Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

William Waterson Stevens was born in Scotland, where he arrived in Fremantle, Western Australia in January 1912 with his wife Mary and eldest daughter Helen.

It was in March 1916 that William enlisted into the A.I.F. His occupation was recorded as a horse driver with his next of kin as his wife in Federation Street Mount Hawthorn. He was attached to the 51st Battalion 4th reinforcements conducting his training at Forrest Park Bunbury.

In August 1916 he embarked aboard the H.M.T. Miltiades from Fremantle arriving in England in September 1916. In December 1916 William was sent to France where he was taken on strength with his battalion.

By April 1917 the 51st Battalion was a part of the advance chasing the Germans who were retreating to their defensive line near Bullecourt, known as Hindenburg Line.

It was on 2nd April 1917 that the 51st battalion where given orders to capture the high ground north east of the road from Noreuil to Longatte commencing at 5.15am, with the operation to be in five phases.

With the commencement of the artillery barrage, 51st battalion moved forward with 50th Battalion on the right and the 2nd Battalion Gordon Highlanders on the left. Immediately German machine gun fire came from both flanks, from the villages of Noreuil and Longatte and the road which was the 51st Battalion objective. This machine gun fire caused many casualties.

When the village of Longatte on the left was reached a strong point was established consisting of a bomb team, Lewis machine gun and a captured Maxim machine gun which was brought into immediate action. The attack pushed on with a number of German prisoners taken by the advancing Australians. It was on the right side of the attack that a company commander near the village of Noreuil decided to withdraw to a shallow trench to consolidate his attack. This was due to several reasons, one was that their own artillery barrage was still on their objective, along with German machine gun and rifle fire causing heavy casualties and their objective was on a down slope in full view of the Hindenburg Line.

By 7.30am the Germans began to shell the right company’s with high explosive and shrapnel shells continuing for several hours, again causing many casualties. It also put 2 Lewis machine gunners out of action. The Gordon Highlanders where also held up on the left at the village of Longatte.

By 11am the shelling began to ease, ceasing at 1.45pm. At 5pm German troops where observed to be massing in front of the right battalions. An artillery barrage was called for dispersing the imminent attack. Two platoons from reserve the companies where sent forward to the Longatte Noreuil road. It was not until 6pm from direct observations that the villages had been taken.

At 8pm reports came through that the Germans where again forming up, advancing in waves from the high ground east of Noreuil. An artillery barrage was called for with the enemy attack been dispersed by the effective artillery shelling.

It was during the night that the advancing Australians had consolidated their lines.Throughout the next day, patrols were sent out occupying the lines of the original objective with posts been established along the roads east of Noreuil. From the attack 42 German prisoners were captured.

It was during this attack on the 2nd April 1917, that Private William Waterson Stevens was killed in action with the 51st Battalion, aged 33 years. He was buried near the road from Longatte to Noreuil.

Private William Stevens was later to be buried with a known headstone in H.A.C. Cemetery, Ecoust Mein. There are 14 other soldiers from the 51st Battalion who have a special memorial that are believed to be buried in H.A.C. Cemetery from the attack on 2nd April 1917.