PRU GOWARD MP Member for Goulburn

Transcription

1 APRIL 2012 Brought to you by PRU GOWARD MP Member for Goulburn

2 Biscuits from home with love During World War I soldiers wives, mothers and girlfriends were concerned about the nutritional value of the food being supplied to their men. Any food sent had to be able to remain edible after months at sea. The solution came in the form of a biscuit. At first the biscuits were called Soldiers Biscuits, but after the landing on Gallipoli, they were renamed ANZAC Biscuits. A Traditional Recipe: 1 cup rolled oats 1 cup plain flour 1 cup sugar ¾ cup coconut 125g butter 2 tablespoons golden syrup ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda 1 tablespoon boiling water Combine oats, sifted flour, sugar and coconut. Combine butter and golden syrup, stir over gentle heat until melted. Mix soda with boiling water, add to melted butter mixture, stir into dry ingredients. Take teaspoonfuls of mixture and place on lightly greased oven trays; allow room for spreading. Cook in slow oven (150 C) for 20 minutes. Loosen while still warm and allow to cool on trays. Makes about 36. Our ANZAC legend... ordinary people doing extraordinary things Australians are proud people who respect tradition and honour great feats of bravery. It is this honour and respect that all Australians have for the ANZAC legend a legend which was born amid fierce fighting at Gallipoli 97 years ago and which has since grown in spirit during wars and conflicts involving our country s men and women. Indeed, it was that fateful campaign at Gallipoli in 1915 which helped build Australia as a nation. The soldiers who answered the call of King and Country in The Great War showed a unique character in the face of adversity at Gallipoli and later on the Western Front a character which today we are proud to call the Spirit of ANZAC. Many of our people never made it home. Bundanoon s Arthur Rush was one of them a decorated soldier who was killed in battle in France on April 25, It will be 94 years this ANZAC Day since his death. I had the honour of paying my respects at the grave of Arthur Rush indeed, to many of the fallen during a visit to the Adelaide Cemetery in France. Arthur s story is told inside this special publication and it is typical of many young local people who paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country. They were ordinary people doing extraordinary things. Characteristics such as courage, determination, mateship and humour were all trademarks of the Diggers. Those same qualities sit well on the shoulders of the men and women who serve Australia today. I encourage the communities within the Goulburn Electorate to embrace the Spirit of ANZAC at this special time. ANZAC Day is a time-honoured tradition and important part of this nation s history and culture it is a day to remember those who fought and those died in war, it is a day we should all be proud to be an Australian. Pru Goward Member for Goulburn Where did your ancestors serve? Researching family history and the role many of our ancestors played in the defence of Australia during times of war and conflict can be a fascinating and worthwhile study. You can begin your search by accessing some of the following websites: Australian War Memorial Australians At War National Archives of Australia World War Two Nominal Roll Contact Pru Goward MP Electorate Office: 288 Bong Bong Street, Bowral NSW 2576 Phone: (02) Fax: (02) goulburn@parliament.nsw.gov.au Web: COVER: The Bowral War Memorial is an impressive concrete and marble obelisk surmounted by a cross and surrounded by a garden. There are several plaques dedicated to different conflicts. The memorial was dedicated in 1919 and re-dedicated on 11th November April 97th anniversary of ANZAC Day Local soldier the first killed in defence of Belgian town A young soldier from Goulburn will forever be known in history as the first Australian to die in the defence of Ypres, in Belgium, during the early stages of the First World War. Indeed, William Thomas Leggett was one of the first Australians to be killed on the Western Front. His death on October 14, 1914, during the First Battle of Ypres is significant to the people of Goulburn and also those in the Belgian village of Geluwe where Corporal of Horse Leggett was shot from atop his steed. His efforts in the battle are commemorated in both places. William was serving with the British 1st King s Life Guards when he led a group of calvarymen in pursuit of fleeing enemy soldiers. Records indicate a single fatal bullet dropped William from his horse at about 4pm on the property of a local farmer. He was aged 23. After the fighting the British moved on and the Germans reclaimed areas of the village. William was buried along with four Germans. In 1924, his body was moved along with British casualties to Harlebeke New British Cemetery. William, born at Lithgow, was the eldest William Leggett on horseback. of 11 children and moved to Goulburn with his family in the early 1900s when his father was transferred by NSW Railways. A trained electrician and telegraphist, William left Goulburn in 1910 and worked at an open air picture theatre in Sydney s Surry Hills. He later became a wireless operator on an ocean liner and settled in England where he joined the Life Guards in January Sculpture honours sacrifice The memorial to William Leggett in Goulburn. A memorial in Goulburn honours the sacrifice William Thomas Leggett made in the defence of Ypres in World War One. A two-piece bronze and steel sculpture in the museum grounds at the Rocky Hill Great War Memorial in Goulburn was created by Belgian artist Henk Delabie, incorporating a series of bronze objects produced by Belgian children. The first version of the sculpture sits in the grounds of the Geluwe church on the Menin Road. The work depicts how the Belgians today view Leggett s and Australia s role in the town s history. The events are also commemorated in a display at Geluwe Cultural Centre. Nurses take on a vital role Members of the Army Nursing Services have played a critical role in all theatres of war where Australian troops have served. The first army nursing service left for the Boer War in early 1900, marking the start of more than 100 years of dedicated service to Australian forces called to duty in war and conflict. More than 2100 members served during World War I, including Gallipoli, and endured shocking conditions under the threat of death, disease and as prisoners of war. During World War I, 2139 nurses served overseas, 423 served in Australia, 25 died and 388 were decorated with seven Military Medals awarded to nurses for acts of courage.

3 Arthur Leslie Rush was an ordinary man from country New South Wales who did extraordinary things and made the ultimate sacrifice amid the horror of war. To his mates around him, Arthur was a hero. He typified the actions of so many spirited young Australian men and women who answered their call to duty to fight a war half a world away in defence of the Mother Country. Arthur was a 27-year-old orchardist in his home village of Bundanoon when he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on August 16, An administration error at the time meant that his name is often recorded in official records as Alfred Leslie Rush. He was assigned to 3 Battalion as a Private and embarked with the 11th Reinforcements aboard HMAT Euripides at Sydney on November 2, While in Egypt, Arthur transferred to 14 Machine Gun Company and in June 1916 his unit sailed for France. The company s first action was in support of the disastrous infantry assault at Fromelles on the night of July 19, Two months later Arthur was promoted to Corporal and then to Sergeant in January As the Allied operational focus shifted to the Ypres sector in Belgium, Arthur s company fought at the battle of the Menin Road on September 20 that year and a week later at the battle of Polygon Wood. For his courage and leadership during the allied advance to the Butte at Polygon Wood, Arthur was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal. His citation read: for conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. During enemy counter-attacks he worked his gun with coolness and courage, and caused many casualties to the enemy, inspiring the men under him by his courage and determination. Throughout the action he did most valuable work in a cool and determined manner, in spite of heavy casualties to his team. Commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in December 1917, the 14 MGC was at the frontline during the German Spring Offensive in early Arthur made the ultimate sacrifice during heavy fighting around Villers-Bretonneux on April 25, Official reports say Arthur was making a reconnaissance of an enemy gun position when he came under machine gun fire and was hit several times. Death was instantaneous, records indicate. He was initially buried on the eastern outskirts of Villers- Bretonneux and later exhumed and re-interred at the nearby Adelaide Cemetery. Arthur s sacrifice was perhaps best summarised in an extract to his wife Eileen from the Australian Army: Lieutenant Rush s magnificent conduct on the field of battle has helped to earn for our Australian soldiers a fame which will endure as long as memory lasts. On ANZAC Day this year, it will be the 94th anniversary of Arthur Rush s death on the battlefields of France in The Great War. Lest We Forget. Villers-Bretonneux was the site of a famous World War One battle for Australian soldiers. German tanks captured the village on April 23, 1918 but on the following day, the 4th and 5th Australian Divisions, with units of the 8th and 18th Divisions, recaptured the whole of the village. Bundanoon s Arthur Rush was killed in action the next day as heavy fighting raged on April 25, Adelaide Cemetery was started early in June 1918 and used by the 2nd and 3rd Australian Divisions. At the end of the war many graves were brought into the cemetery from small graveyards and isolated positions on the north, west and south of Villers-Bretonneux the men who died in the months from March to September Plot I was filled, Plot II was made almost entirely with graves from United Kingdom units, and Plot III almost entirely Australian. A request by the Australian Government in 1993 resulted in an unknown Australian soldier killed in the First World War being exhumed from Plot III, Row M, Grave 13, and re-interred at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra. Arthur Rush is buried in Plot III, Row O, Grave 13 just two rows from where the Unknown Soldier once rested but who finally made it back home after 75 years. Member for Goulburn Pru Goward pays her respects at the grave of Bundanoon ANZAC Arthur Rush, who won a Distinguished Conduct Medal for bravery and who was killed on April 25, He is buried in the Adelaide Cemetery near Villers-Bretonneux. These pictures show the original cross placed on his grave and the new head stone.

4 Spitfire ruled the skies The Supermarine Spitfire is one of the most famous fighter aircraft of the Second World War. It has the distinction of being the only fighter produced prior to 1939 that was manufactured right through the war. A total of 20,351 Spitfires, in 40 major variants, were made before production ceased in The Spitfire s strengths were its speed and manoeuvrability and continued to be refined between the first MkI and the Mk XXIV. During the Second World War, it was flown in all theatres, by all the major Allied nations. Australians flew Spitfires with Royal Air Force squadrons in Europe, the Middle East and Burma, and four RAAF squadrons 450, 452, 453 and 457 operated them in the former two theatres. The first Spitfires arrived in Australia in August A total of 656 Spitfires served with the RAAF. A Spitfire with 453 Squadron readies for take-off. One war, two fates Local barman did his bit in a Spitfire Flying the elite Spitfire fighter in the skies over Europe was a long way from pouring beers at a local bar in Bungonia. But that s the speedy transition 24-year-old barman Lionel James Hansell made when he signed up to fight with the Royal Australian Air Force in March His story is typical of the many young people who wanted to do their bit as the Second World War tightened its grip around the globe and edged closer to home as the fight for the Pacific intensified. Suddenly ordinary people going about their everyday lives were thrust into unthinkable situations with death a likely outcome amid the consequences of war. Lionel spent many hours in flight training at regional airfields before continuing his duties in Canada and then onto the United Kingdom. He was attached to the newly re-formed 453 Squadron which was equipped with the magnificent fighter of WWII the Supermarine Spitfire and attached to the RAF at stations across the UK. Lionel s service record simply states his location as all over the place obviously moving between bases as crew strength demanded. His record also shows Lionel promoted RIGHT: A goup portrait of pilots of No. 453 (Spitfire) Squadron RAAF pilots including Bungonia s Lionel Hansell (far right). The squadron was given a second lease of life at Drem, near Edinburgh, in Scotland on June 18, 1942, having disbanded in Singapore three months earlier. Lionel Hansell was part of the new squadron in its first weeks of operation. Bungonia fighter pilot Lionel Hansell returns to RAF Station Ford after a sortie over enemy territory in his Spitfire aircraft. to a Flight Lieutenant flew 120 sorties in the Spitfire. He also flew, but only briefly, the Hurricane, Mustang and Typhoon fighter aircraft. Lionel was eventually discharged back to Australia having seen some of the most intense fighting in the skies above Europe between 1942 and Squadron rapidly became a capable multi-role fighter squadron. It provided defensive air patrols over Britain and surrounding waters, escorted bombers over enemy-controlled Europe, and conducted offensive strikes in its own right attacking targets on both land and sea. The squadron lost 29 personnel (28 of those Australians) and was disbanded in Germany in January 1946 having served honourably for four years under its motto Ready To Strike. for Bungonia boys Railway death for POW Like most young Australians of the day, John Cook enjoyed his sport. But the 29-year-old Bungonia station hand would quickly learn that war was no game. Private John Allan Cook and his mates often took the opportunity to pick up bat and ball and engage in a hit of cricket when things got a little quiet around the camp. Not long after landing in Singapore with the 2/20th Battalion in February 1941, John was hit in the head above the temple while playing cricket and required medical treatment. With a bruised ego to match the cut and lump on the side of his head, John s six pages of Army records reveal a terrible fate awaited this young man. The 2/20th was now preparing to face a fierce enemy in the advancing Japanese army and John s war would soon take a dramatic turn for the worse. The entry on John s service record which outlines the cricket match gaff is immediately followed by the stamped words Missing and then another line which confirms his capture as a Prisoner of War. How quickly his life had changed. Private Cook was one of many members of the 2/20th taken prisoner on the night of February 15, 1942 when Singapore fell to the Japanese. He was imprisoned at Changi POW camp and then Thailand where he would soon become a worker on the dreaded Death Railway. The last entry on his record states that John Cook died on January 5, 1944, of illness and injuries received while working on the Burma-Thailand railway. He was 32. More than 22,000 Australians became prisoners of war of the Japanese in south-east Asia: Army (about 21,000); Navy (354); and Air Force (373). The Army prisoners were largely from the 8th Division captured at the Fall of Singapore. POWs were formed into work parties to provide forced labour for the Japanese army. Of the 22,376 Australian POWs, 9500 Australians worked on the construction of the Burma-Thailand Railway and 2646 of them died. Prisoners in Changi were divided into forces to work on the railway in either Burma or Thailand. The railway was completed on October 16, Bungonia s John Cook stands among family members including his older sister Olive (right) and an unnamed aunt (left). Pte Cook enlisted in June 1940 and on February 2, 1941 embarked for Singapore as part of the 22nd Brigade of the 8th Australian Division. He died as a prisoner of war on January 5, 1944, aged 32. Changi POWs not forgotten A concrete block from the perimeter wall of the infamous Changi prison in Singapore serves as a grim reminder of the Australian soldiers who suffered and died there. The relic from the former prison sits in the Memorial Garden at the Goulburn War Memorial on Rocky Hill. A plaque lists the names of 31 soldiers from the district who were imprisoned by the Japanese at Changi after the Fall of Singapore in More than half of those soldiers were part of the 2/19th and 2/20th battalions. Changi was demolished in July Its former walls contained some horrific stories to come out of the Second World War. A memorial to Australian prisoners has been preserved at the original main entrance to the gaol. An information panel next to the Goulburn memorial states there were 22,000 Australian POWs 7777 of them died. The Changi memorial at the Rocky Hill museum garden.

5 The Captives Hymn Margaret Dryburgh ( ) was born in England and trained as a teacher. Later, she became a missionary in Singapore, where she was captured by the Japanese during World War II. The plight of Dryburgh and her fellow inmates in a prisoner of war camp inspired the 1996 film Paradise Road. Today, her legacy lives on through the song she wrote while in the camp, The Captives Hymn. Hunger and disease eventually took their toll on Dryburgh, who died on April 21, 1945, a few days after she was sent to a camp at Loebok Linggau in Sumatra. The first verse of her popular hymn is: Father, in captivity, We would lift our prayers to Thee, Keep us ever in Thy love, Grant that daily we may prove Those who place their trust in Thee More than conquerers may be. Give us patience to endure. Keep our hearts serene and pure, Grant us courage, charity, Greater faith, humility, Readiness to own Thy will, Be we free or captives still ANZAC Day activities in the region BERRIMA 5.30am: Dawn Service at the War Memorial am: ANZAC Service at the War Memorial. BOWRAL 5.50am: Dawn Service at the Bowral War Memorial. March falls in at 5.45am at Camerons Newsagency in Bong Bong St. Light breakfast to follow am: March falls in at Oxley Mall car park and steps off to the War Memorial am: ANZAC Commemoration Service at the War Memorial. Luncheon afterwards. BUNDANOON 6.00am: Dawn Service at the Memorial am: Main march steps off to the Memorial. Gather at the CWA Hall in Railway Ave at 10am, fall in at 10.25am am: Wreath Laying Service at the Memorial followed by ANZAC Commemoration Service in the Memorial Hall. BUNGONIA 10.00am: ANZAC Commemoration Ceremony at the War Memorial in Bungonia Park. Light refreshments afterwards at the hall. EXETER 9.00am: March and ANZAC Service at Exeter Park. Morning tea afterwards. GOULBURN 5.30am: Dawn Service at the Honour Roll in Belmore Park. Assemble at 5am. 6.00am: Service at the war graves section in the General Cemetery. 9.00am: Church services at St Saviour s and St Peter s and St Paul s am: March steps off. Assemble at 10.30am at Auburn and Clinton streets adjacent to the military depot. Main service: ANZAC Commemoration at Belmore Park will immediately follow the march. A taxi pick-up and drop-off service for disabled Veterans can be booked through the Sub-branch on HILL TOP 6.00am: Dawn Service at the Memorial Hall. Light breakfast to follow. MARULAN-TALLONG 6.00am: Dawn Service at the Cenotaph am: ANZAC Commemoration Service at the Cenotaph. MITTAGONG 5.30am: Dawn Service at the Cenotaph. Assemble at 5.15am in Church Lane am: March to assemble at the Visitor Information Centre and step off to the Cenotaph am: ANZAC Commemoration Service at the Cenotaph. Royal Australian Navy personnel from HMAS Albatross will be represented at this year s services. Celebrates ANZAC Sunday on April 22 with a service at the Highlands Baptist Church, Welby, at 10.30am. MOSS VALE 10.40am: March leaves Queen St for the World War II Cenotaph outside the Services Club. Form up at 10.30am am: ANZAC Commemoration Service at the Cenotaph. Afternoon entertainment at the Services Club. SUTTON FOREST 8.00am: ANZAC Commemoration Service at the National Service and Reserve Forces Memorial, cnr Illawarra Hwy and Golden Vale Rd. Form up at 7.45am at All Saints Church on the Old Illawarra Hwy for march to the service. This year s theme is a dedication to the medical corps members who have served in various theatres of war. TARAGO 5.30am: Dawn Service at the Tarago War Memorial in the Recreation Park. Gunfire breakfast in the Tarago Hall afterwards. TARALGA 5.30am: Dawn Service at the Cenotaph. Taralga Tigers Rugby Union Club to provide breakfast at the Memorial Hall afterwards. All welcome. 12 noon for 12.30pm: Luncheon at the Sports Club for members and invited guests. 2.45pm: March from opposite Taralga Public School to the Cenotaph for a Wreath Laying Service, followed by the ANZAC Commemoration Service in the Memorial Hall. PLEASE NOTE: All times and venues have been supplied by various RSL Sub-branch officials. Care has been taken to ensure as many Electorate services as possible have been included and were correct at the time of publication. For verification of other services please contact your local RSL Sub-branch. Authorised by Pru Goward MP. Printed by MSS Media 161 Lake Albert Rd Kooringal NSW 2650 using Parliamentary entitlements.