SMITH, Charles Lewis
| Service Number: | 2445 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 6 May 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 51st Infantry Battalion (WW1) |
| Born: | Geraldton. Western Australia, 13 May 1898 |
| Home Town: | Rottnest, Western Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Farmer |
| Died: | Killed in action, Mouquet Farm, France, 3 September 1916, aged 18 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Fremantle 849 Memorial, Kings Park Western Australia State War Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 6 May 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 2445, 11th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 25 Jun 1915: | Involvement Private, 2445, 11th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Fremantle embarkation_ship: HMAT Karoola embarkation_ship_number: A63 public_note: '' | |
| 25 Jun 1915: | Embarked Private, 2445, 11th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Karoola, Fremantle | |
| 3 Sep 1916: | Involvement Private, 2445, 51st Infantry Battalion (WW1), Battle for Pozières , --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 2445 awm_unit: 51 Battalion awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1916-09-03 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Charles’s father noted on his roll of honour form that “enlisted on his 17th birthday with his brother, had only five weeks in camp (3 of them as guard over German prisoners on Rottnest Island) when he embarked on SS Karoda for Egypt. About a month’s training in Egypt, then sent to Gallipoli.” His father was the lighthouse keeper on Rottnest Island, just off the West Australian coast.
Charles enlisted the same day as his brother Victor Ernest Smith and they were issued consecutive regimental numbers and left Australia with 11th Battalion reinforcements. They both served on Gallipoli together from September 1915.
Charles transferred to the 51st Battalion during February 1916 and in the aftermath of the heavy fighting at Mouquet Farm he was reported wounded. A note in service file says “Was badly wounded in the stomach, believed would have died before he got in.” He was then officially listed as wounded and missing before his death was confirmed in 1917 as “killed in action 3 September.”
Charles was not much over the age of eighteen when he died, his older brother Victor was later awarded a Military Medal for bravery in the field and mentioned in despatches.
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