POWER, Reginald Leo
| Service Number: | 1132 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 1 July 1915, 4 year RAN RO |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 5th Divisional Signal Company |
| Born: | Footscray, Victoria, Australia, December 1896 |
| Home Town: | Carlton, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Salesman |
| Died: | 17 May 1925, cause of death not yet discovered, place of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Brighton General Cemetery, Victoria |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 1 Jul 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1132, 30th Infantry Battalion, 4 year RAN RO | |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Nov 1915: | Involvement Private, 1132, 30th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '16' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Beltana embarkation_ship_number: A72 public_note: '' | |
| 9 Nov 1915: | Embarked Private, 1132, 30th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Beltana, Sydney | |
| 9 Jul 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Sergeant, 1132, 5th Divisional Signal Company, 3rd MD |
Help us honour Reginald Leo Power's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Evan Evans
From How We Served
Brighton General Cemetery, the final resting place for; - 1132 Sergeant Reginald Leo Power MSM of Footscray and Carlton, Victoria, had been employed as a salesman when he enlisted for War Service on the 1st of July 1915.
Allocated to the newly formed 30th Battalion, 1st AIF, Reginald embarked for Egypt and further training on the 9th of November 1915.
Shortly after his arrival Reginald was transferred over to the 5th Division Signals Company on the 16th of March 1916, before being embarked for France on the 25th of June 1916, and whilst still at sea Reginald was promoted to the rank of Corporal.
Reginald's service in the trenches was continuous and included his being present for the attack on Fromelles on July 19th and 20th 1916, and the Second Battle of Bullecourt in May of 1917.
Aside brief periods of Leave to England, and short bouts of sickness which he recovered from each time, Reginald remained on duty with his Unit for the duration of the War.
As a dispatch rider, Reginald was recommended for, and would receive the Meritorious Service Medal for his devotion to duty during 'The Third Battle of Ypres'. During these operations Reginald was tasked in continually running important messages from the front lines to Brigade Headquarters, whilst under heavy enemy shell fire and through all manner of conditions, between the 10th of October to the 28th of October 1917.
On the 15th of March 1919, Reginald was promoted to Sergeant, and by the 16th of August, he was embarked for his repatriation back to Australia. Following his safe arrival home Roger received his formal discharge from the 1st AIF for his re-entry into civilian life.
Reginald's untimely death occurred on the 17th of 1925 whilst he was a patient at St. Vincent's Hospital in Melbourne, and having married after the War, he would leave behind a young widow and their two children to mourn his passing.
After surviving nearly three years in the trenches of Northern France and Flanders, Sergeant Reginald Power MSM, a decorated veteran of World War One, would be laid to rest within Brighton General Cemetery, Victoria, at the premature age of just 27.
Click images to start slideshow.