Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

From AWM

Private Geoffrey Lionel Flemming (1874, 2nd Battalion) was born in Brighton, SA, in 1898. He was killed in action at Gallipoli on 16 May 1915, aged 16 years 8 months. Geoffrey is buried in the Lone Pine Cemetery, Turkey. Geoffrey’s two brothers, Richard and Valentine, both served at Gallipoli, and Valentine was also killed in action at Gallipoli on 6 August 1915.

Geoffrey Lionel Flemming, Geoff, was born on the 12th October 1898 at Brighton, South Australia, the youngest of 3 sons and the youngest of 7 children born to his parents Edward and Julia Flemming.  His older siblings were Dorothy, Richard, Elsie, Doris, Valentine and Kathleen.  His father died in 1905 and when his mother remarried he gained 4 half siblings…Edward, William, Arthur and Monica.  Geoff was educated at Smithfield Public School and Sydney High School NSW.  The family were living at Waverley NSW when WW1 broke out in 1914. 

On the 9th February 1915 at Liverpool Military Camp NSW, Geoff enlisted for WW1 in the AIF aged 16 but gave his age as 18.  His service record states his occupation as a labourer.  He’s described as being 5ft 11ins tall with a dark complexion, grey eyes and dark hair.  He was of a similar appearance to his oldest brother Richard, 25, so the authorities would not have suspected that he was underage.  Perhaps a motivating force in his enlisting was the fact that both his older brothers had already enlisted and he just wanted to do his bit as they were. 

His brother Valentine (Val) was the first to enlist on the 16th August 1914 in the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force (ANMEF) which was a force that served in German New Guinea from September 1914 till January 1915.  Geoff’s oldest brother Richard, aged 25 and married, enlisted in the AIF on the 18th August 1914…2 days after Val had enlisted with the ANEMF.  Richard served with the 2nd Infantry Battalion.  After Val returned from New Guinea he then enlisted with the AIF on the 15th May 1915.  At that point Richard was already serving at Gallipoli. 

Geoff’s service number was 1874, his rank Private and he was initially assigned to the 18th Infantry Battalion but he asked to be transferred to the 2nd Infantry Battalion so he could serve with Richard and that was granted.  He embarked from Sydney on HMAT Argyllshire bound for Egypt where he disembarked at Suez.  He then joined his unit at the head of Victoria Gully, Gallipoli, on the 26th May 1915 only to find out that Richard had been wounded on 10th May.  Richard had returned to duty 2 days before Geoff arrived at Gallipoli but due to a spinal compression Richard was evacuated on the 7th June so they only got to serve together for 12 days.  The day of Geoff’s arrival happened to be the same day that Sergeant W C Beech of his unit, the 2nd Infantry Battalion, created the periscope rifle which allowed a soldier standing in a trench to take accurate aim and fire without exposing himself to the enemy. 

After Richard was evacuated Geoff served with his unit at Gallipoli for 12 days until he was killed in action on the 16th June 1915 aged 16.  As fate would have it, this very same day back in Australia, his brother Val was embarking for Egypt from Sydney and did not know of his brother’s death.  Geoff was originally buried in Brown’s Dip Cemetery 500 yards south of Anzac Cove but was later reinterred at Lone Pine Cemetery.  Val arrived at Gallipoli on the 4th August but was killed in action 2 days later during the Battle of Lone Pine.  He was aged 20.  Val’s name is on panel 22 of the Lone Pine Memorial which commemorates the 3,268 Australians and 456 New Zealanders who died in the campaign and have no known grave.  So they both lie at rest at Gallipoli and both are remembered at the Lone Pine Cemetery and Memorial. 

After the war his mother received a Memorial Scroll, Plaque and Royal Letter from the King for both Geoff and Val.  These were presented to the next of kin of those who died while serving in the Australian Imperial Force in WW1, acknowledging soldier’s service and their loss as a family. 

Geoff is commemorated on panel 32 of the Roll of Honour at the Australian War Memorial at Canberra ACT and the Smithfield WW1 Roll of Honour NSW although his surname is spelt incorrectly.  His brother Val’s misspelt surname is immediately above his and the initial “V” is missing but as with Geoff’s name, there is a cross beside his name which indicates that the soldier was killed.  Geoff is also commemorated on the Waverley Soldiers’ War Memorial along with his 2 brothers Richard and Val.             

Geoffrey Lionel Flemming was awarded for service in WW1 the 1914-1915 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal and the Anzac Commemorative Medallion.   

Respectfully submitted by Sue Smith 19th October 2023.

Sources

“The Lost Boys” written by Paul Byrnes (Book)