Victoria Cross, the British War Medal, and the Victory Medal. (Image taken by Gregory J. Barker of Barrie, Ontario, in 2024.)
In the Books of Remembrance
Commemorated on:
Page 294 of the First World War Book of Remembrance.
Request this page
Download this page
VIMY MEMORIAL Pas de Calais, France
Canada's most impressive tribute overseas to those Canadians who fought and gave their lives in the First World War is the majestic and inspiring Vimy Memorial, which overlooks the Douai Plain from the highest point of Vimy Ridge, about eight kilometres northeast of Arras on the N17 towards Lens. The Memorial is signposted from this road to the left, just before you enter the village of Vimy from the south. The memorial itself is someway inside the memorial park, but again it is well signposted. At the base of the memorial, these words appear in French and in English:
Inscribed on the ramparts of the Vimy Memorial are the names of over 11,000 Canadian soldiers who were posted as 'missing, presumed dead' in France.
A plaque at the entrance to the memorial states that the land for the battlefield park, 91.18 hectares in extent, was 'the free gift in perpetuity of the French nation to the people of Canada'. Construction of the massive work began in 1925, and 11 years later, on July 26, 1936, the monument was unveiled by King Edward VIII.
The park surrounding the Vimy Memorial was created by horticultural experts. Canadian trees and shrubs were planted in great masses to resemble the woods and forests of Canada. Wooded parklands surround the grassy slopes of the approaches around the Vimy Memorial. Trenches and tunnels have been restored and preserved and the visitor can picture the magnitude of the task that faced the Canadian Corps on that distant dawn when history was made.
On April 3, 2003, the Government of Canada designated April 9th of each year as a national day of remembrance of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.
For more information, visit Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
The Poppy Design is a trademark of The Royal Canadian Legion (Dominion Command) and is used with permission. Click here to learn more about the poppy.
Did we miss something?
Contribute information to this commemorative page
Do you have photographs, information or a correction relating to this individual’s virtual memorial? Learn more about the CVWM and the information we collect.