Sam Williams earned the nickname “Lucky
Luke” while serving with Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) in the Great
War. The sobriquet was gained because he was at one time at least the only LSH
officer not wounded or killed. He was awarded the Military Cross; his survival
was not because he ducked a fight.
Sam Williams took part in, and
had leadership roles in, raids into enemy trenches and numerous runins with the enemy. He also led troopers on foot
into the teeth of German machine guns at Rifle Wood, a crucial battle that followed
just days after the Battle of Moreuil Wood. Like many a cavalryman he lost
horses to enemy action.
Quite apart from his actions against the enemy,
however, he pieced together a detailed and lucid account of his war while
serving with the Canadian Cavalry Brigade. That account, Stand to your Horses, is a bible for those researching the Brigade’s
activities in the World War I. The book is available through the LSH(RC)
kitshop at their Edmonton barracks. It has served as an original document for numerous researchers, including myself.
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