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Lieutenant Colonel
HARRY HOGG YUILL, D.S.O., M.C., R.E.
Royal Engineers 

by 

Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Edward De Santis, MSCE, BSAE, P.E., MinstRE
(September 2026)

Figure 1. Lieutenant Colonel Harry Hogg Yuill, D.S.O., M.C.,R.E.
(Image courtesy of the Imperial War Museum) 

1.  FAMILY INFORMATION AND EARLY LIFE

Family Information

            Harry Hogg Yuill was born in Truro, Nova Scotia, Canada on 3 July 1886.  He was the son of Hiram Woodman Yuill (1856-1947), a dry goods salesman, and Anna Hope Yuill, née Hogg (1852-1927).[1] 

Early Life

            Young Harry grew up in Truro and attended Truro Academy.  In 1905 he entered McGill University in Montreal and earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in engineering in 1909.  He stayed on another year at McGill to earn a Master of Science Degree in Mining and Geology in 1910.[2]  

            In March 1910 Harry travelled to Australia for a firm of London mining engineers and inspected mines in the Pilbara district of Northwest Australia,[3] a vast, ancient, and resource-rich region in the north of Western Australia, spanning over 500,000 square kilometers from the Indian Ocean to the Northern Territory border.[4]            While in Australia he was appointed manager of the Westralia Mount Morgan gold mine.[5]  Westralia Mount Morgan was an historic gold mine located in the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia, about 37 kilometres west-southwest of Laverton.[6]  Yuill’s academic record and demonstrated management skills must have been impressive for him to obtain such responsible positions at the age of 24.  And there were more such assignments to come.

            In 1911 and 1912 Yuill was working at Crown Mines in Johannesburg, South Africa.  The Crown Mines in Johannesburg, were a historic gold mining property that operated as one of the world's richest gold producers.  The company was founded in April 1909 through the consolidation of eight separate mining companies on the Witwatersrand basin.[7] 

            During 1913 and 1914 Yuill worked on the examination and evaluation of mines in Rhodesia for the British South African Mines Development Company.  During this period he also worked on the examination of mineral resources of the Ping Yuen concession in North Chihli, China.[8]  The location of the mine was of historic significance.  The phrase Ping Yuen (Pingyuan) primarily references a critical historic flashpoint of the Boxer Rebellion (1899–1901) rather than a formal foreign territorial enclave.  In October 1899, Pingyuan became one of the foundational epicenters of the Boxer uprising. A band of Boxers had raided local Chinese Christian converts in a small Pingyuan village called Li Lu-chuang those starting off the rebellion.[9] 

            Yuill returned home on 7 April 1914, possibly on leave from his work in China or perhaps to work on projects in the U.K.[10]  War with Germany was on the horizon and it appears that Yuill wanted to take part in it.  On 22 January 1915 he joined the Artist Rifles Officer Training Corps with a view to obtaining a commission in the Royal Engineers.[11]  The Artists Rifles served as a vital officer-producing unit and training corps for the British Army during the Great War of 1914-1918.  In 1915 the unit set up a separate Officers Training Corps at Hare Hall Camp in Romford, Essex. More than 10,000 men earned their officer commissions through the unit during the war. 

Figure 2.  Hare Hall Camp.
(Image courtesy of Wikipedia) 

            Harry Yuill was destined to get his commission and to serve in a newly formed tunnelling company due to his education and experience in the mining business.  In February 1915, while Yuill was undergoing his training at Hare Hall Camp, the 170^th Tunnelling Company of the Royal Engineers was being recruited in the Manchester area.  Since experience miners where recruited and little, if any, military training was given them, the company was in France by late February 1915 and attached to the 11^th Field Company, R.E. in the British 2^nd Division.  By 21 February the company was at Givenchy on the Givenchy-La Basee Canal and by April the unit was at Cambrin.[12] 

2.  COMMISSIONING AND TRAINING 

            Harry Hogg Yuill was commissioned a Temporary 2^nd Lieutenant in the Royal Engineers on 24 April 1915,[13] his commission being the result of his participation in the Artist Rifles O.T.C. program.  At Hare Hall Camp No. 15 the Officer Cadet Battalion trained  officers for the various infantry regiments and other military branches during the First World War, including the Royal Engineers.

3.  POSTINGS AND CAMPAIGN SERVICE

NOTE: Since Yuill’s service papers were not available to the author, his service in France is based primarily on the movements and service of his company.  Unfortunately, the majority of the War Diaries of the 170^th Tunnelling Company are illegible on the internet as well. 

