Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Lawrence Marquess Courtney was born on the 7th of April 1891 in Rockhampton, Queensland. Known as Mark, his parents were Mary (known as Minnie) and Lawrence Courtney from Charleville, Queensland. He was the eldest son and had a sister named Kathleen Beatrice Courtney, and a brother Kevin. There were other siblings but they are not mentioned. Mark was also reported to be a champion tennis player. 

Mark was employed as a telegraphist at Rockhampton when he enlisted on the 2nd of October 1916. His attestation papers describe him as '25 years and six months old, five feet seven and a half inches tall with a dark complexion, blue eyes and black hair. He weighed 10 stone and 4 pounds (65.5kg). Upon enlistment he was allocated to the 7th reinforcements of the 1st Australian and New Zealand Wireless Signals Squadron. 

Mark embarked from Sydney on the 23rd of December 1916 aboard RMS MOOLTAN. Although there is no definitive record, it is very likely that he travelled via Colombo (Sri Lanka) where he changed ships, as he disembarked in Basra, Mesopotamia (Iraq) from the ‘HMT Ellenga’ on the 28th of January 1917. 

There is no real detail on the period of January 1917 until November 1917 on what Mark was doing or where he travelled throughout Mesopotamia but by November 1917 he was in Ramadi (or Ramadie). 100km West of Baghdad. 

Mark contracted smallpox around the 26th of November 1917 and was admitted to the 23rd Combined Field Ambulance hospital in Ramadi, dangerously ill. He died of illness at 0915 hours on the 6th of December 1917. Mark was buried in Ramadi cemetery on the South Bank of the Euphrates River, 62 miles (100km) West of Baghdad. Interestingly Mark had received two Inoculations in October 1916 and two Vaccinations in November/December 1916, these were probably smallpox and typhoid. Noting that there are two types of smallpox it may be that Mark caught the more serious 'variola major' and despite being inoculated he succumbed to his illness.  

Due to a mix up on his death notification telegram, his Service Number was quoted as being 1746 prompting his mother to write:

"I must inform you that all particulars are accurate except the number. I have been sending letters, papers and parcels to number 17116 according to his instructions as per letter enclosed and he has received them. I know there are at least two L.M. Courtney's in Mesopotamia. Perhaps it is not my son that is dead" 

Heartbreakingly this was not the case and Mark had certainly died.  Most of the service personnel were encouraged to make a will. Mark's will was signed on 25th of January 1917 and stated:

"In the event of my death I give the whole of my property and effects to my mother Minnie Courtney of Cunnamulla (Railway) Queensland, Australia (Next of Kin)"

His personal effects were returned to his next of kin in April 1918 and consisted of:

Commonwealth of Australia Bank Book, Bank Receipt, One Rosary, Four medallions (attached to rosary) Two Crosses (Attached to Rosary), Original Will, Identity Disc. 

A memorial notice was posted in the Brisbane Courier with the following passage:

"What matters where a true man's cross may stand, so heaven be o'er it here or there, in a desert land"

In 1919, Minnie wrote to the Department of Defence asking after a diary of Mark's that had not been returned in his personal effects. No trace of the diary has been found. 

On the 15th of February 1918, Miss L Fox of 'Holyrood', Leichhardt, Sydney wrote to The Department of Defence requesting the Next of Kin details for Mark. Could she have been a sweetheart? She wrote:

"Dear Sir, on Monday last 11th inst. I received a letter from Major Marr, Commanding Officer of the 1st Australian Wireless Squadron Mesopotamia informing me of the death of my friend no. 16116 Sapper L.M Courtney of the same unit. I would very much like to know the address of his mother or next of kin if it is possible. Could you kindly forward on this information to me at your earliest convenience. Hoping I am not troubling you over-much and awaiting the favor (sic) of an early reply. I am yours truly (Miss) L.A. Fox".  Unfortunately, the Department of Defence was unable to provide these details due to privacy reasons.

It is obvious that MAJ Marr must have known of Miss Fox either by letters found in Mark's effects or by information from his close friends, and that he thought it appropriate to write to her regarding Mark's death. It was certainly common for a soldier's mates, or commanders to 'sanitise' a deceased soldier's personal effects so as not to embarrass or upset the next of kin. So perhaps letters etc were removed before sending his effects back to his mother as there is no mention of letters in the list of personal effects.

Minnie also received a war pension of one Pound per fortnight. 

On the 13th of May 1922, during a consolidation of all scattered war graves throughout Mesopotamia and Turkey, Mr Lawrence Courtney received a telegram from the Ministry of Defence stating that:

"Sir, your son the late No. 17116 Sapper L.M. Courtney, 1st Aust. & New Zealand W.Sig.Sqd, his remains have been exhumed from the former grave site and re-interred in grave no. 28, Block 4, row D, of the North Gate British Cemetery, Baghdad, Iraq. This work was carried out with every care and reverence in the presence of a chaplain."

In April 1935, Minnie wrote to the Ministry of Defence stating that she had lost her 'Mother's Brooch' and would like to receive another. These Brooches were supplied to the nearest female relative of a deceased member and were described by the Australian War Memorial as:

'A small gold-plated brooch in the form of a boomerang surmounted by a red and blue enamelled Rising Sun badge and the word 'MOTHER' in script form. It has a brooch-pin fitting and safety chain and pin.'

Mary was living at Windsor in Queensland and had named the property 'Ramadie' I would speculate in honour of her son. Mark was posthumously awarded the 1914/1915 Star, the British War Medal, and the Victory Medal. 

Lawrence Marquess COURTNEY was born in Rockhampton, Queensland on 7th April, 1891

His parents were Lawrence COURTNEY & Mary Teresa MARQUESS