Proud of fathers service

[Wayne]

What follows is my fathers service in WW2. I wont go into too much detail or I’ll be writing a book. This looks like an essay as it is. Later I may post specific battles of interest that I have personal accounts confirming details. I am relying mostly on memory for this post so it’s possible I may have mixed something up so my apology if that is the case.

I hope this post is not too long and you find something of interest in it.

During my younger years I didn't think my father did much at all in the war apart from sit in the sun and drink beer. He fought in the Middle East and New Guinea. According to my mother he told her nothing of New Guinea apart from saying he did some tough climbing of mountains while there. She didn't even connect that with Kokoda.

He rarely spoke about the war and said it was too painful to remember. As he got older he talked more but unfortunately it wasn't long after he became more comfortable with talking that he passed away. It was his passing that really got me into researching what part he really had in the war.

As a child my father had polio and as a result he not only had one leg shorter than the other but the muscles in that leg were withered. Despite this he signed up with the 2/27th (7th Division 21st Brigade) on 28 Aug 1940 (S28987) and was accepted. Several years later the leg condition was discovered but his military records record it as his right leg when it was in fact his left. His records also say he was 5’11" and he was actually 6’3" but that may be a case of him being 19 when he enlisted and still growing.

When enlisting he had falsified his date of birth to avoid needing his parents permission to join as he was only 19 years old.

After some basic training he was shipped to the Middle East in October 1940 where he completed training in Palestine. I have photos of this period and in most he has a beer in his hand and is standing in front of camels and tourist spots or sitting in outdoor cafes. I also have postcards from Palestine and even a postcard of the troop ship he travelled on. After he saw action for the first time there were no more photos.

Around this time it was found he had enlisted illegally. I assume he was returned to Australia as his records show he re-enlisted in Wayville S.A. Unfortunately my mother can’t remember if he returned or not as she, at that time, was then just a friend that he wrote to who lived down the road. This time, with permission, he re-enlisted on 28 March 1941 (SX12013). Whether he returned to Australia or not he rejoined the 2/27th just in time for the Battalions first offensive operation, the invasion of Syria and Lebanon in early June 1941.

At this point I will briefly mention my grandfather (mother’s father). I had always assumed he fought in WW1 due to his age but I found I was wrong only a few years ago.

He enlisted in the 2/10th (SX1933) on 4th March 1940. He was 4 years older than the upper limit for enlistment but they accepted him anyway and unlike my father, his records show he gave the right date of birth.
On 8 July 1940 the 2/10th suffered the Second AIF’s first casualty of the war due to enemy action (a strafing attack by a German aircraft) at Lopcombe Corner, near Salisbury in England.

The 2/10th (6th Division 18th Brigade) was in Africa at the same time as my father’s 2/27th battalion but they fought in Tobruk. I have photo’s he took of the long lines of thousands of Italians who surrendered there. The 2/10th later went to New Guinea and fought at Gona along with my fathers 2/27th. At Gona my grandfather got shrapnel wounds in both legs which was followed by a bout of Bush Typhus. No longer fit for action he was reassigned to the 3rd Australian Army Ordinance Depot in early 1943 where he was their commanding officers batman until discharged in August 1945.
The battalion was disbanded at Balikpapan on 29 December 1945 with only 42 of the original members remaining.

I remember he kept racehorses in stables at the back of his house until the late 60’s. He raced them but also worked for the railways. Unlike my father who didn’t like talking about the war, grandpa told me plenty of stories but mostly when I was very young and I’ve forgotten most.

I am still looking into the Syria campaign. During the war the fighting there was banned from public disclosure and, as a result, the 7th Division that fought there became known as the "Silent Seventh" because it’s public records showed it saw little action during this period. The reason for the secrecy even today is unclear but is assumed to be that because they were fighting the French Foreign Legion and, the French being our allies, it would have been embarrassing if the public knew. Although Vichy French forces were also there my father only ever mentioned the Legion so I’m not sure if he fought the Vichy as well. I hope to clear that up with further research as I now have access to the battalion’s daily diary.

According to my father the Legion were incredible soldiers far better than any other countries troops. He only told of one battle he fought in Syria and I can no longer remember the name of the place it occurred. After the armistice of the 12th July 1941 the 2/27th remained in Lebanon as garrison troops until January 1942.

In February 1942 the 21st brigade returned to Australia and was sent from there in august to Port Moresby in Papua. The 21st Brigade was composed of the 2/14th Battalion from Victoria, the 2/16th from Western Australia, and the 2/27th from South Australia. Along with the 19th and 20th Brigades it was the 7th Australian Division. Due to battle experience the 21st Brigade were by this time considered Australia’s elite brigade.

According to my father they had no jungle warfare training and only had desert issue uniforms (shorts and short sleeve shirts which led to being eaten alive by mosquitos) and their rations were left over WW1 issue. I’m unclear if he meant these rations were over the whole campaign or only part. He sometimes joked about eating cows dead for 25 years (the tins of Beef that apparently liquified in the tropical heat) and made a point of how hard the biscuits were. He said he would have to break them with the base of his bayonet handle because you couldn’t bite them until the pieces softened in your mouth. The uniforms became a serious problem throughout the entire New Guinea campaign and are blamed for much of the malaria, it also became common practice to slit the crutch seams because dysentery was so widespread. So widespread in fact that if you were not actually bedridden with it you were considered fit for duty. The only cure for dysentery was rest and adequate food and neither were ever available.

