RENNIE, Charles Kirkton

War
1st World War
Date of Birth
Date Attested
Attested at
Vernon - British Columbia
Regimental Number
442838
Rank
Private
Date of Death
Age at Death
40 years 7 months
Cenotaph
Biographical Summary

NAME:                          RENNIE          Charles Kirkton                                                                                                  DIVISIONAL UNIT:       4th Canadian Infantry Division                                                                                                                                         11th Infantry Brigade                                                                                                                                                          43th Battalion - Kootenay                                                                                                                                                  "C" Company                                                                                                                                                                    Canadian Infantry Corps                                                                                                            PARENTS:                    Mr. David and Margaret Rennie - Truax - Saskatchewan                                                            SISTER:                        Miss B. Rennie - Truax - Saskatchewan

     Prior to his enlistment Charles was employed as a Labourer and he and his family were of the Baptist faith.               Upon his enlistment into the service of the Canadian Corps Charles was 5'  7" in height, had a dark complexion with brown eyes and brown hair. For the three months prior to leaving Canada Private Rennie would have been in training.       Private Rennie once he arrived in Halifax boarded the SS Saxonia and on November 22, 1915 he embarked from Canada and arrived in Liverpool on December 1, 1915.                                                                                     For the next 8 months he is in England and is continuing with his training. He then goes overseas into France in mid August of 1916. He is attached to No. 4 Sanitary Section of the Canadian Army Medical Corps on August 20th before he joins the 54th Battalion in the field on September 27, 1916.                                                             The files of Private Rennie do not tell us the date he received his wounds but do tell us when he arrived in Hospital on the coast of France.                                                                                                                                           Battalion diaries: state that on November 25th the weather was very wet in the morning and that the situation was very quiet on the Battalion front during the daylight hours. However, about 9:30 pm that night the enemy fired off a number of rifle grenades and these landed very close to members of the Battalion. The diaries state that one ordinary rank was very severely injured. This may or may not have been Private Rennie being wounded. This incident brought the Brigade artillery to life onto the enemy positions but the enemy also replied with his minenwerfers or short range mortars, his 5.9" guns and these targeted the support trenches of the Battalion. This exchange took place between east of the Zouave Valley located between Nortley and Boyau trenches and lasted approximately an hour.                                                                                                                                                            We feel that the individual wounded was Private Rennie as the time line for him passing though the various points of the Canadian Army Medical Corps and arriving at the Canadian Hospital at Etaples would seem to fit his situation. However, we can not be 100% positive of this fact. We know the wounds were fatal and we know that the wounds were to his right leg and jaw which was fractured. His records do tell us that his right leg was amputated on December 3rd and at the time was seriously ill. The following day he was reported to be dangerously ill and on December 7, 1916 Private Rennie passed away from the wounds he received on the field of battle.                                  Reading the Battalion diaries of November we noted that there were no casualties in the days prior or following November 25th and that there were no casualties in the early days of December.