            As officers and men were badly needed to fill the ranks of the newly formed tunnelling companies, 2^nd Lieutenant Yuill was posted to France on 3 May 1915, just nine days after he was commissioned, to join the 170^th Tunnelling Company at Cambrin.  As a junior officer, and perhaps the most junior in his company, he may have been assigned as an assistant Section Commander or as a Section Commander if the company was short of officers.  At any rate, whatever his assignment, within 12 days he would see his first action. 

            The 170^th Tunnelling Company took part in the Battle of Festubert from 15-25 May 1915 while under the control of the British First Army.[14] 

Figure 3.  The Battle of Festubert.
(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)

            At the time of this battle 2^nd Lieutenant Yuill and his company were located in the Cambrin-Cuinchy area in the southern part of the battlefield below La Bassee (see Figure 3 above).[15]  On 29 May while the company was involved in mining and counter mining operations, 2^nd Lieutenant Yuill performed heroically.  When one of the leads to a charge in a mine broke close to the charge, he at once untamped the top of the charge and crawled into the mine to find and mend the break, although the Germans were working so close he could hear them talking.[16]  Then at Cambrin on 24 June 1915, at great personal risk, he charged mines, well knowing the Germans to be charging a mine or camouflet against him, and managed to fire his charges before they succeeded in doing so.[17]  On 29 June he repeated an action similar to what he had done on 24 June.[18] 

            By July 1915 the 170^th Tunnelling Company was located at Fosse 8 and Fosse 9.  Fosse 8 and Fosse 9 were coal mine pitheads and spoil-heaps (dumps) in the area that would become the site of fierce, bloody fighting during the Battle of Loos in September 1915. 

            During the night of 21-22 August 1915 at Cuinchy, Yuill exhibited great skill and bravery in directing mining operations.  The enemy were working within a few feet of the British galleries, opposite Number 5 and Number 7 mines, and it became a race as to which mines would be first exploded.  The situation was critical, but owing to his splendid example and energy two shafts were sunk in time, charged, and tamped.  The resulting explosions must have blown in the German galleries and the miners in them.[19] 

            On 12 September 1915 Harry Yuill was promoted to the rank of Temporary Lieutenant[20] and on 21 September he was awarded the Military Cross for conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty, citing the actions that he performed on 29 May, 24 and 29 June and 21-22 August. 

            Between 25 September and 5 October 1915 the 170^th Tunnelling Company took part in the Battle of Loos.[21]  The company then went into winter quarters from October to December 1915 in the Noeux-Les-Mines, Hohenzollern Redoubt and Hulluch areas (see Figure 4 below).[22]   

            On 16 December 1915 Yuill was promoted to the rank of Temporary Captain and was the commander of one of the sections in the company.[23]  Then on 1 January 1916 Yuill reverted to the rank of Temporary Lieutenant on ceasing to command a section of the company.[24]  This is where the London Gazette notices become confusing.  As a Temporary Captain it would have been more likely for him to have been the second-in-command of the company or perhaps even the temporary officer commanding the company, yet the London Gazette of 6 March 1916 indicates that he ceased to command a section of the company.  This London Gazette may have been in error.  It probably should have read: 

“The undermentioned temporary Captain reverts to the rank of temporary Lieutenant on ceasing to serve as Second-in-Command [or perhaps Commander] of a Tunnelling Company.” 

Figure 4.  The Battle of Loos.
(Image courtesy of Wikipedia) 

The company then remained in the Cuinchy, Cambrin and Aucy areas from December 1915 to March 1917 under First Army control.[25]  On 31 October 1916 Yuill was awarded the Silver Medal for Bravery by H.M. The King of Montenegro.  The citation for this award read as follows:[26]

 “Gazette No. 29977. Montenegro Silver Medal for Bravery. His Majesty the King of Montenegro has conferred with his Majesty the King, who has given unrestricted permission to wear the Decorations Montenegro Silver Medal for Bravery awarded 31st October 1916 for distinguished services rendered during the course of the campaign.” 

            On 24 March 1917 Yuill received another promotion.  Again there is some confusion regarding The London Gazette notice, which read as follows:[27] 

“Temp. Lt. (temp. Capt.) H. H. Yuill to be temp. Major, 24^th Mar. 1917:-“ 

            Now Yuill is both a Temporary Lieutenant and at the same time a Temporary Captain, being promoted to the rank of Temporary Major.  The British Army promotion scheme at this time can be bewildering, but this promotion may have put him in command of the 170^th Tunnelling Company. 

            The company next took part in the Battle of Vimy from 9 to 14 April 1917.  During this action the company was under the control of British XI Corps and I Corps at different times.[28]  Major Yuill may have commanded the company in this action. 

