Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

George was the son of John Henry Buzacott SEMMENS & Lucy MOORE and was born on the 22nd of February 1896 in Wallaroo Mines, SA.

His parents were married on the 22nd of December 1894 at the residence of J.C Hopgood, in Snowtown, SA.

His father was the son of George SEMMENS & Mary Weyland BUZACOTT and was born on the 26th of March 1863 in Blythe, SA.
His mother was the daughter of John MOORE & Emma HOWITT and was born on the 7th of March 1871 in Blyth Plains, SA.

George was the eldest child born into this family of 3 children.

George’s father was labourer and the family moved to 21 Russell Street, Kadina when George was 8 years old.

He was educated at the Kadina Public School and at the age of 14 he joined the Senior Cadets.
Then when he turned 18 he transferred to the Citizens Force and during this time had gained employment as a labourer.

At the age of 19, George enlisted into the AIF on the 7th of August 1915 in Adelaide, SA and was allotted the service number 3269 and posted to A Company, 2nd Depot Battalion in Mitcham Camp.

On the 16th of September he was transferred to the 27th Battalion, 7th Reinforcements and embarked from Adelaide on board HMAT Medic on the 12th of January 1916, disembarked in Alexandria on the 16th of February.

He proceeded to France on the 20th of March and was wounded twice before embarked from England on the 22nd of December 1918 on board HT Bakara.

He disembarked in Fremantle on the 5th of February 1919 and then sailed to Adelaide the following day.

George was discharged, medically unfit, from the AIF on the 17th of February 1919.

George married Laurel Ethel Hannah HAYNES on the 10th of February 1922 at the residence of Mrs. R. Bauerochse, 15 Wilson Street, Prosect, SA.
Laurel was the daughter of Joseph William HAYNES & Mary Jane VILE and was born on the 11th of January 1904 in Gawler, SA.

They made their first home at 25 Wilkinson Road, Parkside and George was employed as a labourer.

They had 1 child before Laurel left George to live with another man in December 1926 so George filed for a divorce.
George was granted a divorce on the 8th of September 1927 and then moved to 58 George Street, Parkside.

George then married Norah HOBBS on the 26th of February 1938 in Adelaide, SA.
Norah was the daughter of Reverend Henry HOBBS (Boer & WW1 Veteran) & Alice Mary ARNOLD and was born on the 19th of September 1909 in Arreton, Isle of Wight, England.

With the outbreak of WW2, aged 44, George enlisted into the Volunteer Defence Force on the 1st of February 1940 in Keswick, SA and was allotted the service number S212780, posted to the 4th Garrison Battalion and then promoted to Lance Corporal.

They welcomed their only child; William Henry George, on the 13th of March 1940.

George was detached to ammunition guard duty on 2 occasions, but suffered from an irregular heart beat.
After 4 years of service he was discharged from service, medically unfit, on the 15th of January 1944.

George died on the 24th of February 1944 and was buried the following day in the St. Mary's Anglican Cemetery, St Mary’s;

SEMMENS.—The friends of the late Mr. George Semmens, late 27th Battalion, 1st AIF, are respectfully Informed that his funeral will leave his late residence, South Road Estate, on Friday 25th, at 3 pm, for the St. Mary's Cemetery, Edwardstown.
ALFRED JAMES & SON Funeral Directors. 193 Unley Road, Unley.

Norah died on the 21st of September 1993.

Military 

WW1

At the age of 19, George enlisted into the AIF on the 7th of August 1915 in Adelaide, SA and was allotted the service number 3269 and posted to A Company, 2nd Depot Battalion in Mitcham Camp.
He listed his mother, of 21 Russell Street, Kadina, as his next of kin.

On the 16th of September he was transferred to the 27th Battalion, 7th Reinforcements.

George embarked from Adelaide on board HMAT Medic on the 12th of January 1916 and disembarked in Alexandria on the 16th of February.
After 4 weeks here in training he embarked on the 20th of March and disembarked in Marseilles 7 days later.

On the 25th of June he was posted to the newly formed ANZAC Entrenching Battalion in Etaples.

The 1st Anzac Entrenching Battalion was formed at La Motte in France on the 6th of June 1916 and used to hold reinforcement infantrymen for I ANZAC Corps. Soldiers were posted to the Battalion after completing initial infantry training in England and further training at the base depots of the AIF divisions in France.

George was then entrained to Saileux to join the 27th Battalion on the 10th of July.
He joined his Battalion 3 days later and then marched 15 miles to Bertangles, heading to the Somme.

