RICHARDS, George James
| Service Numbers: | 1072, 1 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Captain |
| Last Unit: | 5th Light Trench Mortar Battery |
| Born: | Goulburn, New South Wales, Australia, 16 February 1891 |
| Home Town: | Sydney, City of Sydney, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Public School, Goulburn, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation: | Clerk |
| Died: | Died of wounds, Belgium, 23 September 1917, aged 26 years |
| Cemetery: |
Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery |
| Memorials: | Haymarket NSW Government Railway and Tramway Honour Board |
World War 1 Service
| 19 Aug 1914: | Involvement 1072, 1st Infantry Battalion, Naval and Military Forces - Special Tropical Corps, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '21' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Berrima embarkation_ship_number: A35 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 19 Aug 1914: | Embarked 1072, 1st Infantry Battalion, Naval and Military Forces - Special Tropical Corps, HMAT Berrima, Melbourne | |
| 30 Mar 1915: | Promoted AIF WW1, Sergeant | |
| 12 May 1915: | Involvement 1, 5th Infantry Brigade Headquarters, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '7' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Themistocles embarkation_ship_number: A32 public_note: '' | |
| 12 May 1915: | Embarked 1, 5th Infantry Brigade Headquarters, HMAT Themistocles, Sydney | |
| 22 Sep 1915: | Promoted AIF WW1, Second Lieutenant | |
| 8 Oct 1915: | Transferred AIF WW1, Second Lieutenant, 17th Infantry Battalion | |
| 16 Mar 1916: | Promoted AIF WW1, Lieutenant, 17th Infantry Battalion | |
| 27 Jul 1916: | Wounded AIF WW1, Captain, 1072, 5th Trench Mortar Battery, Battle for Pozières , Gunshot wound to right leg. Sent to hospital in France, then in England. Returned to France in February 1917 | |
| 13 Feb 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Captain, 17th Infantry Battalion | |
| 3 Jun 1917: | Honoured Military Cross | |
| 20 Sep 1917: | Wounded AIF WW1, Captain, 1072, 5th Light Trench Mortar Battery, Shell wounds to thighs and arms. Reached the 17th Casualty Clearing Station on 21st September but died there two days later on 23rd September 1917. |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by John Oakes
George James RICHARDS was born in Goulburn on 16th February 1891. He joined the NSW Government Railways as an office boy in the Traffic Branch. probably in Goulburn. In 1908 he became a junior porter and in 1909 he became an apprentice clerk. In July 1910 he was appointed as a junior clerk in the District Superintendent’s Office in Sydney. In April 1912 he was promoted to clerk in the office of the Superintendent of the Lines (at that time the head of the Traffic Branch).
He enlisted in August 1914 for service in the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force, which was sent to Rabaul in September 1914 to take German New Guinea from the enemy. Joining as a Private, he was promoted to Lance Sergeant in November, and employed at the headquarters of the new administration.
On his return to Sydney, he was discharged from the AN&MEF, the period of his engagement having terminated.
He was officially released from duty with the Railways in March 1915 to re-enlist as a Private, this time in the AIF. He was allotted to the Headquarters Staff of the 5th Infantry Brigade and promoted to Sergeant in April 1915. He embarked from Sydney in May 1915. He was sent to Gallipoli in August 1915. On 22nd September he was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant in place of an officer of the 17th Battalion who had been wounded. In October he was officially transferred to that Battalion. On the withdrawal from Gallipoli, he returned to Egypt in January 1916. In March he was sent to France and promoted to Lieutenant.
In June 1916 he was promoted to Temporary Captain and placed in command of the 5th Australian Light Trench Mortar Battery.
On 27th July he was wounded in action at Pozières (gunshot wound right leg) and sent to hospital first in France and then in England. He was discharged from hospital in October. He returned to his unit in France in November 1916. He had relinquished the temporary rank of Captain after he had been wounded and ceased to command his unit. However, he regained it on his return to France. In February 1917 his promotion to Captain was made permanent and his command of his unit confirmed. In June he was awarded the Military Cross ‘for distinguished service in the field’.
On 20th September 1917 he was again wounded in action (shell wounds to thighs and arms). He reached the 17th Casualty Clearing Station on 21stSeptember but died there of his wounds two days later on 23rd September 1917. He was buried in Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery, 1¾ miles SW of Poperinghe, Belgium.
A war pension was granted by the authorities to his widowed mother.
- based on the Australian War Memorial Honour Roll and notes for the Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board.