Canadian Virtual War Memorial
Robert David James Hopson
In memory of:
Seaman Robert David James Hopson
February 18, 1941
North Atlantic
Military Service
20
Merchant Navy
Canadian Merchant Navy
S.S. Empire Blanda (London, England) (141931)
Additional Information
January 1, 1921
Toronto, Ontario
Son of George Hopson and Wealthy Mable Irene Johnson of Bayfield, Ontario. During the First World War, George enlisted on 8 September 1915 in Toronto, Ontario, with the 84th Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force, service number 164250. On 11 August 1916 he was transferred to the 75th Battalion and on 5 November 1916 to the 11th Canadian Trench Motor Battery. On 25 February 1917, he was gassed on Vimy Ridge, France, and brought back to England. Repatriated on 18 July 1917, he was demobilized on 16 February 1918. He was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.
On 19 February 1941, the Empire Blanda was sailing with convoy HX-107 towards Grangemouth, England, when at 8.18 am, U-69 fired torpedoes in her direction 160 miles (258 km) south of Iceland. The explosion was so powerful that debris fell back onto the submarine. The Empire Blanda sank with her captain, 37 crew members, one gunner and a passage, position 60°45'N/18°36'W.
Commemorated on Page 156 of the Merchant Navy Book of Remembrance. Request a copy of this page. Download high resolution copy of this page.
Burial Information
HALIFAX MEMORIAL
Nova Scotia, Canada
Panel 18.
The HALIFAX MEMORIAL in Nova Scotia's capital, erected in Point Pleasant Park, is one of the few tangible reminders of the men who died at sea. Twenty-four ships were lost by the Royal Canadian Navy in the Second World War and nearly 2,000 members of the RCN lost their lives. This Memorial was erected by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and was unveiled in November 1967 with naval ceremony by H.P. MacKeen, Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia, in the presence of R. Teillet, then Minister of Veterans Affairs. The monument is a great granite Cross of Sacrifice over 12 metres high, clearly visible to all ships approaching Halifax. The cross is mounted on a large podium bearing 23 bronze panels upon which are inscribed the names of over 3,000 Canadian men and women who were buried at sea. The dedicatory inscription, in French and English, reads as follows:
1918-1945
IN THE HONOUR OF
THE MEN AND WOMEN
OF THE NAVY
ARMY AND MERCHANT NAVY
OF CANADA
WHOSE NAMES
ARE INSCRIBED HERE
THEIR GRAVES ARE UNKNOWN
BUT THEIR MEMORY
SHALL ENDURE.
On June 19, 2003, the Government of Canada designated September 3rd of each year as a day to acknowledge the contribution of Merchant Navy Veterans.
Digital Collection
-
Details
Memorial – Cenotaph Memorial image - -
Details
Inscription – Bayfield, Ontario -
Details
War Memorial – Bayfield, Ontario -
Details
Memorial – Seaman Robert David James Hopson is also commemorated on the Memorial in Clinton, ON … Second World War names … Photo courtesy of Marg Liessens -
Details
Memorial – Seaman Robert David James Hopson is also commemorated on the Memorial in Clinton, ON … Second World War names … Photo courtesy of Marg Liessens
Learn more about the Canadian Virtual War Memorial
To learn more please visit our help page. If you have questions or comments regarding the information contained in this registry, email or call us. For inquiries regarding the names and information found in the RCMP Honour Roll, please email the RCMP.
- Date modified: