RICE, Eric James
| Service Number: | NX18465 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 29 May 1940 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 2nd/13th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Mullumbimby, New South Wales, Australia, 18 March 1919 |
| Home Town: | Not yet discovered |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Toowoomba Queensland, Australia, 26 June 1990, aged 71 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Toowoomba Garden of Remembrance | Cemetery & Crematorium 347-C-2 |
| Memorials: |
World War 2 Service
| 29 May 1940: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Private, NX18465, 2nd/13th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 30 Oct 1945: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Private, NX18465, 2nd/13th Infantry Battalion |
Help us honour Eric James Rice's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Michelle Leihn
Eric James Rice - Listed "Rats of Tobruk" NX18465
For a soldier to be recognised as a "Rat of Tobruk", there needs to be evidence that he served at Tobruk during the Siege. This historic siege of Tobruk, Libya 1941 where Australians, British, Indian, Czechoslovakian, Polish and other allied troopos held off a larger German Force. Of the garrison of 22,000 about 14,000 were Australian. The siege started on 10th April 1941 when the first shots were exchanged with the Germans after they had encircled the fortress with the Italians and ended on 7th December 1941 when Rommel was finally forced to abandon the Siege.
The Rats of Tobruk, were so named in response to reports that Nazi radio propagandst "Lord Haw Haw" had described them as being caught "like rats in a trap" - "rats who would be smoked out of their holes" in one of his broadcasts. Nevertheless, moral remained high, thus Australians adopting the iconic name "THE RATS OF TOBRUK"
Eric James Rice - Snipper, suffered extreme PTS following his return to Australia after WW2. - Note - Nephew: Garry Warren Schroder - Schroder/Rice Family History - Michelle - Great Niece
Click images to start slideshow.