            Next was the Battle of the Scarpe, the opening phase of the British-led Arras Offensive, fought along the River Scarpe from 3 to 4 May 1917.  The company took part in this battle under the control of the Canadian Corps.[29] 

            On 4 June 1917 Temporary Captain Yuill was appointed a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order.  This Order was probably conferred upon him for his actions as the Officer Commanding 170^th Tunnelling Company during the battles of Vimy and the Scarpe.  No specific citations for the award are given. 

            Presumably Major Yuill continued to command the 170^th Tunnelling Company, and during 15 to 25 August 1917 the company took part in the Battle of Hill 70 under I Corps control.[30]  The company then remained at Fosse 8 during September and October 1917, with Yuill taking home leave in December to get married.  Yuill married Winifred Baker (1888-1974) at St. George’s Church, Hanover Square in Mayfair, London.[31] 

            Yuill appears to have continued to command the 170^th Tunnelling Company into the spring of 1918 and was with the company during the Battle of Hazebrouck from 12 to 15 April, as part of the Battle of Lys.  The company was under First Army control for this action.  Then, on 18 April Yuill again saw action in the Battle of Béthune with his company under British I Corps control.[32]  The Battle of Béthune was a successful defensive action where British forces repulsed a major southern assault by the German Sixth Army during the Battle of Lys.  Coincidentally, on the date of this battle Yuill was awarded the French Croix de Guerre.[33]  

            On 2 June 1918 Yuill relinquished his command of the 170^th Tunnelling Company after being appointed Acting Lieutenant Colonel and Controller of Mines at British First Army Headquarters.  In this capacity he commanded and coordinated the tunnelling companies at army level, provided technical advice to the army commander regarding underground warfare and assigned mining priorities based on broader military goals.  In addition, he served as the advisory officer for the production of French coal mines.[34]  Following the Armistice he organized the reopening of the Belgian coal mines.[35]  These responsibilities regarding coal mines had more to do with his expertise as a mining engineer than with his duties as a military tunneller. 

            Yuill relinquished his rank of Acting Lieutenant Colonel on 11 March 1920 and reverted to his rank of Temporary Major upon demobilization.[36]

4. MEDALS, AWARDS AND DECORATIONS

            For his service during the war Harry Hogg Yuille received the Distinguished Service Order (D.S.O.), Military Cross (M.C.), 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal, Montenegro Silver Medal for Bravery and the French Croix de Guerre.  He was mentioned in despatches five times.  The medals are shown from left to right in the Figure below.

 Figure 5.  The Medals of the Type Awarded to Lieutenant Colonel Yuille.
(Image from the author’s collection and courtesy of Jeff Floyd Medals) 

NOTE:  These are not the actual medals of Lieutenant Colonel Yuille.  The images are provided here for illustrative purposes only. 

Figure 6.  The Medal Index Card of Lt. Col. Harry Hogg Yuille, R.E.
(Image courtesy of Ancestry.com) 

5.  POST SERVICE LIFE

            After leaving the Army Yuille took a position as a consulting engineer for Bainbridge, Seymour & Company, Limited, a notable firm of mining engineers based in London, founded by figures including English mining engineer Emerson Bainbridge and George Seymour. Operating from locations like 646 Salisbury House in London, the firm specialized in mining engineering, consulting, and international mining development during the late 1800s and early 1900s (including operations and colonial registrations in the 1890s).  This position would require him to do extensive travelling to different parts of the world.  

In June 1920 Yuill was in Halifax, Nova Scotia.  This may have been a job-related trip or he may have been visiting relatives in his home town.  He returned to England after this trip and in June 1922 he travelled to Quebec. 

On 23 July 1926, as Chairman of the Dogondaji Mining Company Limited, he presided over the liquidation of the company.[37]  At present there is no major corporate entity specifically named "Dogondaji Mining Company"; rather, Dogondaji refers to a prominent historical and geological gold mineralization locality (often cited as Okolom-Dogondaji) located within the Egbe-Isanlu schist belt in Kogi State, Nigeria.[38] 

On 17 August 1926, as Chairman of Bainbridge, Seymour & Company Limited, he presided over the liquidation of that company.[39]  As previously noted, he had been a general consulting engineer for this firm.  His duties with the firm included the examination and management of properties in Canada, the Gold Coast, the Shetland Islands, Corsica, North Wales and Brazil.[40] 

In October 1926 he again travelled to Halifax and from 1926 to 1927 he examined the gold and diamond fields of Venezuelan Guiana for the Central Mining and Investment Corporation.  The Central Mining and Investment Corporation Limited was a major British mining finance house established by Wernher, Beit & Co. to develop South African gold mining on the Witwatersrand.[41] 

In his final years from 1930 to 1935 in Vancouver, British Columbia, he served in many directorships for various Canadian firms, including:[42] 

·         Reeves-MacDonald Mines, Ltd., a mining company that operated a major lead-zinc-silver-cadmium mine near Salmo in southeastern British Columbia.

