MORRIS, Robert Watson
| Service Number: | 928 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 4 March 1915, An original member of C Company 26th Bn. |
| Last Rank: | Corporal |
| Last Unit: | 12th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Burnie, Tasmania, Australia, 1 October 1893 |
| Home Town: | Burnie, Burnie, Tasmania |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Baker |
| Died: | 5 August 1940, aged 46 years, cause of death not yet discovered, place of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Woronora Memorial Park, Sutherland, New South Wales |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 4 Mar 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 928, 26th Infantry Battalion, An original member of C Company 26th Bn. | |
|---|---|---|
| 29 Jun 1915: | Involvement Private, 928, 26th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '15' embarkation_place: Brisbane embarkation_ship: HMAT Aeneas embarkation_ship_number: A60 public_note: '' | |
| 29 Jun 1915: | Embarked Private, 928, 26th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Aeneas, Brisbane | |
| 24 Sep 1915: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 12th Infantry Battalion | |
| 17 May 1917: | Honoured Military Medal, Bullecourt (Second) | |
| 28 Sep 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Corporal, 12th Infantry Battalion |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Robert Watson Morris was the son of Robert and Fannie Morris of Burnie, Tasmania. He was one of three brothers who enlisted in the AIF during WW1. They all gave their occupations as bakers. His younger brother 310 Sergeant Joseph Clarence Morris 52nd Battalion AIF had been killed in action at Mouquet Farm in 1916, aged 20. Another brother, 3190 Sergeant James Walter Morris 47th Battalion AIF was later killed in action in France on 28 March 1918, aged 25.
Robert was at Gallipoli from September 1915 with the 12th Battalion until evacuated sick a couple of months later. He was wounded at Pozieres and again at Flers a few months later. He was wounded again at Boursies during April 1917. At Bullecourt during May 1917, he was awarded a Military Medal for bravery in that he went out constantly from headquarters over several days, as a linesman, under extremely heavy shell fire in the open, to repair lines broken by the bombardment. He was wounded for a fourth time in Belgium during early October 1917, just after being promoted to Corporal. This time he was evacuated to England and after recovery he spent all of 1918 in training establishments there. He was returned to Australia on 2 January 1919.