Thomas Bruce Dobson
Trooper · NZ #1203 · T1 Patrol · MM
| Rank | Trooper |
|---|---|
| Service number | NZ #1203 |
| Patrol | T1 Patrol |
| Regiment | 2nd NZ Divisional Cavalry Regiment |
| Born | 1916-02-25 |
| Honours | MM |
| Campaign medals | War Medal 1939-45, NZ War Service Medal |
| Record | https://www.aucklandmuseum.com/war-memorial/online-cenotaph/record/C135621 |
What this roll records
His Military Medal was announced on 26 November 1942. The recommendation survives at The National Archives, Kew, in series WO 373 (War Office, Military Secretary’s Department: Recommendations for Honours and Awards for Gallantry), reference WO 373/46/59, immediately alongside Merlyn Craw at /57 and Keith Tippett at /58 — the same award list, almost certainly for the Barce raid. Source: Auckland War Memorial Museum Online Cenotaph.
Confirmed.
March 1942 roll (courtesy Tarek el Mahdy)
Barce Raid, Sept 1942 (courtesy Tarek el Mahdy): Gunner — WIA
Full name Thomas Bruce Dobson (“Bruce” is a middle name, not a nickname). Farm hand in civilian life. Brother of Sgt Edwin John Dobson (also LRDG), of Blenheim. Source: Auckland War Memorial Museum Online Cenotaph.
The Kiwi Scorpions (Brendan O'Carroll): Tpr T. B. Dobson, MM — farm labourer, Seddon; born NZ, 25 Feb 1916; wounded 14 Sep 1942.
Original member of the Long Range Patrol (LRP), 1940 — listed with the “LRP” comment in the nominal roll, The Kiwi Scorpions (Brendan O'Carroll).
At Sidi Haneish (July 1942), with Trooper K. E. Tippett, captured the pilot and passenger (a German doctor) of a Fieseler Storch that landed near the patrol, and set fire to the aircraft. Source: ‘Raids Behind the Enemy Lines’, Episodes & Studies Vol. 1 (NZ official war history).
At Barce (13 September 1942), with Corporal Tippett, knocked out the tank Wilder had rammed by exploding grenades and bombs in its turret and immobilised another; wounded in the hand. Awarded the MM (his citation also citing the capture of the Fieseler Storch after Sidi Haneish). Source: ‘The Barce Raid’, Episodes & Studies Vol. 1 (NZ official war history).
Farm labourer, of Seddon; born NZ, 25 Feb 1916. MM; wounded 14 Sep 1942. Source: Episodes & Studies Vol. 1 (biographical notes).
Took part in the Barce Raid with T1 Patrol, 13/14 September 1942. Source: Brendan O’Carroll, ‘The Kiwi Scorpions’ (Appendix VIII, T1 Patrol members who took part in the Barce Raid, September 1942).
Farm hand in civilian life. Source: Auckland War Memorial Museum Online Cenotaph.
HIS MILITARY MEDAL, CONFIRMED AND DATED. London Gazette, 24 November 1942, Supplement 35799, page 5142, under “The Military Medal.”: “No. 1203 Trooper Thomas Bruce Dobson, New Zealand Military Forces.” He was a TROOPER at the time. Source: The London Gazette.
See him in the full roll →Where this comes from
- Missing info added from the LRDG Preservation Society’s Troopers roll.
- AKA added from the LRDG Preservation Society’s Troopers roll (missing information).
- Honours & campaign medals from Online Cenotaph: MM, War Medal 1939-45, NZ War Service Medal. Source: Auckland War Memorial Museum Online Cenotaph.
- Additional sources (AWMM Online Cenotaph). Nominal Roll 2NZEF No. 1 (Embarkations to 31 Mar 1940), p.50. Unit history: Loughnan, R. (1963). Divisional Cavalry. External links: London Gazette, 26 November 1942, p.5142 (Military Medal): http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/35799/supplements/5142; The National Archives, Recommendation for Award (WO 373/46/59): http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/SearchUI/Details?uri=D7369593
This page is part of the Long Range Desert Group roll of members at lrdgarchive.org. If you hold rights to anything on it and would like it credited differently, or taken down, please see Sources and Copyright. It will be dealt with promptly.
Not By Strength But By Guile