Lieutenant Colonel William Francis Roe

Regiment: Royal Army Medical Corps
Date published: 24/11/1916
Killed in action: No
Information: Temporary Lieutenant Colonel William Francis Roe D.S.O., R.A.M.C., is the eldest son of the late Dr. William Roe, of Dublin, Professor and Examiner in Midwifery and Gynaecology in the Royal College of Surgeons, Ireland. Colonel Roe was born and educated in Dublin, and took out his diplomas at the Royal College of Surgeons and the Royal College of Physicians, Ireland. He was a House Surgeon at the Royal City of Dublin Hospital, and afterwards Surgeon on the Bibby Line of steamers. For eight years previous to the outbreak of war he had a private practice in Northampton Square, in the City of London, and was a vigorous opponent to the “panel” system of the Insurance Scheme. In 1903 he joined the old Volunteer Bloomsbury Rifles as Surgeon, and at the formation of the Territorial Force was attached to the “Queen Victoria Rifles” (9th County of London Regiment). He went with this Regiment in 1914 to the front, where he did splendid work, and was several times mentioned in despatches, and won his D.S.O. at Hill 60 for attending wounded under heavy fire. He attained his majority in September, 1915, and early in 1916 was appointed Temporary Lieutenant Colonel in command of a Field Ambulance.