Originally held in Port Moresby as reserves, in September the 2/27th reinforced the 2/12th and 2/14th and met the Japanese at Mission Ridge on the Kokoda Track.

*It is now called the Kokoda Trail. Australians still all know it for the name it was called when we fought there, The Kokoda Track. The name was changed officially from Track to Trail it is believed for the benefit of Americans for who a track was a railway line and a trail was a rough path through wild country.

This battle I will go into a little more detail as it is significant in regards to my fathers part in it. In later posts I may be able to give more detail of this and other battles.

Myola was the allied supply drop point and the DC-3’s were unable to supply adequate food and ammunition to the 21st Brigade which now was called Maroubra Force. The supplies dropped should have been maintenance level (barely) but this level was never met due to a great many of the drops being either behind enemy lines or destroyed on impact. The troops were tired and under strength due to previous losses.

Unfortunately General Macarthur not only didn’t take the supply situation into account but also discounted the Maroubra Force’s own estimation of the number of enemy because his own intelligence (safely based in Australia) had reported only several thousand enemy troops. He ordered Maroubra to counterattack and retake the village of Kokoda. When objections were raised and offers made to get accurate reconnaissance he rejected it. Ordering men into battle without prior reconnaissance became a trademark of Macarthur’s leadership.
1500 mostly sick albeit elite soldiers and several hundred battle hardened militia, low on ammunition and with only three days supply of food, were now expected to attack what turned out to be some 10,000 Japanese elite marines who had artillery support.

Maroubra’s CO Brigadier Potts, who knew the true strength of the enemy disobeyed that order because the Japanese could split their forces and easily bypass Myola on a side track to attack from the rear while Maroubra was engaged by the Japanese in front. He destroyed the supply base and fell back to Mission Ridge which was defensible. This was where the Battle of Brigade Hill was fought.
Outnumbered 6-1, the brigade, suffering heavy casualties, was eventually outflanked and cut off. Brigadier Potts was forced to perform a fighting retreat through enemy lines. Several forward companies were unable to rejoin the brigade and split up to find their own way back to the allied lines. The company my father was with had no food at all and due to running into several Japanese patrols ran low on ammunition to the extent that only a few had loaded guns, the rest sharpened the sticks most soldiers in Kokoda used as walking supports or carried a few rocks for defense as they had thrown their empty rifles away to save weight.
They now had to avoid Japanese patrols so kept away from the track which meant little chance of finding food.
My fathers company took two weeks to reach their reformed lines at Ioribaiwa. From Ioribaiwa, Maroubra moved to Imita Ridge where they finally stopped the Japanese when the 25th Brigade reinforced and then relieved them.

*In the entire New Guinea Campaign there is not a single case of an allied soldier captured by the Japanese surviving. As a result, unlike Africa where wounded were sometimes left for the Germans to care for because they knew they would be treated well, the allies in New Guinea went to great lengths to retrieve their wounded.
During the fighting retreat the 2/27th had 15 stretcher cases which, due to the terrain, required 300 stretcher bearers (20 per stretcher to allow rotation). The stretcher bearers were all volunteers as they could not keep up with the unencumbered brigade. Many were caught and executed by the Japanese.

General Blamey visited the Maroubra camp after the Japanese retreat. He paraded the soldiers and told them they ran like rabbits from an "inferior" enemy and were afraid to die. Many soldiers broke ranks and began shouting at Blamey but their officers managed to hold them back. During the later march past the brigade refused the "eyes right" order.
The 21st brigades CO Brigadier Pott’s was regarded as one of Australia’s best officers and history now regards his fighting withdrawal as brilliant but Blamey relieved him of duty for disobeying orders to counterattack. Pott’s spent the rest of the war in Australia.

My father was not at that parade but was in the camp hospital. Blamey later visited the hospital to "inspect" the patients but the nurses had told them what Blamey had said so they all nibbled lettuce leaves and chanted, "run rabbit run". Apparently Blamey was very angry with this disrespect but no one was punished.

*This particular event my father often spoke about as it gave him a lot of pleasure that he had "stuck it up Blamey" who along with Macarthur he hated with a passion because of all the unnecessary deaths their incompetence caused throughout the war.

After resting for a few weeks and being brought up to strength the 21st Brigade was sent to Gona in November 1942 where they fought the Battle of Buna Gona. This battle deserves a large article so I wont detail it here as I don’t know details of my fathers personal involvement. Incompetence of leadership in allied HQ was a major factor in the heavy casualties.

After this battle, of the 2/27th battalion’s 588 personnel, only 67 soldiers and 3 officers were "fit" for duty and this included walking wounded.

My grandfather’s 2/10th battalion also fought here (and thereafter fought in the same battles as the 2/27th) and in 8 days of fighting lost 113 killed and 205 wounded.

