Rowland Bourke

Rowland Richard Louis Bourke, VC, DSO (28 November 1885 – 29 August 1958) was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Bourke was born in London, England and emigrated to Canada in 1902. He returned to the UK on the outbreak of World War I, and after initially being rejected due to poor eyesight, he enlisted in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve in 1916.

Action
Bourke was 32 years old, and a lieutenant in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve during the First World War when the following deed took place in the Second Ostend Raid for which he was awarded the VC. On 9 and 10 May 1918 at Ostend, Belgium, after HMS Vindictive's crew had been taken off, Lieutenant Bourke, commanding Motor Launch 276, went into the harbour to check that everybody had got away. After searching and finding no one, he withdrew, but hearing cries from the water he turned back, found an officer and two seamen clinging to an up-turned boat, and rescued them. During this time the motor launch was under very heavy fire and was hit 55 times, once by a 6-inch shell which killed two of her crew and did considerable damage. Lieutenant Bourke, however, managed to take her into the open sea, and was taken in tow.

He later achieved the rank of Commander serving with the Royal Canadian Navy in World War II. He is buried in section O, plot 10, grave 16 in Royal Oak Burial Park, Falaise Drive, Victoria, British Columbia. His medals are held at Library and Archives Canada in Ottawa.

Legacy
The Canadian Hydrographic Service named Mount Bourke in 1945. It is located southwest of Megin Lake and northeast of Hot Springs Cove, north of Tofino, BC. Specifically, Mount Bourke is located at latitude 49°27'56 and longitude 126°11'02.

HMCS Malahat, Victoria’s Naval Reserve Division, honours Cmdr. Rowland Bourke at his gravesite in Royal Oak Burial Park with a graveside ceremony each Remembrance Day.

Family contact - Jason Jones, Grand Nephew, works at British Columbia Auto Association, Victoria BC Canada.