CASTLE, Alfred Ernest
| Service Number: | 1909 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 5th Machine Gun Company |
| Born: | Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia, 6 April 1894 |
| Home Town: | Blayney, Blayney, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Trainee Engineman |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Belgium, 4 October 1917, aged 23 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres, Flanders, Belgium |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Blayney Christ Church War Memorial, Blayney Pictorial Honour Roll No 1, Blayney War Memorial Gates, Blayney and Milthorpe District Roll of Honor, Haymarket NSW Government Railway and Tramway Honour Board, Menin Gate Memorial (Commonwealth Memorial to the Missing of the Ypres Salient) |
World War 1 Service
| 9 Aug 1915: | Involvement Private, 1909, 18th Infantry Battalion, Third Ypres, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '12' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Runic embarkation_ship_number: A54 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Aug 1915: | Embarked Private, 1909, 18th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Runic, Sydney | |
| 4 Oct 1917: | Involvement Private, 1909, 5th Machine Gun Company, Third Ypres, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 1909 awm_unit: 5th Australian Machine Gun Company awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1917-10-04 |
Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board
Alfred Ernest CASTLE was the older of two brothers who worked for the NSWGR&T and who were both killed in action in WW I. They were sons of William Alfred and Rachel Castle and their family home was in Maria St, Blayney, NSW. Alfred was born on 6 April 1894 at Bathurst, NSW.
He joined the NSWGR&T as a cleaner in the Locomotive Branch at Bathurst on 19 March 1914. On 1 June 1915 he joined the AIF with the rank of Private (Service Number 1909) and was posted to the 3rd Reinforcements to the 18th Infantry Battalion. He nominated his father as his next of kin.
On 16th November 1916 he was in France when he was admitted to hospital with trench feet. While his condition was classified as ‘slight’ it was severe enough to require his evacuation to England for treatment.
After he recovered, he was sent to a training course on using a machine gun, which he passed as ‘having a fair knowledge of [the] Lewis Gun’.
Submitted 20 May 2023 by John Oakes
Biography contributed by John Oakes
Alfred Ernest CASTLE was the older of two brothers who worked for the NSW Government Railways and Tramways. Tragically, both men were both killed in action in WW I. They were sons of William Alfred and Rachel Castle. Their family home was in Maria St, Blayney, NSW. Alfred was born on 6th April 1894 at Bathurst, NSW.
He joined the NSW Government Railways and Tramways as a cleaner in the Locomotive Branch (the first step in becoming an engine driver) at Bathurst on 19th March 1914.
On 1st June 1915 he joined the AIF with the rank of Private (Service Number 1909). He was posted to the 3rd Reinforcements and the 18th Infantry Battalion. He nominated his father as his next of kin.
Alfred embarked aboard HMAT A54 ‘Runic’ (bound for Egypt) in Sydney on 9th August 1915. After a period in Egypt he was sent to Gallipoli where he joined the 18th Infantry Battalion on 11th October 1915. After his unit was evacuated from Gallipoli he arrived back in Egypt on 9th January 1916.
On 18th March 1916 he left Egypt for France. On 16th November 1916 he was admitted to hospital with trench feet. While his condition was classified as ‘slight’ it was severe enough to require his evacuation to England for treatment. After he recovered, he was sent to a training course on how to operate a machine gun. He passed as ‘having a fair knowledge of [the] Lewis Gun’.
On 24th April 1917 Alfred was sent back to France to reinforce the 5th Machine Gun Company. After a short period in the Machine Gun Base Depot at Camiers, France, he joined the unit on 6th May 1917. He was killed in action on 6th May 1917 at Broodseinde in Belgium. Alfred is commemorated at the Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres, Flanders, Belgium.
- Based on the notes for the Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board