Recipient of the Victoria Cross. He was honor during World War I with the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy, that a soldier of Britain and the Commonwealth can receive. He was serving as a captain in the 59th Field Company, Corps of Royal Engineers, in the British Army. On August 18, 1914, he had arrived from England to France. On September 14, 1914 during the Race to Sea at Missy, France, he performed an act of bravery. His citation reads: “At Missy, on 14th Sept., under a heavy fire all day until 7 p.m., worked with his own hand two rafts bringing back wounded and returning with ammunition; thus enabling advanced Brigade to maintain its position across the river.” He was presented with Victoria Cross by King George V in France. Afterwards, he served with the tunneling companies of the Royal Engineers at St. Eloi in the Ypres Salient. As early as 1915, the engineers had started mining. The German forces exploded mines under the area known as “The Mound” on March of 1915 with at least 500 British causalities. On April 14, 1915 another mine was fired making a crater over 66 feet in diameter. Captain Johnston was in the commander of the 172 Tunneling Company in the area. In early May, he was ordered to leave this command and was killed by a German sniper near Ypres on June 8, 1915 at the rank of major. He was the son of Major William Johnston and his wife Mary Russell. His father retired from the military in 1891 after serving in India, England, and Scotland. Educated at Bosworth and Stern's School in Barnes, he had two brothers and seven sisters. He had trained at the Royal Military Academy Woolwich and was commissioned on March 23, 1899. Before World War I, he had served in the intelligence department at Gibraltar; the survey and War Office in England, deployed in 1908 to North China visiting 11 of the 18 provinces; and in 1912 returned to the War Office in England. Before being deployed to France, he was a student at the Staff College. Besides the Victoria Cross, he received the 1914 Star with Mons clasp, British War Medal 1914 to 1920, Victory Medal 1914 to 1919 with Mentioned in Dispatches oak leaf. He was mentioned in dispatches on October 8, 1914 and in 1915 on January the 8th and May 31st. All his medals are on display at the Royal Engineers Museum, Chatham in Kent.