WILLIAMS, Percy Joseph
| Service Number: | 1862 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 7 August 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 13th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 10 December 1892 |
| Home Town: | Abermain, Cessnock, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Miner |
| Died: | Killed in action, France, 11 August 1916, aged 23 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Abermain War Memorial, Cessnock Abermain Comforts Fund Pictorial Honour Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 7 Aug 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1862, 30th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 17 Dec 1915: | Involvement Private, 1862, 30th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '16' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Berrima embarkation_ship_number: A35 public_note: '' | |
| 17 Dec 1915: | Embarked Private, 1862, 30th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Berrima, Sydney | |
| 11 Aug 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1862, 13th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières |
Help us honour Percy Joseph Williams's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Percy Joseph Williams was son of Mrs. Hannah Manion, of Abermain, New South Wales. His father William G. Williams had passed away in 1900 when Percy was about 7 years of age. Percy was working as a miner when he enlisted.
Percy’s older brother, 1428 Private William Williams 34th Battalion AIF, died of wounds in England after being treated for over three months, on 8 June 1917, aged 34.
Percy was killed in action at Pozieres, only a few months after having arrived in France with the 13th Battalion.
The Newcastle Morning Herald ran a story on 9 January 1917, under the heading, ‘AN ABERMAIN HERO’. Lance-Corporal I. Forbes, of the 13th Battalion, writes as follows to Mrs. Martin Manion, of Abermain, in reference to the death of her son, Private Percy Williams, on active service:- “After much thought and consideration I have decided to acquaint you of the facts of one of the many sad events caused through this war, of the loss to myself and comrades of one whom we all admired for his nobleness of character. Our loss is great, but yours is far greater. You, like many Australian mothers, will be brave. You have consolation in the knowledge that your son Percy died nobly fighting for King and country, and for the liberty which we all love. Greater love hath no man than this, to give his life for his friends. As Corporal of Percy's section, and being near him at the time of his death, I feel it my duty to acquaint you with all the facts. Late on the night of August 10 my Company advanced to attack a German trench, which we took, and were consolidating when Percy was killed. He was buried where he fell by Corporal R. Groves, his friend, and myself. I wish you to accept, through the medium of this letter, the sincere sympathy of his many comrades and myself in your sad loss.”
Click images to start slideshow.