Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Arthur Charles Bland was born on the 13th of May 1896 in Welford England.  He was an only child, born to his parents Harry, who was a station master and Minnie Cater Roddis.  Before he enlisted, he was a labourer. At the time, he was 19 years and 6 months old when he enlisted in Morphettville, Adelaide on the 21st of October in 1914. He also had military experience with 18 months of cadets.

Arthur Charles Bland was described as 5 feet and 7 inches tall weighing 154 pounds, with a fresh complexion, blue eyes, fair hair and being a Roman Catholic. His service number was 229, his rank was Private, and he was assigned to the 9th Lighthorse Regiment B Squadron, which was part of the 3rd Light Horse Brigade. He completed his training in Melbourne Victoria between October 1914 and February 1915. On the 11th of February 1915, his regiment sailed from Melbourne and arrived in Alexandria, Egypt on the 14th of March 1915 in the H.M.A.T A10 Karroo. In Egypt, the 9th Light Horse Regiment trained and prepared for combat in the Mena camp in Cairo before being transferred to Heliopolis. They did drills during training and learnt how to operate equipment, such as a Hotchkiss rifle and machine guns. Most importantly due to his regiment being a light horse, they did cavalry training as well, which was horsemanship and combat skills.

After this, the regiment was sent to the foot of Walker’s Ridge in Gallipoli on the 16th of May 1915 to help fight for the Gallipoli campaign. Throughout the whole campaign, his regiment served as a defensive role until the very end which was on the 20th of December 1915. On the 26th of June 1915, he was ordered a field punishment (F.P.) for disobeying orders in Walker’s Ridge Gallipoli. Arthur’s regiment was lucky enough to be in reserve during the battle of Nek, on the 7th of August 1915, but it still resulted in casualties from the regiment, including Lieutenant Colonel Albert Miell. He was wounded by a shrapnel shell that tore his back in Walker’s Ridge, Gallipoli on the 14th of August 1915 causing him to be hospitalised. After being wounded, he embarked back to England on the 17th of August 1915, missing the rest of the Gallipoli campaign.

After treatment and rest and time at Depot in England he re-joined the M.E.F (Mediterranean Expeditionary Force) in March of 1916 but was shortly transferred to the ANZAC police on the 3rd of April, which handled POWS (prisoners of war) and discipline management.

On the 6th of June 1916, he embarked from Alexandria Egypt to Marseilles France. During his time in France, he served with the Anzac Provost Police Corps stationed in Marseilles until the 12th of February 1917 when he was attached to duty in the Anzac Corps Field Punishment Compound. He was sent to hospital for trench foot, a type of condition that was caused by prolonged exposure to wet and cold environments. He was transferred back to England on the 1st of February 1917 and was admitted to a hospital in London. He remained in England until 4th August 1917 when he returned to the Middle East and disembarked in Alexandrina to be taken on strength with the 3rd Light Horse Regiment. He had another short hospital stay in May 1918 with diarrhoea. He was wounded in June with wound to his back thanks to a bomb and was treated in hospital. Once he had recovered enough Bland went to rest camp in Port Said in October 1918. He returned to Australia on the H.T. “Port Darwin” from Suez 15th November 1918 and arrived in Australia in early January 1918.

After Arthur Charles Bland was discharged on the 21st of March 1919. On the 25th of January 1935, he married Mary Phillipina Bulling, and they had at least one daughter. He was enlisted for World War II service in the 9th Light Horse Regiment again and was discharged in 1946.

Arthur Charles Bland passed away on the 4th of August 1950, just 4 years after he was discharged from his World War 2 service. He was buried in Tennant Creek, Northern Territory.

Reference List

Awm.gov.au. (2019). Unit and Commander’s War Diaries | The Australian War Memorial. [online] Available at: https://www.awm.gov.au/learn/understanding-military-history/unit-diaries.

Awm.gov.au. (2025). Private Arthur Charles Bland. [online] Available at: https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/P10637948 [Accessed 3 Apr. 2025].

https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/G3JP-8W6/arthur-charles-bland-1896-1950 [Accessed 16 Mar. 2025].

Adfa.edu.au. (2024). Details. [online] Available at: https://aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=24904 [Accessed 14 Mar. 2025].

Vwma.org.au. (2019). Australian Soldiers, Memorials and Military History. [online] Available at: https://vwma.org.au/.

Terrace, V. (2025). View digital copy. [online] Naa.gov.au. Available at: https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=3090973 [Accessed 3 Apr. 2025].

Qld.gov.au. (2021). Record details of Arthur Charles Bland. [online] Available at: https://www.familyhistory.bdm.qld.gov.au/details/8452a66c86c9098c50d4237351acb87fd63c3084b719d03597377367ef206a95 [Accessed 7 Apr. 2025].

Adfa.edu.au. (2024). Details. [online] Available at: https://aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=24904.