Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Walter Graham Eyles, known as Toby, was born in August 1898 at Woollahra NSW the 2nd of 4 children born to his parents William and Ellen Eyles.  His older brother was William, known as Arthur, and his 2 younger sisters were Minnie and Nellie.  Toby worked as a horse driver and was living in Abbotsford, Canada Bay NSW when WW1 broke out.

On 13th October 1915 Toby enlisted for WW1 with the AIF at Holsworthy Camp NSW aged 16 but gave his age as 21 years 2 months.  He’s described as being 5ft 7ins tall with a florid complexion, grey eyes and fair hair.  His service number was 4285, his rank Private and he was assigned to the 2nd Infantry Battalion 13th Reinforcements which was part of the 14th Brigade, 5th Division.  He embarked from Sydney on HMAT Aeneas on 20th December 1915 and disembarked at Suez, Egypt, on 17th January 1916 then proceeded to Zeitoun Camp.  In mid February 1916 he transferred to the 54th Infantry Battalion, C Company, at Tel-el-Kebir Camp.  This battalion was also part of the 14th Brigade, 5th Division.  Toby embarked with his battalion from Alexandria on 20th June on HMT Caledonia.  They disembarked at Marseilles, France, 9 days later and entrained for northern France where they detrained at Hazebrouck on 2nd July 1916.  Just 9 days later they moved to Fleurbaix where they moved into the frontline trenches at Bac-St-Maur on 17th July.  They saw their first action 2 days later when they took part in the Battle of Fromelles which took place on 19th-20th July 1916.  The Australian War Memorial describes this battle as “a bloody initiation to warfare for the newly arrived 5th Division.  The feint was a disastrous failure.  Australian and British soldiers assaulted over open ground in broad daylight and under direct observation and heavy fire from the German lines.  Over 5,500 Australians became casualties.  Almost 2,000 of them were killed in action or died of wounds and some 400 were captured.  This is believed to be the greatest loss by a single division in 24 hours during the entire First World War.  Some consider Fromelles the most tragic event in Australia’s history.” 

The casualties were heavy with Toby’s battalion sustaining 3 Officers and 70 other ranks killed, 11 Officers and 277 other ranks wounded and 4 Officers and 169 other ranks missing.  The battalion strength had gone from 31 Officers and 980 men in June to just 16 Officers and 317 men after the battle. 

In the entry for the 19th and 20th July 1916 in Toby’s war diary, written after the battle, he describes the horror of the battle…“Germans had their machine guns turned upon us and of course we was mowed down like the sheep going to the slaughter.”  Toby survived because he fell over some barbed wire when the machine guns opened up on the Australian troops.  He describes lying in no man’s land…“I could see my mates getting cut to pieces, there was fellows laying all over the place with arms off, legs off and others riddled with bullets.”  He managed to make it back several hours later to his comrades who were surprised to see him having thought he died in the battle.   

The battalion withdraw to billets at Fluerbaix the day after the battle concluded and after resting, the battalion once again moved to the frontline trenches on 5th August at Wye Farm SE of Fleurbaix and SW of Bois Grenier.  Toby had just turned 18 making it legal for him to be a soldier.  They were relieved on the 21st August then returned to the same frontline trenches on 8th September.  They were relieved on 21st September then moved back into the frontline trenches at Wye Farm on 7th October.  They were relieved 6 days later and moved to Outtersteene.  The next day they proceeded to Pont Remy and then on to Bellancourt and arrived at Pommiers Redoubt on the Somme on 20th October.  This camp was SW of Montauban.  They moved into the support trench, Switch trench, SW of Flers, 2 days later then took over the frontline trenches a few days later.  They were relieved after 3 days and withdrew to the camp at Pommiers Redoubt.  On 8th November the battalion moved to Rainneville where they were inspected by the Commander in Chief General Sir Douglas Haig on 11th November 1916.  Just 2 days later Toby was admitted to the 8th Field Ambulance with bronchitis and transferred to the No. 1 New Zealand Stationary Hospital at Amiens.  After a long convalescent period he was discharged to duty on 3rd February 1917 and rejoined his battalion at Trones Wood, NE of Montauban, on 18th February just in time to move into the frontline trenches the next day. 

After being relieved 2 days later and a short rest, the battalion moved to the frontline trenches at Montauban on 23rd February.  They were withdrawn 4 days later to the support trenches…Needle and Switch trenches near Flers…then moved to the frontline at Atom trench north of Gueudecourt.  They moved into Rose trench 4 days later which was located between Atom and Needle trenches and then to Millers Son which was a dugout near Rose trench.

While Toby was serving at the frontline in October 1916 something horrific took place back home in Australia.  Toby learned about this from newspaper clippings sent to him from Australia.  On 13th October 1916, exactly a year to the day from when Toby enlisted, his 42 year old mother Ellen was found dead hanging from the bedpost in the family home at Five Dock NSW by the eldest daughter Minnie who was aged 15 at the time. 

In February 1917 Toby wrote a letter to his superiors requesting an early discharge so he could return to Australia to care for his 2 younger sisters who were just 15 and 11.  That request was granted and Toby proceeded to No. 2 Command Depot at Weymouth UK in late March 1917.  He embarked for Australia from Devonport on 4th May on HMAT Miltiades and disembarked at Sydney on 5th July 1917.  He was discharged from the service on 19th July 1917.

Toby’s father was arrested for his mother’s murder and subsequently found guilty and sentenced to death.  That was commuted to life in prison in 1917, however, he was released in the 1930s and died in Sydney in 1945 aged 71.   

Toby married Vida Mary Cunneen at Petersham NSW in 1924 and they welcomed a daughter in 1928, Betty Patricia.  The family lived at Abbotsford NSW until 1964. 

Toby’s sister Minnie married Robert Corlett in 1922 and she died in 1971 aged 70.  His other sister Nellie married George Everson in 1923 but they divorced in 1936.  The older brother Arthur married Amelia Jackson and he died in 1938 aged 42. 

Toby passed away on 19th November 1964 at Marrickville NSW aged 65 and was buried at Macquarie Park Cemetery and Crematorium, North Ryde NSW. 

Toby was commemorated on the original Drummoyne Soldiers and Sailors Honour Memorial which was a temporary structure unveiled on 25th April 1917 in honour of those from the local area who served in WW1.  It was replaced in 1928 with a new memorial, however, only 600 of the original 3,600+ names appear on the new memorial and Toby’s name is not one of them. 

Toby’s war diary is on display at the Anzac Memorial at Hyde Park NSW.             

Walter Graham Eyles was awarded for service in WW1 the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.   

Respectfully submitted by Sue Smith 23rd November 2023.

Sources

The Lost Boys by Paul Byrnes (book)

https://www.awm.gov.au/articles/encyclopedia/fromelles