Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Before The War 

Augustus Thomas was born in June, 1885, in the town of Ballarat, Victoria, to Margaret and William Thomas, who were British migrants. He had a sister named Rebecca Mills, who was his next of kin.

He moved and grew up in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, where he lived, on Boulder Road, until he left for war. His previous primary and secondary education is unknown, but prior to his service he had no experience in the military, and worked as a miner and labourer. Augustus enlisted for the war in Blackboy Hill, Western Australia, on the 20th of October in 1916. His reasons for enlistment specifically are unknown, but since the war started in 1914, and he enlisted later when more and more people were joining, he likely was among the masses of young men who wanted to protect their country, and travel to places they never would have an opportunity to otherwise. Augustus was 31 years old and unmarried at the time of his enlistment, and had no children either. 

He left Australia from Fremantle, aboard the HMAT Militiades, on the 27th of January in 1917, marking the beginning of his war service. 

Life on The Western Front

Augustus was placed in the 44th Australian Infantry Battalion, in the 3rd Division, and began serving as a Private, with his service number being 3136. The battalion undertook and completed the majority of their initial training in Britain from July to November in 1916, and since Augustus was not yet in the war at that time he would not have trained there with them. The battalion sailed to France and arrived in the November of 1916. They entered the trenches on the Western Front on the 29th of December.

Augustus joined the battalion while they were stationed on the Western Front in the winter of 1917 in France - he and the battalion rotated between fighting on the front lines of the trenches to training in the rear areas of the perimeter when they could. On the 13th of March in 1917, half of the battalion took part in a raid, and whether or not Augustus was involved is unknown - but the effort was unsuccessful.

After this, the battalion joined its first major battle in June, in Messines, Belgium.In the following months, the battalion fought in the Ypres sector of the Western Front, fighting to secure the area of Broodseinde Ridge. Ypres was one of the bloodiest battles the ANZAC troops faced, and only 158 of the 44th Battalion’s men out of the 992 who fought in it, were uninjured.Augustus was one of the men who was not wounded, and returned to fight with the battalion after they had a rest period on the 21st of October.

Augustus previously had served in these aforementioned battles as a Private, but after the rest period he took on the role of a Signaller, and in the following battles he stayed close to the front lines, watching enemy movements and reporting back to his battalion with any intel or progress. This was a dangerous role as Signallers often were exposed to enemy shrapnel and shelling while on duty. 

The battalion then remained in Belgium for another five months, where they fought on the front lines until Germany launched their last offensive effort on the troops in the March of 1918, and Augustus and his battalion fought to defend against it and to stop the Germans’ advances towards an important railway junction in Amiens. The Germans’ efforts overtook the ANZAC troops’ defence, so the ANZACS were forced to launch their own offensive, starting the battle of Le Hamel. The 44th battalion joined the first wave of the preparatory battle on the the 4th of July in 1918, and the offensive began on the 8th of August.  Augustus was wounded in action on the 14th of July, and left to be treated for his wounds, and he stayed in the hospital for a month. 

Augustus was again wounded in action a few days after returning to his unit, during this offensive, which lasted from August to September, sustaining injuries to his neck, and this time stayed in the hospital for three months. During Augustus’ recovery period, he began to report that he had been having ‘heart attacks’, and said that he would wake up in the middle of the night with chest pains and would struggle to breathe. As his condition worsened, Augustus was declared medically unfit to continue fighting, and never returned to battle. Augustus’ ‘heart attacks’ were most likely anxiety attacks of some sort, and were attributed to the trauma he experienced during his years of service.  

After The War 

Augustus Thomas was discharged at the age of 34, and returned home to Australia on the 5th of January, 1920, aboard the HT Cape Verde, and arrived in Melbourne on the 16th of February of the same year. Augustus was awarded a British War Medal and a Victory Medal for his overseas service, perseverance and bravery, qualities reflecting the ANZAC spirit. He passed away on the 25th of April in 1935, at age 50, and is buried in Randwick, Western Australia.