PHILBEY, Arthur Leslie
| Service Number: | 1970 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 3 April 1916, Oaklands, South Australia |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 48th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Wiltunga, South Australia, 22 August 1897 |
| Home Town: | Bute, Barunga West, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Farmer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Belgium, 12 October 1917, aged 20 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" |
| Memorials: | Adelaide National War Memorial, Alford District of Ninnes Honour Board, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Bute District Council WW1 Roll of Honor, Bute War Memorial Garden, Bute Wiltunga Methodist Church WW1 Roll of Honour, Menin Gate Memorial (Commonwealth Memorial to the Missing of the Ypres Salient), Spalding Honour Roll WW1, Spalding War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 3 Apr 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1970, 48th Infantry Battalion, Oaklands, South Australia | |
|---|---|---|
| 13 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1970, 48th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '19' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Seang Bee embarkation_ship_number: A48 public_note: '' | |
| 13 Jul 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 1970, 48th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Seang Bee, Adelaide | |
| 12 Oct 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1970, 48th Infantry Battalion, Third Ypres |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Faithe Jones
Son of Joseph Henry PHILBEY and Sarah Jane nee BOSS
During World War I, when the first recruiting train went through Bute, Arthur was one of the first to volunteer for service in the 1st AIF, enlisting on 3 April 1916 at the age of 18 1/2 years. He joined A company at the Second Depot on 27 April 1916 in Mitcham. Together with Lawrence (Larry) Cock ("Cocksy" served with Arthur on the Western Front and returned, Philip Lawrence Cock , Service number 1899, Parents Philip Langmead and Alice Jane Cock nee Stagg), Arthur was farewelled at Pine Forest Chapel on 30 May 1916.
Arthur had a lighter side; he confessed in a letter to his brothers, Will and Clarrie (William and Clarence), dated 25 June 1916 to breaking leave regulations in Adelaide "to do a line with Avoca (Inkster)" "she is a real little plum", for which he was fined ten "bob" and docked 5 days pay "so that don't pay, do it". He embarked on the troopship 'Seang Bee' on 13 July 1916 and disembarked at Plymouth, England on 9 September 1916.
Arthur was attached to the 12th Training Battalion near Codford. From the camp on 16 October 1916 Arthur wrote to his brothers " I had my fortune told in London and the old girl told me I was going to come through alright but I is going to be wounded".
On 20 November 1916 he boarded the troopship 'Victoria' at Folkestone, crossed the English channel and, after enduring a bad bout of seasickness ("I don't think I was ever so bad in all my life..."), landed at Etaples, France the following day.
Arthur was then assigned as part of the 3rd reinforcement to the 48th Battalion, 4th Division, however before he could join his unit, Arthur contracted a severe case of the mumps and was twice hospitalised in Camiers. On 23 January 1917 he finally reported to the 48th, and shortly afterward moved up the firing line.
In early October , he was deployed to the Ypres Salient for the Passchendaele phase of the Third Battle of Ypres, serving as a machine gunner. He was involved in much heavy fighting, " a box with old fritz", "some very good fun" as he put it in his letters, at one point suffering a light shrapnel wound to his leg.
Arthur experienced all of the hardships of the Western Front - the intense cold, mud, lice ("thoroughbreds"), lack of sleep and bad tobacco ("cocky chaff"). One after the other his mates were killed or wounded. Nevertheless, his letter sought to be cheerful and reassuring, giving little hint of the hardships and the dreadful odds. Shortage of cash for leave seemed to be his main worry. Letters from home (and from Avoca, his "little plum" who wrote "as regular as clockwork") brought some solace and parcels some comfort, including much appreciated good tobacco and warm knitted socks.
Writing to his brother Will on 17 April 1917 he said " I had a young chap in to see us last night .Violet's brother. He doesn't seem a bad sort of cove." (Violet married John Henry, one of Arthur's elder brothers. Her brother, Harold Hedley Tobitt (Service number 3918, Parents; Charles and Edith Rosa Tobitt nee Gosden , Private , 50th Battalion, killed at Flanders 24 September 1917).
Arthur was killed in action on 12 October 1917 in the ill-fated allied attempt to take Passchendaele village.
In a letter dated 1 September 1919 to Arthur's mother, his mate William Baverstock, who described himself as Arthur's best friend and was with him at the final engagement, intimated that Arthur was killed by a gunshot wound to the head and did not suffer. Baverstock added that, under heavy pressure, his comrades were forced to move on quickly, leaving Arthur behind.
Courtesy of Shauna Bradley
Biography
"LATE PTE. A. PHILBEY
Mr. and Mrs. J.H. Philbey, of near Bute, have been notified that their youngest son, Pte. Arthur Philbey, was killed in action on October 12, aged 20 years. Pte. Philbey was born at Wiltunga, and with the exception of two years spent at Spalding, had lived up to the time of his enlisting at Wiltunga. He was a member of Wiltunga Church and Sunday school. When the first recruiting train went through Bute he was one of the first to offer his services. He went into camp on April 18, 1916, and sailed for the front on July 13, 1916 . He was with his battalion in France nearly nine months, when he made the supreme sacrifice. He was honoured and respected by all who knew him." - from the Adelaide Register 04 Dec 1917 (nla.gov.au)
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