PFLAUM, Raymond Holstein
| Service Number: | 161 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 21 July 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 32nd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Blumberg (Birdwood), South Australia, Australia, 14 October 1897 |
| Home Town: | Birdwood (formerly Blumberg), Adelaide Hills, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Prince Alfred College, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia |
| Occupation: | Commercial Shop Assistant |
| Died: | Died of wounds (in a dug-out), France, 19 July 1916, aged 18 years |
| Cemetery: |
Fromelles (Pheasant Wood) Military Cemetery Plot I, Row B, Grave No 11 |
| Memorials: | Adelaide National War Memorial, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial, Birdwood Blumberg Roll of Honor, Birdwood Pictorial Honour Roll WW1, Birdwood WW1 & WW2 Soldier's Memorial, Gumeracha Our Fallen Heroes WW1 Honour Board, Kent Town Prince Alfred College 'Nobly Striving, Nobly Fell' Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 21 Jul 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 161, Depot Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 18 Nov 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 161, 32nd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Geelong, Adelaide | |
| 19 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 161, 32nd Infantry Battalion, Fromelles (Fleurbaix) |
Brothers in arms...
Theodor wrote of finding his injured brother Raymond in a dugout, as he was moving into position
during the Battle of Fromelles on 19/7/1916. He wrote:-
"While the men were getting their wind, my attention was drawn to a wounded man alongside of me just along a dugout. It was Ray … He was quite conscious and by his appearance didn’t seem to be hit too badly …
I managed to get him a flask of whisky … and a mouthful of that seemed to make his spirits go up …I asked a 32nd fellow … to do his best for Ray while he could. I then made my
way down to find a position for my gun.."
Raymond was not accounted for again until his remains were unearthed at Pheasant Wood, 90 years after his death. Theordor was to fall at Polygon Wood the following year. Only brother Elliot, of the three, survived the war.
Submitted 18 August 2015 by Steve Larkins
Biography contributed by Steve Larkins
"While the men were getting their wind, my attention was drawn to a wounded man alongside of me just along a dugout. It was Ray … He was quite conscious and by his appearance didn’t seem to be hit too badly … I managed to get him a flask of whisky … and a mouthful of that seemed to make his spirits go up … I asked a 32nd fellow … to do his best for Ray while he could. I then made my way down to find a position for my gun.."
Corporal Theodor Pflaum, 8th Machine Gun Company, 19 July 1916
Private Raymond Pflaum of the 32nd Battalion was killed at Fromelles. His brother, Theodor, found him wounded on the battlefield but could not stop long enough to help him. Raymond died of his wounds later that day. His body was not recovered until 2010, when his remains were found during the excavation of a mass grave at Pheasant Wood.
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