British Army Veterinary Corps
Robert Bowes COCKBURN
Captain
Died 27 September 1918 · Aged 28
His story
Captain Robert Bowes Cockburn was the son of Robert Cockburn MRCVS and his wife, Annie, of Eastwood Nottingham. He was educated at Chesterfield Grammar School and then attended the Royal Veterinary College, London, qualifying in July 1911.
He was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Army Veterinary Corps in January 1916 and was promoted to Captain in January 1917. He served as a Veterinary Officer attached to the 130th Brigade Royal Field Artillery on the Salonika front in Greece. He died of pneumonia, on 27th September 1918, shortly before the conclusion of the Salonika campaign.
He was 28 years old and is buried in Bralo British Cemetery.
Captain Cockburn’s obituary appeared in The Veterinary Record dated 10 October 1918.
Before the war
- Nationality
- British
- Date of Birth
- 1890
- Place of Birth
- Eastwood, Nottinghamshire, England
- Veterinary College and Date of Graduation
- London - July 1911
Military service
- Last Rank
- Captain
- Regiment/Service
- British Army Veterinary Corps
- Secondary Regiment
- Royal Field Artillery
- Secondary Unit
- 130th Brigade
- First Theatre of War
- Greece 1916
Medals and commemoration
- Name on RCVS Honour Board
- Yes
- Name In Officers who died in Great War
- Yes
- Medals and Awards
- British War Medal 1914-1918; Victory Medal
Death and burial
- Date of Death
- 27 September 1918
- Age at Death
- 28
- Place of Death
- Salonika, Greece
- Cause of Death
- Pneumonia
- Cemetery
- Bralo British Cemetery
- Location
- Bralo, Greece
- Grave Reference
- 27
- Commonwealth War Grave
- Yes - Pedestal Marker
- Emblem or Badge on Headstone
- Cross
Connected men
- Charles William JAMESAlso buried at Bralo British Cemetery
- James William WOODAlso buried at Bralo British Cemetery
Sources and further reading
- CWGC casualty and commemoration record
- Find a Grave memorial
- The Veterinary Record, 10 October 1918 — cited in the earlier biography
Cite this biography
Graham Hodgkins and Pete Matthews, “Robert Bowes Cockburn”, Veterinary Virtual War Memorial, https://vetsremembered.org/people/robert_bowes_cockburn/.
Contribute information
Can you add a letter, family photograph or document that tells us more about his life before service? Please give its source and any permission needed for display.