First World War Victory Medal– Lance Corporal Alexander Russell Stewart, 4th Battalion, Cameron Highlanders - Wounded at Neuve Chapelle 1915 and Died 1919 from Effects of Service
Alexander Russell Stewart served as a Lance Corporal (No. 20034) in the 4th Battalion, Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders, and was born in Glasgow, residing at 4 Ann Street, Hillhead. He was the son of Mr. A. M. P. Stewart of that address.
He left school in 1908 and was apprenticed to engineering, before enlisting in October 1914, shortly after the outbreak of the First World War. He joined the 4th Cameron Highlanders and was drafted to France on 17 February 1915.
Within ten days of arriving in France, Stewart was wounded during the Battle of Neuve Chapelle (March 1915). Following his recovery, he returned to active service and later took part in operations at Festubert, where his platoon suffered heavy casualties, only a handful coming through unscathed. The effects of this fighting, combined with exposure, led to further periods of ill health and hospitalisation.
Although he returned to duty, his health remained impaired. After further treatment he was eventually deemed unfit for front-line service and was employed in munitions work, still technically in military service. He was finally discharged on 24 December 1918.
His health, however, had been permanently damaged by his wartime service, and he died at home on 11 March 1919, aged just 27. He is buried in Glasgow (Eastwood) Old Cemetery.
Stewart’s story is a strong example of a man who survived the battlefield but ultimately succumbed to the lasting effects of his service, having been wounded early in the war and repeatedly impacted by front-line conditions thereafter.
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