CHANDLER, Reuben Edward
| Service Number: | 5675 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 5th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Not yet discovered |
| Home Town: | Not yet discovered |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 4 Apr 1916: | Involvement Private, 5675, 5th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '8' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Euripides embarkation_ship_number: A14 public_note: '' | |
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| 4 Apr 1916: | Embarked Private, 5675, 5th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Euripides, Melbourne |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Aubrey Bairstow
Reubin Edward Chandler was nearly 19 when he enlisted in the AIF in February 1916. He stated that he was a fireman with prior cadet and volunteer service. Reubin was posted to 5 Battalion and served with them in France and Western Europe from July 1916 until 20 April 1918 when he was transferred to 1st Machine Gun Battalion. The battalion's first major action in France was at Pozieres in the Somme valley in July 1916.
After Pozieres the battalion fought at Ypres in Flanders then returning to the Somme for winter. In 1917, the battalion participated in the operations that followed-up the German withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line, and then returned to Belgium to join the great offensive launched to the east of Ypres.
He was shot in the head 2 weeks later during the Spring Offensive, but remarkably recovered and was back at the front as a machine gunner in mid June. He was again wounded , this time gassed, in September 1918, this necessitating his return to England and, in mid 1919, he was returned to Australia.