The 39th battalion (depicted in the recently released movie Kokoda) fared the worst with only 30 men left so that battalion was disbanded.

The troops were relieved in January 1943 and the 2/27th battalion returned to Australia a few weeks later to be brought back up to strength.

In August the 2/27th returned to New Guinea to take part in the advance on Ramu valley and the Finisterre Ranges. Apart from skirmishes they fought one major battle on 12 October 1944, then only took part in patrol actions till January when they returned to Australia again.
The 2/27th left Australia for its last operation of the war on 3 June 1945 for the attack on Balikpapan. The battalion was still in New Guinea when the war ended and in October 1945 were then sent as an occupation force to the Celebes.

My father however, had returned to Australia after Balikpapan, possibly for medical reasons as my mother said he had malaria when he got home. He was reassigned as a cook in the officer’s mess although he had no previous cooking experience as far as I know. For as long as I knew him, he never even boiled an egg let alone cook so this assignment was a bit of a surprise when I discovered it. He was discharged on 25th November 1945.
On 4th February 1946 the 2/27th battalion returned to Australia and disbanded on 18th March.

My father learned a trade via the returned soldiers training scheme and eventually started his own company. For a few years I worked for him specialising in restoring heritage architecture. By the early 70’s he was a contractor on just about every major construction site in Adelaide but he was caught badly by the industrial unrest that hit Australia throughout the 70’s and lost everything. He was now too old to start again so retired.

I am disappointed I knew so little of my father’s service before he passed away. I can only wonder how many others out there will pass away without us realising the reality of what they went through for us.

2/27th Battalion Battle honours
North Africa
Syria 1941
The Litani
Sidon
Adlun
Damour
South-West Pacific 1942-1945
Kokoda Trail
Efogi-Menari
Buna-Gona
Gona
Liberation of Australian New Guinea
Ramu Valley
Shaggy Ridge
Borneo 1945
Balikpapan

As a footnote this may interest some.

When my father left school he got a job with Tillett Memorials and was a worker on the construction of the Adelaide War Memorial which was built in 1936.
In 2002 it was in danger of collapse and I was contracted to supervise the architects inspection and then later was involved in the restoration. Inside the upper section, which no one had entered since its construction as it was only a crawlspace used in the original construction, I found the 1936 workers had carved their names and addresses into the stonework. Also there was internal lighting with most of the light bulbs still working after 66 years! I now have one of those bulbs as a souvenir along with a section of the foot long stalactites (from water seepage) that hung from the ceiling that we removed.

My father had told me that the workers had put a 2 shilling piece between two of the large blocks near the base and I found it. People had tried to dig it out over the years but with the weight of the entire memorial resting on it, it is impossible.



The base of this memorial contains a room with the names of all South Australians who died in WW1 and WW2. Surrounding the memorial at the back are memorials for the other conflicts and a large pond that people throw money in. This money is collected by the caretaker who passes it on to Legacy an organisation that supports the families of military personel who lost their lives in action.

The caretaker himself is interesting. He was operating a flamethrower in WW2 when a shot hit the backpack causing it to explode. He was severely burned and has been the memorials caretaker ever since he returned to Australia.

[Andy in West Oz]

Absolutely amazing mate and don't worry about the length, it is a fascinating read!

Excellent research on your behalf and a wonderful footnote re the Adelaide War Memorial.

Cheers

Andy

[spidge]

Great story Wayne.

The Aussies did it hard especially in New Guinea due to the lack of reserves. US troops would be relieved where the Aussies in most cases had to fight on with what they had.

My dad was knocked at Tobruk (6th div/19th brig/ 2/8th battalion)

[Wayne]

As you may have guessed from my post above the army at least didn't seem fussy who they took even so early in the war and this surprised me. I had a laugh when I read in one book recently that an officer was allowed to serve in combat "even though he had flat feet". I even know of an entire battalion that was signed up for what they were told was a "home guard" and immediately shipped overseas without any training. They were taught how to fire a rifle on the journey. I have read of this battalion on several internet sites and found it heavily criticised for incompetence (cowardice was even mentioned in a Wikipedia entry) but knowing the facts, it performed incredibly well. With more research I hope to write this story as they deserve recognition not condemnation.

When i get time I will do pieces on individual battles in New Guinea with more detail. I have most of the info on the Australians and am now looking into the part the US troops played so i can include them.

[Kiwiwriter]

And thanks for sharing.

Amazing how he concealed the short leg and the short age from the Army.

[von Poop]

Just got round to reading your little epic Wayne.
Great stuff. Enjoyed it very much.

Got to say I'm distinctly woolly on the 1941 Syria stuff, it sounds rather interesting. Really must get a decent book on the Foreign Legion, I knew they fought on both the Vichy and Free side but didn't know they'd come up against each other before finally all joining the Free side. Should make for an interesting chapter in any unit's history.

Cheers,
Adam

[Jan7]

Thanks for share, Wayne! Its an amazing history!


Jan.

[Wolves Guy]

Great write up on your father Wayne. I think thats what it's all about, keeping memories alive for other generations of the family.
I know what you mean about our father's not talking much about their service, and it makes it harder to find out later.