·         The Lucky Jim Lead and Zinc Company, Ltd. a mining corporation centered on the rich Lucky Jim zinc, silver, and lead mine located in the Slocan Mining Division at Zincton, British Columbia.

·         The Galena Farm Consolidated Mines, Ltd. a mining company and property holding, focused on polymetallic vein deposits (silver, lead, zinc, and gold) in the historic Slocan Mining Division of British Columbia, Canada.

·         The Victoria Syndicate of London in British Columbia.

Harry Yuill was a Member of the British Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.  His social life revolved around the exclusive Vancouver Club and the Shaughnessy Heights Golf Club. 

Figure 7.  Harry Hogg Yuille, circa 1935.
(Image courtesy of the Winnipeg Tribune) 

            In June 1935 Yuille was stricken by a serious ailment (perhaps a heart attack) and was admitted to a hospital in Vancouver for treatment and recovery.  He appeared to be recovering, when on 3 September 1935 he died in the hospital after suffering a stroke.  His very active life came to an end when he was only 49 years old.

REFERENCES 

Books 

1.      Artist Rifles O.T.C. Commissioned in the Royal Engineers (Xerox pages).

2.      FETHERSTONHAUGH, R.C.  McGill University at War, 1914-1918, 1939-1945.  McGill University, Montreal, 1947.

3.      GRIEVE, W.G. & NEWMAN, B.  Tunnellers; The Story of the Tunnelling Companies, Royal Engineers, During the World War.  Herbert Jenkins Limited, London, 1936.

4.      HMSO.  Naval and Military Despatches, Part V.  Darling and Son Limited, London, 1915.

Civil Documents 

1.      1891 Census of Canada.

2.      1901 Census of Canada.

3.      1921 Census of England.

4.      1931 Census of Canada.

5.      Marriage Certificate, 15 December 1917.
 

Family Tree 

1.      Ancestry.com: Family Tree of Harry Hogg Yuill by Megan Johnson.

2.      Ancestry.com: Family Tree of Colonel Harry Hogg Yuill by Nicola Jeniffer Fay.

Internet Web Sites 

1.       The McGill University Honour Roll, 1914-1918.
https://mcgillremembers.mcgill.ca/ww1/honourroll/ww1_honourroll.html
2.      Wikipedia: Battle of Festubert.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Festubert
3.      Wikipedia: Battle of Loos
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Loos
4.      Wikipedia: Battle of Vimy Ridge.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Vimy_Ridge
5.      Wikipedia: Tunnel Warfare.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunnel_warfare
6.      Wikipedia: Battle of Hill 70.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Hill_70
7.      Wikipedia: Battle of Lys (1918).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Lys_(1918)

London and Edinburgh Gazettes 

1.      The London Gazette, 23 April 1915, p. 3951.

2.      The Edinburgh Gazette, 21 September 1915, pp. 1438 and 1439.

3.      Supplement to the London Gazette, 25 September 1915, p. 9517.

4.      The London Gazette, 14 January 1916, p. 630.

5.      Supplement to the London Gazette, 6 March 1916, p. 2451.

6.      Supplement to the London Gazette, 9 March 1917, pp. 2448 and 2449.

7.      Supplement to the London Gazette, 19 April 1917, p. 3737.

8.      Supplement to the London Gazette, 4 June 1917, pp. 5468 and 5476.

9.      Supplement to the London Gazette, 18 April 1918, pp. 4715, 4716 and 4717.

10.  Supplement to the London Gazette, 4 November 1918, p. 12982.

11.  Supplement to the London Gazette, 3 May 1920, p. 5083.

12.  The London Gazette, 23 July 1926. P. 4892.

13.  The London Gazette, 17 August 1926, p. 5473.

Military Documents 

1.      Medal Index Card.

2.      Military Cross Award Citation.

Periodicals 

1.      Battle Honours of the Royal Engineers.  The Royal Engineers Journal, The Institution of Royal Engineers, Chatham, Kent, 1925-1932.

2.      Obituary.  Vancouver, British Columbia, 4 September 1935.

3.      Obituary.  Winnipeg Tribune, 4 September 1935.

4.      Obituary.  Unknown newspaper, with cause of death.

ENDNOTES: