Richard Charles Vandyke TEMPLE

TEMPLE, Richard Charles Vandyke

Service Numbers: 2594, 2594A
Enlisted: 20 January 1916, Adelaide, South Australia
Last Rank: Trooper
Last Unit: 9th Light Horse Regiment
Born: St Peters, Adelaide, South Australia , 3 April 1895
Home Town: Rose Park, South Australia
Schooling: St Peter's College, Adelaide
Occupation: Bank Clerk
Died: Died of Spinal injury, Adelaide, South Australia , Adelaide, South Australia, Australia, 7 April 1918, aged 23 years
Cemetery: North Road Cemetery, Nailsworth, South Australia
North. Path 28 Grave 4073
Memorials: Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Bank of New South Wales Roll of Honour Book, Hackney St Peter's College Fallen Honour Board, Rose Park Burnside & District - Fallen Soldiers Memorial Trees - Rose Park, Rose Park Burnside District Fallen Soldiers' Memorial - Rose Park, Rose Park Public School WW1 Honour Board
Show Relationships

World War 1 Service

20 Jan 1916: Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 2594, 9th Light Horse Regiment, Adelaide, South Australia
24 Aug 1916: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 2594, 9th Light Horse Regiment, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '2' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: RMS Mooltan embarkation_ship_number: '' public_note: ''
24 Aug 1916: Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 2594, 9th Light Horse Regiment, RMS Mooltan, Adelaide
7 Apr 1918: Involvement AIF WW1, Trooper, 2594A, 9th Light Horse Regiment, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 2594A awm_unit: 9th Australian Light Horse Regiment awm_rank: Trooper awm_died_date: 1918-04-07

Help us honour Richard Charles Vandyke Temple's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.

Biography contributed by Faithe Jones

RICHARD CHARLES VANDYCK TEMPLE was born at 3rd Avenue, East Adelaide, South Australia, on 3rd April, 1895, the son of Mr. C. F. Temple and Mrs. Mary Temple. He was educated at St. Peter’s College, Adelaide, and entered the service of the Bank in that city on 7th October, 1911. In October, 1913, he was transferred to Broken Hill, New South Wales.

Richard Temple enlisted on 20th January, 1916, and left Australia in the following August. He attained the rank of sergeant in the 9th Light Horse Regiment. Whilst swimming in Egypt he received spinal injuries from which he died on 7th April, 1918, after returning to Australia.

Source - Bank of NSW Roll of Honour

Read more...

Biography

Richard Charles Vandyke Temple (1895-1918)

From the book Fallen Saints  by Robert Kearney

Richard Charles Vandyke Temple of Rose Park South Australia was born in Adelaide in 1895.

Prior to enlisting in Adelaide on 14 January 1916 Richard was employed as a bank clerk with the Bank of New South Wales at Broken Hill and served three years with the 23rd (Barossa) and 24th (Flinders) Light Horse Regiments, Citizens Force. Upon enlistment, he was appointed to Base Light Horse at Exhibition Camp, Adelaide where on 1 February he was made provisional Sergeant.

Two weeks after promotion he joined the 17th quota of reinforcements for the 3rd Light Horse Regiment but completing the NCO School at Mitcham Camp he was posted to A Company, 2nd Depot Battalion as a platoon sergeant.

He joined the artillery as reinforcement towards the end of June but was soon reallotted to the 21st quota of reinforcements for the 9th Light Horse Regiment and sailed with that quota from Adelaide aboard RMS Mooltan on 24 August. As he was suffering from the effects of a cold when he disembarked in Egypt he was transferred to the isolation camp at Moascar and remained there until joining the 3rd Light Horse Training Regiment on 6 November. Twelve days later he took a parade of men down to bathe in Lake Minsha at Moascar and after diving into shallow water there lost the use of his arms and legs and had to be hauled out of the water.

That day he was admitted to 26th Stationary Hospital at Ismailia where he was declared dangerously ill as a result of being completely paralysed in the lower extremities and partially so in the upper.  

On 23 January, suffering with the pain of 4th dorsal vertebrae displacement and paraplegia, 2594A Trooper Temple sailed for Australia aboard the Euripides. [i]

He arrived in Australia on 21 February 1917 and as his condition had not improved he was discharged from No 7 Australian General Hospital Keswick as totally and permanently unfit on 27 August, died on 7 April 1918 and was buried the following day in the North Road Cemetery at Nailsworth Adelaide; he was 23 years of age.

Richard’s brother 4778 acting Bombardier Roy (Ray) Seymour Temple, HQ 5th Field Artillery Brigade returned to Australia in 1919 but on 2 May 1921 at 28 years of age died and was buried next to Richard. [ii]

Note: - Richard Charles Vandyke Temple’s name was placed on the Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour in April 2009.

Leaving Australia in 1915 in the A.A.M.C., he spent nearly 12 months in that service on Lemnos and in Egypt. From 1916-1919 he was with the artillery in France. When he returned two years ago, he was apparently well, but his constitution was really weakened by illness and the rigours of active service, and by strenuous devotion to his duties there. [iii]



[i] National Archives of Australia: B 2455, Temple Richard Charles Vandyke / 8098899, viewed 10 September 2006
[ii]  McKnight, R, General Manager, North Road Cemetery, Nailsworth Adelaide South Australia
[iii] St Peter’s School Magazine - W K Thomas & Co, Adelaide, May 1921, p. 71

Read more...