4 August 1914

: A Royal Proclamation recalled reservists to active service.

25 August 1914

: Gazetted

.

(TWF) by Col. A M Henniker gives much more detail. George was one of 24 RTOs who embarked for France on

9th August

under the command of a Deputy Assistant Director of Railway Transport (DADRT), Capt. Martelli. They assembled at Amiens on

11th August

and had to be ready for the first troop trains on

15th August

. Six Divisions of the British Expeditionary Force plus ancillary troops arrived in 343 trains over 11 days. This must have been pretty hectic. TWF gives an idea of the way they worked:

It was recognised in September that the duties of an RTO needed "a liberal number of assistants". In the middle of October, Brig. Gen. Sir Percy Girouard was sent by Lord Kitchener to report on the railway situation. His report recognised "what excellent and arduous work has been carried out by Railway Transport Staff in August and September".
 

1 October 1914

gazetted

.
 

14 January 1915

under "GHQ staff &c" (his initials were wrong in this gazette, but

on 6 April). This was surely for his work on the railways. Capt Martelli (his DADRT in the early days) and 3 other RTOs of the 24 who embarked for France on 9th August were Mentioned in the same Gazette.
 
TWF also says that "trained officers of the pre-war army, whether serving or retired, were soon too valuable as staff officers or with their own arm to be left with the RTE. Transfers began in September and within 8 months only 8 were left of the original 24".
 
Thus on

24th March 1915

1st battalion RWF war diary records George's return to his regiment, initially as commanding officer of the battalion, and from

15th April

as second in command.

On the

he was severely wounded in both thighs by gun shots at  the

near Lille in France.
The 1st battalion RWF war diary describes the beginning of the frontal night attack on the German lines in these words:

"The Battalion suffered very heavily from shell and machine gun fire both in crossing the parapet & the 1st German line. The CO Bn Lt Col Gabbett and the OC B coy were killed at once. The 2nd in command Major GFH Dickson, the OC C Coy Lt Chapman and the OC D coy all fell severely wounded together with many of officers NCOs + men. The German first line was however quickly stormed." (See also below).

Fewer than a third of the battalion, both officers and men, were still fit for duty at the end of this horrible day. The rest were killed, wounded or missing.

On the next day,

17th May

,

he was in hospital in Boulogne. A week later he was admitted to Queen Alexandra’s Military Hospital, Millbank, and then convalesced from 23rd June at the Samuelson Hospital, 58 Grosvenor Street.

Left: taken from a report
"

The Festubert Advance

",
published on 29 May 1915 in "The Press", Christchurch, New Zealand and mentioning Major Dickson.

During the war, the correct spelling of the Regiment was ‘Royal Welsh Fusiliers’ – it reverted to the old spelling in 1920 (Army Order 56 of that year).

17 December 1915

Gazetted

, graded for pay as a staff Captain. We think this was the first of his postings training young officers, probably in the Manchester area.
 

1 January 1916

under the heading “Royal Welsh Fusiliers” as “Dickson, Major G.F.H., Reserve of Officers”.
 

28 April 1916

Gazetted temporary

while commanding a group of young officers companies. He was CO of Officer Cadet Battalion XXI, Crookham, Aldershot on

27 September 1917

.
 

27 December 1917

. Disembarked at Le Havre. Assumed duties as Assistant Commandant XVII Corps Reinforcement Camp

28

f

February 1918.

Appointed Commandant of that camp

15 July 1918

2 March 1919

Demobilised and returned to the Reserve of Officers. Gazetted

, RWF (this gazette wasn't actually published until 26th May 1921).

As this suggests, the war was very dynamic at this stage, with the retreat from Mons, the first Battle of the Marne and the race to the sea. Railhead stations were constantly being adopted and abandoned. The RTOs job must have been very demanding. TWF says

1

1