Richard Pike “Dick; also recorded as Richard P.” Lawson
Captain · #115755 · T1 Patrol · MC, MID
| Rank | Captain |
|---|---|
| Service number | #115755 |
| Patrol | T1 Patrol |
| Regiment | Royal Army Medical Corps |
| Known as | “Dick; also recorded as Richard P.” |
| Honours | MC, MID |
| POW / KIA | PoW — Dodecanese, 17 Nov 1943 |
What this roll records
THE MILITARY CROSS CONFIRMED. London Gazette, 24 November 1942, Supplement 35799, page 5142, under the heading “The Military Cross.”: “Captain Richard Pike Lawson, M.B. (115755), Royal Army Medical Corps.” It gives his forenames in full, records that he held an M.B. — a Bachelor of Medicine — and confirms both his corps and his Military Cross against his exact service number, under the award’s own heading. The Group’s doctor, and the award set down where it was announced. Source: The London Gazette.
Military Cross per W.B. Kennedy Shaw, “Long Range Desert Group” appendices (“Lawson, Capt. R.P.”, R.A.M.C. — the LRDG Medical Officer).
March 1942 roll (courtesy Tarek el Mahdy): Med. Off.
Barce Raid, Sept 1942 (courtesy Tarek el Mahdy): MO attached — T6 truck.
Honours added from LRDG Honours & Awards list (Middle East 1940–43): MID. Source: W.B. Kennedy-Shaw, “Long Range Desert Group” (original honours & awards list, comp. D. Buxton).
Also recorded on the IWM Nominal Roll, LRDG Association, July 1945.
Rhodesia Nominal Roll (Brendan O’Carroll): service number 115755; honours MC; forename Richard.
Dodecanese operations, 1943: prisoner of war 17 Nov 1943. Source: Roll of British & Rhodesian PoW and KIA (Appendix V), compiled by Jim Patch, LRDG (UK) Association.
Data note (2026): this record consolidates two roll entries for the same man — “Lawson, Dr Richard” (T1, with photograph) and “Lawson, R.P., Captain” — merged in August 2026.
Corps: R.A.M.C..
The Kiwi Scorpions (Brendan O'Carroll): Capt. R. P. Lawson, MC — Royal Army Medical Corps; medical officer LRDG.
Sting of the Scorpion (Brendan O'Carroll) — the assault on Levita: Levita, 23–24 Oct 1943: Medical Officer (RAMC); pressed on with Capt Olivey to the meteorological station where an HQ was established, and returned with Maj Guild the following night to search for the missing.
The Kiwi Scorpions (Brendan O'Carroll): LRDG Medical Officer. After the Barce Raid he was kept busy looking after the wounded, exposing himself to great danger from air attacks while doing so; his bravery and devotion to duty earned him the Military Cross.
Medical officer on the Barce raid; manned the wireless truck as a rallying point, then sheltered a severely wounded man aboard the one surviving truck under air attack and got most of the casualties away, later leading the wounded party out to safety. Awarded the MC. Source: ‘The Barce Raid’, Episodes & Studies Vol. 1 (NZ official war history).
As medical officer, was among the small party of survivors lifted off Levita at the evacuation rendezvous, 24–25 October 1943. Source: ‘Invasion of the Dodecanese Islands’ (Battle of Leros / Assault on Levita), Episodes & Studies Vol. 1 (NZ official war history).
Royal Army Medical Corps. MC. Medical officer LRDG. Source: Episodes & Studies Vol. 1 (biographical notes).
Aegean/Dodecanese operations, 1943: listed as Captain Lawson, service no. 115755; taken prisoner of war, 17 Nov 1943. Source: Brendan O’Carroll, ‘The Long Range Desert Group in the Aegean’ (Appendix V, Roll of British & Rhodesian PoW and KIA).
HE HAD THE DATE IN HIS NOTES AND NO STATUS ON HIS CARD, so no prisoner-of-war badge was shown. Appendix V gives him taken on 17 November 1943, in the last days of the fighting on Leros. Source: Roll of British & Rhodesian PoW and KIA (Appendix V), compiled by Jim Patch, the late secretary of the LRDG (UK) Association, printed in Brendan O’Carroll, “The Long Range Desert Group in the Aegean”.
See him in the full roll →Where this comes from
- Missing info added from the LRDG Preservation Society’s Troopers roll.
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Not By Strength But By Guile