Captain Royce Coleman Dyer, (February 1, 1889 – December 30, 1918) was a Canadian soldier who fought during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and had led a Russian unit during the

North Russia intervention The North Russia intervention, also known as the Northern Russian expedition, the Archangel campaign, and the Murman deployment, was part of the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War after the October Revolution. The intervention brought ...

which was part of the

Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War or Allied Powers intervention in the Russian Civil War consisted of a series of multi-national military expeditions which began in 1918. The Allies first had the goal of helping the Czechoslovak Leg ...

after the

October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key mome ...

. He died of broncho-pneumonia on December 30, 1918, while serving in Russia.

Early life and World War I

The son of the five-term mayor of Sutton, Quebec, Leon C. Dyer, Royce Coleman Dyer was born in Sutton on February 1, 1889. Before the war he worked as a butcher. Dyer enlisted on September 23, 1914, in

Valcartier Canadian Forces Base Valcartier (CFB Valcartier), now re-designated 2 Canadian Division Support Base Valcartier (2 CDSB Valcartier), is a Canadian Forces base located in the municipality of Saint-Gabriel-de-Valcartier, north northwest of Quebec ...

, Québec and was assigned to the 8th Bn, Canadian Infantry (Manitoba Regiment), the 'Black Devils'. He participated in a number of WWI battles during his service, including the

Second Battle of Ypres During the First World War, the Second Battle of Ypres was fought from for control of the tactically important high ground to the east and south of the Flemish town of Ypres in western Belgium. The First Battle of Ypres had been fought the pr ...

. During the Battle of Mont Sorrel his actions earned him the

Military Medal The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other arms of the armed forces, and to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for bravery in battle on land. The award ...

. During this action he was gassed. After losing consciousness he was found in a ditch two days later, then spent the next month in hospital. After being promoted to Sergeant, he was hospitalized after breaking a rib during the Battle of the Somme, and again knocked out of action after suffering a gunshot wound to the torso.

North Russia intervention

While recovering in England from his bullet wound, he was approached about joining the Special Service Force that was being sent to assist anti-Bolshevik forces near

Archangel, Russia Arkhangelsk (, ; rus, Арха́нгельск, p=ɐrˈxanɡʲɪlʲsk), also known in English as Archangel and Archangelsk, is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies o ...

as part of the Allied

. He attracted the attention of the unit's commander General Edmund Ironside after his actions while taking the village of Onega, for which he received the

Distinguished Conduct Medal The Distinguished Conduct Medal was a decoration established in 1854 by Queen Victoria for gallantry in the field by other ranks of the British Army. It is the oldest British award for gallantry and was a second level military decoration, ranki ...

Dyer's Battalion

General Ironside Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal William Edmund Ironside, 1st Baron Ironside, (6 May 1880 – 22 September 1959) was a senior officer of the British Army who served as Chief of the General Staff (United Kingdom), Chief of the Impe ...

needed more men for his Russian occupation force and so looked to recruit local Russians. When enrollment figures came up short he took the suggestion of one of his staff and looked to recruit criminals from the local prisons. Called the Slavo-British Allied Legion (SBAL) he assigned their training to Dyer, who was promoted to

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

. With British, Australian and Canadian officers Dyer created a unit of just under three hundred ex-prisoners. The men viewed their Lieutenant with much respect and took to calling themselves “Dyer’s Battalion.” Encouraged by the progress of the unit Allied Russian command promoted Dyer to Captain. During training, disaster struck when he died from broncho-pneumonia. The unit never recovered but to show their respect the men carried around a huge portrait of Dyer when marching, as is the Eastern Orthodox tradition of an Icon. With their namesake dead, morale in the Battalion plummeted. Dyer had resisted enlisting suspected Bolsheviks but after his death, high command ignored this and many imprisoned Russian Bolsheviks were added to the unit. When the unit was moved to the front lines tensions grew and on July 7, 1919, the men murdered their officers. The mutineers then ordered the soldiers to cross enemy lines and join the Bolsheviks.

Death

Dyer became ill While serving in Russia and on December 27, 1918, he was admitted to the 82nd Casualty Clearing Station in Bakharitza suffering from fever. The medics there diagnosed his ailment as broncho-pneumonia, then a deadly disease, which he died from three days later, on December 30, 1918. Enlisting in 1914 and dying long after World War I had ended, he was one of the first Canadians to volunteer and the last to die. He is buried at Archangel Allied Cemetery.

Bibliography

Notes References * * * – Total pages: 400 * * * – Total pages: 301 * – Total pages: 322 * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dyer, Royce Coleman 1889 births 1918 deaths Canadian Expeditionary Force soldiers Canadian military personnel of the Russian Civil War Canadian recipients of the Distinguished Conduct Medal People from Sutton, Quebec Deaths from Spanish flu Burials at Archangel Allied Cemetery Canadian recipients of the Military Medal Deaths from bronchopneumonia Deaths from pneumonia in Russia Canadian military personnel of World War I Canadian military personnel from Quebec Canadian Army soldiers Canadian Expeditionary Force officers