Eric Gascoigne Robinson

He crossed the shore to destroy the guns at the Dardanelles.

Eric Gascoigne Robinson was born in Greenwich in 1882 and entered the Royal Navy as a young officer. His early service included the China campaign of 1900 and the relief of Peking. By 1915 he was a lieutenant-commander serving in the Dardanelles operations.

On 26 February he went ashore under fire and advanced into an Ottoman gun position. He destroyed one gun, returned for further explosives and helped destroy another. This personal assault earned the Victoria Cross. In April he also commanded the boats that torpedoed the stranded submarine E15, denying it to the enemy, and was specially promoted to commander.

Robinson was wounded while serving near Anzac later that year. He subsequently commanded ships and held further naval appointments, becoming a rear-admiral on retirement. Recalled during the Second World War, he served as a convoy commodore until ill health ended his wartime employment in 1942. Norway recognised that service with King Haakon VII's Freedom Cross. Robinson died in 1965 after a career spanning imperial campaigning and both world wars.