Digitized Service Record

Source: War Diary, numerous entries.

Find-A-Grave

Family Search: When Sergeant Chester Elmer Routley was born on 27 May 1893, in Warwick, Lambton, Ontario, Canada, his father, Fred Walter Routley, was 27 and his mother, Sarah Jane Jarriot, was 26. He married Lillian Irene Longman on 24 June 1924, in Biggar, Nipissing, Ontario, Canada. They were the parents of at least 3 sons and 2 daughters. He lived in Rosetown, St. Andrews No. 287, Saskatchewan, Canada in 1926 and Biggar No. 347, Saskatchewan, Canada in 1919. He registered for military service in 1914. In 1914, at the age of 21, his occupation is listed as farmer. He died on 6 May 1972, in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, at the age of 78, and was buried in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.

Distinguished Conduct Medal with Bar

ROUTLEY — THE DEATH OF Chester Elmer Routley, age 81 years, of Sherbrooke Community Centre and formerly of 1132 Avenue B, N., Saskatoon, occurred at his residence on May 6, 1975. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, May 10th at 1:30 p.m. from the Chapel of Saskatoon Funeral Home, conducted by Rev. N. S. Dingwall (Cremation). (In lieu of flowers, donations to the Saskatchewan Council for Crippled Children and Adults or other Charity would be appreciated.)

Surviving are: a daughter, Mrs. W. A. (Betty) Reed of Regina; three sons, Russell of Williams Lake, B.C., Fred of Prince Albert and Barry of Regina; 11 grandchildren; a brother, Philip of Watford, Ontario.

He was predeceased by his wife, Lillian in 1974 and by three brothers. Mr. Routley was born in Watford, Ontario. He joined the Canadian Army in 1914 and served overseas where he was awarded the D.C.M. & Bar. Following his discharge he came west to Biggar where he farmed until 1942 when he joined the Veterans Guard and served until 1946. He had resided in Saskatoon since. Interment will take place in Woodlawn Cemetery. (Courtesy parking south of the Chapel on 4th Avenue at 25th Street).

Star- Phoenix. Thu, May 08, 1975 ·Page 40

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Sergeant Chester Elmer Routley, DCM + Bar

In October 1914, Private C.E. Routley boarded a train in Petrolia with five other men from the 27th Regiment. Their destination was London, Ontario to enlist with the 18th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF). Upon arriving in London, he was given basic training before leaving for England with the rest of the battalion in April 1915.

The 18th Battalion did more basic training in England after arrival. The 18th Battalion was then sent to the front line in France as part of the 2nd Canadian Division. Initially they were in the trenches on the Ypres salient for most of 1915 and 1916, but they transferred to the Somme River front in September 1916. The Battle of Fleurs-Courcelette was the first large scale engagement for the Canadians, which took place on 15 September. The battle used the creeping barrage and some of the first tanks to force the German infantry back into their trenches while the Canadian infantry trailed behind and secured positions. Though the Canadians captured the village of Courcelette, the casualty count at Courcelette was in the thousands. For the 18th Battalion, they lost ninety-one men in the first twelve hours and twelve more later due to injuries, which is nearly equal to their casualty total for the entire year before Courcelette. The entirety of the battle of the Somme resulted in approximately 24,000 casualties for Canadian Army.

In his memoir, Routley stated that “the whole heavens seemed to be on fire” during the battle. He was burned by a bullet that passed through his clothes, and by the time Routley checked the severity of his injury and left his make-shift cover, all his officers were gone. He liaised with officers from the 15th British Division to confirm the planned junction point before setting up Lewis guns and sending wounded men back to Battalion HQ. He and his men were ordered to advance. They reached Gun Pit Road, which was shadowed by a mound of earth a hundred meters from it. The higher position did not provide much protection, but its sightline was advantageous enough that Routley set up an observation post on the high ground himself. It was there that a large shell landed and wounded him, nearly burying him in the earth. He managed to get himself out and get medical care before evacuating. Routley’s effort to lead the men of “C” Company when all his company’s officers and senior N.C.O.s had been killed or injured showed incredible determination and bravery. Lance-Sergeant Routley received a Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM) for his actions at Fleurs-Courcelette.

Routley again showed adaptability and quick-thinking at the Battle of Hill 70 in August 1917. Routley followed an enemy scout back to his trench line. He sent a flare up to call artillery to bombard the trench. In his memoir, he describes sending an S.O.S. radio signal to Allied artillery when his men were bogged down in the trench at Cité St. Elizabeth and acting as the platoon lookout. While he noticed that some artillery had provided supporting fire he had not think they were responding to his urgent call. It was only later when talking to the battalion Adjutant that he found out the artillery had responded to his call for support. It is this resourcefulness and bravery that led Routley to receive a bar for his DCM, a feat that only thirty-seven other Canadians ever accomplished.

Story by Nicole Pillon, Canada Summer Jobs 2022 participant
with The Essex and Kent Scottish Regiment Association

To: O.C. 18th Battalion	From: L. Sgt. C.E. Routley, C. Coy. 18th Battalion
Time: 9.49 am.	Reference: 4th C.I.B. War Diary Appendix for September 15, 1916.
Message: Have consolidated the captured trench and are working on C.T. and advanced listening post. Send up Bombs, L.G. [Lewis Gun] ammunition and magazines, also working party of 50 men with shovels and 10 men with picks. “C” Coy Officers nil, and N.C.O.’s scares [scarce].[i]

[i] Sergeant Routley’s communication clearly establishes that “C” Company had no officers commanding it.

Distinguished Conduct Medal notation London Gazette:

London Gazette. No. 29824. Page 11108.53610 L./Sjt C. E. Routley, Infy.

For conspicuous gallantry and ability in action. After all his officers and senior N.C.O.’s had been killed or wounded Lance-Sergeant Routley took command of the company, organized the work of consolidating a captured position, and by his courage and example greatly inspired all with him in the performance of their duty.

Source: London Gazette. No. 29824. Page 11108. November 14, 1916.

Mentioned in War Diary several times. An original member of the 18th Battalion. Author of The Eighteenth Battalion: the Fighting 18th available for consultation and the Canadian War Museum. Mentioned in Matthew Walther’s Neglected Victory: The Canadian Corps at Hill 70.

In his memoir, Sergeant
Routley of the 18th Battalion, which
was holding a section of trench in
the middle of Cité St. Elizabeth, very
close to Lens, described the artillery’s
response to his S.O.S. call:

I dropped on my knees and sent up
the S.O.S. and then dropped back
again for a few minutes to have a
little rest, before taking over my job
as lookout for the platoon. I never
seen such good [sic] Artillery action
in my life. As a matter of fact, I didn’t
think that the Artillery had worked
on my S.O.S. at all. I thought that
somebody else had seen the Germans
coming and had telephoned our
artillery, for before the varey-lights
[sic] had finished burning the heavy
machine guns began firing over our
heads and everything on the line of
Artillery opened up. It was some
days later, when I was talking to
the Adjutant of our Battalion, Major
Bell, that I learned that it was my
S.O.S. that they had worked on. He
said that he was in the Observation
Post with an officer of the Artillery
when they seen [sic] my S.O.S. and
they immediately telephoned the
Artillery, who had their guns all
layed and ready.