Virtual
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Australia

From The AIF Project

"He was an all round useful man"

"His Lt wrote us a good letter of him as a soldier and a man. He was a good character." from father George Jones

From François Berthout

LCpl 2698 Kenneth Howard Jones 
60th Australian Infantry Battalion,
15th Brigade, 5th Australian Division
 
Today in the peaceful fields of the Somme, red with millions of poppies, are sometimes heard through a slight breeze the murmurs and voices of young boys who, invisible but present, stand proud and young side by side behind the countless rows of their white graves on which their names are remembered with reverence and care and on which we can read the stories of their lives cut short by war through the trenches and fields of barbed wire in which these young men lived and fell alongside of their friends and their brothers in arms who fought together for the peace and freedom in which we live thanks to them and in which I would stand with humility and with the highest respect to honor and keep alive the memory of these men who gave their lives for France and for the values ​​that unite us.Young forever, they now rest in peace on the sacred grounds of a friendly country and for them, I would give my today, my tomorrow, my life so that theirs may never be forgotten and so that their names may live forever.

Today, it is with the utmost respect and the deepest gratitude that I would like to honor the memory of one of these young men, one of my boys of the Somme who gave his today for our tomorrow. I would like to pay a very respectful tribute to Lance Corporal number 2698 Kenneth Howard Jones who fought in the 60th Australian Infantry Battalion, 15th Brigade, 5th Australian Division, and who was killed in action 104 years ago, on April 27, 1918 at the age of 28 on the Somme front.

Kenneth Howard Jones was born in 1890 in Strathalbyn, South Australia, and was the son of George Jones and Flora Jones (née McDonald), of Dry Plains, Strathalbyn. He was educated at Strathalbyn Public School and after graduation worked as a shearer and before the outbreak of the war was living in Melbourne, Victoria.

Kenneth enlisted on January 12, 1916 in Melbourne, Victoria, as Private in the 60th Australian Infantry Battalion, 6th Reinforcement, battalion which was nicknamed "The Heidelberg Regiment" and whose motto was "Celer Et Audax" (Swift And Bold).After a nine month training period at Broadmeadows Camp, Victoria, Kenneth embarked with his unit from Melbourne, on board HMAT A71 Nestor on October 2, 1916 and sailed for England.

On November 16, 1916, Kenneth arrived in England and was disembarked in Plymouth then joined the 15th Training Battalion with which he remained until December 29 and the next day, embarked with his unit from Folkestone, on board "Princess Clementine" and proceeded overseas for France.

On December 31, 1916, Kenneth arrived in France and was disembarked at Etaples where he joined the 5th Australian Divisional Base Depot. On February 13, 1917 he marched out to join unit and was taken on strength on the field with the 60th Australian Infantry Battalion on February 17 February at "B Camp", Montauban, Somme, which they left on February 26 for the "Townsville Camp" and two days later joined the front line at Gueudecourt and occupied a position known as "Switch Gap" and a few days later, on March 3, relieved the 59th Australian Infantry Battalion at "Cheese Road", Flers , and faced a very active enemy artillery.

On March 7, 1917, still in Flers, the battalion occupied the "Switch Trench", the "Bulls Road" and "Possum Trench" which they evacuated on March 18 and marched for Fremicourt, Bancourt and arrived at the "Delsaux Farm", Fremicourt, on March 19 where the men were mainly employed in working parties until March 24 then joined Bancourt the next day. Less than a week later, on March 29, the battalion was sent to Haplincourt, Pas-De-Calais, and stayed here until April 3.

On April 4, 1917, Kenneth and the 60th Battalion marched into Billets at "Sugar Refinery", Beaulencourt, and were engaged in road work and physical exercises until April 11 and the next day, went to St Aubin then moved back to Beaulencourt where they remained until April 20, then received orders to go once again in the Somme, marched through Bernafay, Montauban and arrived at Mametz where they were billeted at "C Camp" and were employed in cleaning work but also in working parties followed by a period of training.

On May 8, 1917, the 60th Battalion left Mametz and marched for Albert from where they embarked by train for Favreuil, Pas-De-Calais, where they arrived the next day and received orders to move to Noreuil and joined the trenches where the men improved the dugouts, dug new lines near Bullecourt under German artillery fire then moved into lines of support on 12 April and launched an attack the same day which resulted in the capture of several German lines near Noreuil. 13 May the 60th was relieved and marched to Vaulx-Vraucourt for a period of rest and training behind Allied lines but came under frequent enemy artillery bombardment with gas shells and on 21 May marched to Biefvillers where they stayed until June 13.

On June 14, 1917, the battalion left Biefvillers and marched again for the Somme, through Albert and arrived at Rubempre at 10:00 a.m. and received a new period of training which ended on July 15 and the following day, marched for Mailly-Maillet where Kenneth was promoted to the rank of Lance Corporal on July 21 then moved to Sercus, Pas-De-Calais on July 31 where they remained until September 17 then marched to Dominion Camp at Steenvoorde the following day then sent to the Salient of Ypres and entered the trenches of the Hooge sector on 24 September and established their headquarters in a pill-box in a position called "Black Watch Corner" and during heavy fighting captured a strongpoint called "Cameron House" on 26 September then continued their advance to "Joist Farm", were relieved the next day by the 32nd Australian Infantry Battalion and marched for Chateau Segard, in the Dickebush sector and moved back for the Dominion Camp on September 30 and remained in rest until October 8.

