Memorial

More information

T/4 Robert W. Burns enlisted on 25 November 1941 and was sent overseas in January 1944.

He was wounded in the right shoulder and arm in Metz, France on 14 November 1944. For this wound he was awarded the Purple Heart Medal a first time. He was hospitalized in England until February 1945 when he rejoined his old unit.

The chaplain of the battalion, D.G. Colwell, wrote te following to his family: "Robert was killed during his company's assault in Audigast, Germany. The company had assembled and prepared to hold for the night. About seen o'clock in the evening, the Germans threw a heavy artillery barrage. Sgt Burns was endeavoring to climb back into his company's half-track when the vehicle received a direct hit from a German shell. Your son was killed instantly by the fragments from the bursting shell and consequently he suffered no pain."