Captain Arthur "Robbie" Burns, DSO, QPM, OBE (1917 – 2008) was awarded the DSO for his service in Italy in 1944, and later had a distinguished career in the British Colonial Office and the English police. He served throughout the Italian campaign as a subaltern and later as a captain. He was wounded twice in the Anzio beachhead. He was later posted to the Middle East. In 1946, after serving in the British Palestine Mandate, he returned to the pol...
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Captain Arthur "Robbie" Burns, DSO, QPM, OBE (1917 – 2008) was awarded the DSO for his service in Italy in 1944, and later had a distinguished career in the British Colonial Office and the English police. He served throughout the Italian campaign as a subaltern and later as a captain. He was wounded twice in the Anzio beachhead. He was later posted to the Middle East. In 1946, after serving in the British Palestine Mandate, he returned to the police service in his native Derbyshire.
Arthur Burns was born on November 18, 1917 at Darley Abbey, Derbyshire, and educated at Kedleston Road School, where he was the school swimming champion. He played soccer for Derby Boys and rugby for Derby RFC before going to the local technical college.
Burns joined the police in 1939, continuing a family tradition which had been started by his great-grandfather in 1840 and ended when his daughter retired from the Force in 1996. After two years he volunteered for combatant service in the Army and did his...
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