On 12 October 1917, the 60th Battalion fought again in the front line at Ypres where it relieved the 30th Australian Infantry Battalion near "Anvil Wood" under constant and incessant fire from German artillery but were relieved a week later by the 56th Australian Infantry Battalion and marched to "Canal Dugouts" then to Micmac Camp at Ouderdom on 18 October where the battalion reorganized. On 28 October the battalion left Ypres and marched to Reninghelst where they remained until 11 November and were sent in Locre the following day.

From Locre, the 60th Battalion moved to Ramillies Camp, near Kemmel on 13 November where they underwent a further period of physical exercises and on 28 October occupied a sector of the Kemmel front line called "Torreken Farm" then moved back to Kemmel on December 15 from where they embarked by train for Desvres, Pas-De-Calais, where they were disembarked the next day and were sent to the Beussant sector for intensive training which ended at the end of January 1918.

On February 1, 1918, Kenneth and his comrades were once again sent to fight at Kemmel and then fought fiercely at Wytschaete between February 23 and March 15. The next day, the battalion marched to Ramielles Camps, near Kemmel, where they bivouaced until March 25 but the war did not cease to impose its terrible rhythm and a few days before, on March 21, the German army launched its spring offensive, the last of the war having for objective to pierce the Allied front then to capture the railway junction at Amiens then to advance on Paris. On March 29, the 60th Battalion was sent to the Somme to help the British and French whose lines were collapsing and arrived at Varennes the same day then marched through La Neuville, Corbie, Bonnay, and arrived at Blangy-Tronville, near Villers-Bretonneux on April 11.

Two weeks later,on April 24, British troops were defending Villers-Bretonneux. The Germans attacked at dawn, and with the aid of 13 tanks, which they were using for the first time, they captured the town. A British counter-attack commenced at 10 pm the same day led by Australians to the north and south. The Australian brigades enveloped Villers-Bretonneux and attempted to join forces to the east of the town. They were unable to join up in the dark and many Germans managed to escape. After dawn, the gap was gradually closed and Australians entered the town from the east and British from the north and west. Villers-Bretonneux was cleared of enemy troops on 25 April 1918, the third anniversary of the Anzac landing at Gallipoli. This action marked the effective end of the German offensive that had commenced so successfully more than a month earlier.

Unfortunately, the great Australian victory at Villers-Bretonneux did not put an end to the war and the Germans continued to fight fiercely and two days later, on April 27, 1918, Kenneth met his fate and was killed in action near Blangy - Tronville, he was 28 years old.

Today, Lance Corporal Kenneth Howard Jones rests in peace at Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery, Somme, and his grave bears the following inscription: "In memory of our dearly loved son safe in the arm of Jesus."

Kenneth, you who answered with determination and courage to the call of duty, it was in the prime of your life that you gave your today on the battlefields of the Great War, among the poppies of the Somme where with you , fought and served with dedication and pride a whole generation of young men who gathered and walked side by side behind bugles and bagpipes, guided by the highest values ​​and by the desire, the deep will to do what was right despite the fears that inhabited their hearts. Together they sang their hopes and the love of the country, they shared their good humor despite dark days full of uncertainty whose sky was broken by lightning and the thunder of distant artillery but already roaring which spat rage and hatred of men. Together they went through the fields and the ruined cities of Belgium and northern France which were broken and destroyed by the bites of hurricanes of steel and quickly joined the trenches, a world of darkness and mud in which death in torrents of blood imposed its reign but as sneaky as it was, it never broke the will and the determination of young boys whose hopes and dreams were stronger than anything and that gave them the strength and the courage to stand, to bite and to hold on to every meter of French soil on which they showed their bravery through the finest spirit of camaraderie that kept them strong and united through the darkest hours of the 20th century which sent to Pozieres, Mouquet Farm, Amiens, Villers-Bretonneux, waves of men who killed each other in fury and howls, in the chaos and desolation of devastated soils, scarified and bruised by kilometers of impassable barbed wire in which fell friends, fathers and brothers who left behind broken families and homesin which were heard the tears and pain of mothers who never saw their sons again.They were young and so far from home but were soon deeply admired and loved by the French people who adopted and loved them as their sons and who, in welcome moments of rest, offered these young men comfort, love and the peace of brief moments that never lasted very long and for us, tired but still smiling, horrified but determined, they joined their comrades and brothers in arms on the front line who were once again ready to go over the top, resolute and courageous they waited with their eyes to the sky for the whistles to resound through the valley of the Somme and encouraging each other, watching over each other, they charged bayonets forward, meter by meter with the ardor of their youth, ready to lay down their lives and do what their hearts told them when suddenly the enemy machine guns erupted and spat death at an insane rate on young men whose uniforms turned blood red, without mercy death did its disastrous work but in their last breaths, these heroes shed their blood with in their hearts the pride to have served their country and to have fought for peace and freedom in which we live and their victory was that after so many years, death which was a step, never had the last word on them because today, tomorrow and forever, we will remember them, we will always honor their memory with respect and love. At the going down of the sun and in the morning I will watch over them to bring them back to life so that their stories and their names live forever.Thank you so much Kenneth, for everything.At the going down of the sun and in the morning,we will remember him,we will remember them.