Men serving with Allied Forces, and being executed by the British Army is almost synonymous with World War One. Popular culture and novels, such as Private Peaceful (Michael Morpurgo), or films like Paths of Glory (1957, starring Kirk Douglas) and A Very Long Engagement (2004, starring Audrey Tautou) have fed into the narrative that these executions took place, and were a common form of punishment and a firm example to those who watched on.
In reality, it is believed and acknowledged by the UK Government that the numbers of men executed was far less than you may expect. Of the 200,000 or so men court-martialled during the First World War, 20,000 were found guilty of offences carrying the death penalty. Of those, 3080 actually received it, and of those sentences, 346 were carried out.
Lesser sentences were often handed out, or death sentences were reduced to a lesser punishment, such as hard labour, field punishment or a suspended sentence. 91 of the men executed were under a suspended sentence: 41 of those executed were previously subject to commuted death sentences, and one had a death sentence commuted twice before. Of the 346 men who were executed, 309 were pardoned: the remaining 37 were executed for murder, and would have been executed under civilian law, regardless of where they had committed this crime.
Whilst researching for another project for the museum, Rowena – one of our volunteers – came across Private James Higgins. With further research, we believe Pte Higgins is the only Argyll during World War One who was sentence to death by court martial. Pte Higgins was passed this sentence for desertion, he is one of 266 men who was executed for this reason – and it was the most common charge for this.
Image acquired from Ancestry.com search
We know that Pte Higgins was the son of Robert Higgins and Jessie (nee Smith) and was born May 1893 in Bridgeton, Lanarkshire. He had several siblings – John S (who was a German PoW during WW1 but his regiment couldn’t be determined), Robert, William, Jessie and Maggie. Pte Higgins signed up on 5th August 1914 aged 20, and stays with the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders his whole service. When enlisted, he starts with the 1/9th but ends up with the 3/9th. It is whilst in this period of his service that he is injured. A Scotman newspaper article notes that he was “wounded on right foot and shoulder by bursting of a shell”. It is unimaginable the consequences of this injury must have had on Pte Higgins.
Later, he is moved to the 1/8th and is here that he is reported missing on 27th July 1916.
Image acquired from Ancestry Search
His charge notice states, “When on active service, deserting His Majesty’s Service, in that he, in the field on the 27th July, 1916 absented himself from 1/8th A&s Hdrs, to which he was attached, and which was then at Mametz Wood, until apprehended by the Military Police … on 3rd August 1916, dressed in uniform different from his Battalion.”
After being found guilty his sentence reads:
“To suffer death by being shot. Recommended to mercy on grounds if previous service and wounds and medical evidence to previous nervous strain”.
It is unknown if the nervous strain was as a consequence of his earlier injury – but it can be assumed so.
Proceedings were agreed on 25th August 1916 and Private James Higgins was executed on the 26th August 1916. He is buried in Cite Bonjean Military Cemetery, France.
Image acquired from Ancestry Search
It is known, as a result of the execution of Pte Higgins, that the government then requested the return of his service medals for retention.
Image acquired from Ancestry Search
Britian was one of the last countries to pardon the men executed in World War One. In 1993, John Major argued in the House of Commons that: “pardoning the men would be an insult to those who died honourably on the battlefield and that everyone was tried fairly”.
It would not be until 2006 that Des Browne, the then Defence Secretary, made the decision to allow this pardon. Browne said he did not want ,“to second guess the decisions made by commanders in the field, who were doing their best to apply the rules and standards of the time”, but that “it is better to acknowledge that injustices were clearly done in some cases, even if we cannot say which and to acknowledge that all these men were victims of war”.
The Armed Forces Act 2006 was passed in 2007 and this allowed the soldiers to be pardon posthumously.
In 2000, artist Andy DecComyn created the ‘Shot at Dawn’ Memorial as a gift to the relatives of those who were executed and this can be found the National Memorial Arboretum.
Image acquired from Ancestry Search
The memorial shows a young blindfolded British soldier, tied at the stake and waiting to be shot by firing squad.
Image from The National Arboretum
If anybody has any information about James, particularly any images you believe are of him, we would like to document this in the museum. Please contact us on: museum@argylls.co.uk
Written by Caitlin Meldrum, Audience and Communications Officer