On the 20th of July they marched via Villers, Bocage, and Rubempre to Toutencourt Camp, where they occupied huts.
Two days later they moved via Harponville to Warloy-Baillon and the spent the next 3 days in training with special attention being given to rapid firing and bayonet fighting.
They then marched once more and bivouacked at the brickfields on the outskirts of Albert before marching to Tara Hill and bivouacked in and about trenches.

Then on the 28th of July they made attack on the heights above Pozieres, but the artillery preparation was insufficient and they found the wire entanglements practically intact. The front was swept by enemy machine gun fire of so intense a nature that, while heroic attempts were made to force a way through, they were withdrawn after suffering severe casualties and moved back to La Boiselle.

Following the failure of this attack they were ordered to re attack, but this time careful preparations were made to ensure that the artillery fire was effective on the enemy’s wire entanglements.
During this attack George suffered from shell shock and was admitted into the 4th Australian Field Ambulance and transferred to the 3rd Australian Casualty Clearing Station at Puchevillers.
The following day he was transferred by Ambulance Train to the 14th Stationary Hospital in Boulogne where he spent 12 days before being discharged to No.1 Convalescent Depot.
On the 21st of August George was discharged to the 2nd ADBD in Etaples and then rejoined his Battalion 7 days later at La Boiselle.

On this same day George found himself in the front line trenches, knee deep in mud and in very cold and wet conditions. Later in the afternoon he suffered a Gun Shot Wound to his left ear and was admitted into the 2nd Canadian Clearing Station at Remy Siding. He spent 7 days here and was then transferred to No.3 Convalescent Depot in Boulogn for 4 days and then to the 2nd ADBD in Etaples.

On the 23rd of September George rejoined his Battalion, who were in training, at Steenvoorde Camp.
Then on the 5th of October they moved out, entrained for Ypres, and relieved the 19th Battalion south of Zillebeke, covering the trench system of Hill 60 and Mount Sorrell.
After 10 days here they moved back into billets in Ypres for 6 days before being entrained to a point near the Ypres - Poperinghe Road where they marched to St. Lawrence Camp.
Three days later they left under wintry conditions via Poperinghe and Abeele for Steenvoorde. Their next move was to Buysscheure and then onto Mouile, before being entrained from Arques to Yaucourt-Bussus.

On October 27th, cold and wet, they marched through Ailly and then boarded motor lorries for Dernancourt, thus making their second entry into the Somme sector.
Wretched weather conditions prevailed, the whole of the Somme area was one huge quagmire and the identification of tracks and second-class roads became extremely difficult.
Six days later they marched to Montauban Camp, which was situated on the Northern side of the Montauban-Mametz Road, in a veritable mud-hole. The following day they moved forward to Switch Trench, near High Wood and relieved the 53rd Battalion in the front line.
Here they took part in the attack on Bayonet, The Maze and Gird Trenches. These trenches were in a deplorable condition, the sides falling and the earth churned up practicality knee deep. The ground was ploughed up by shell fire and the extra large shell-holes were half-filled with water.
Tired, but determined, they advanced under the very lightest of artillery barrages, meeting immediately with a withering fire from the enemy strong points.
The enemy gunners and snipers were deadly effect and the close range added to their advantage.

During this attack they captured 25 prisoners, but their casualties were extremely heavy with 77 killed, 141 wounded and 150 missing.
When they were relieved they moved back to Montauban Camp for 7 days and a medical inspection revealed that 90 per cent of the men were suffering from cramp and trench feet, the worst cases being evacuated to hospital.
On the 15th of November, after being issued with gum-boots and woolen clothing, they marched to Longueval and relieved the 26th Battalion in the snow in the front line.
A thaw set in during this time and the trenches gave way in places, many of the boys lost their gum-boots in endeavors to extricate themselves from the heavy mud.
No further advances were attempted and they were relieved 3 days later and marched over 7 miles to Fricourt Camp through rain and slush. The roads connecting Longueval, Montauban and Fricourt were ankle deep in mud and on reaching Fricourt Camp they were totally exhausted.

The next morning George was still suffering from exhaustion and was admitted into the 36th Casualty Clearing Station at Heilly. He was then transferred to the 1st ANZAC Main Dressing Station before being transferred by No.7 Ambulance Train to the 2nd General Hospital in Le Havre.
George spent 3 weeks suffering from Myalgia before being discharged to the 2nd ADBD in Etaples.
He spent Christmas 1916 here and was then transferred to the Segregation Camp (quarantine camp) in Etaples on the 10th of January 1917.

Four weeks later he rejoined his Battalion at Scot’s Redoubt North Camp, near Fricourt, before they moved into the front line, 4 days later.

They spent the next month here, being rotated in and out of the front line, before moving to Becourt Camp, near Albert, where they reorganized and trained in mobile warfare and whilst here they received the news of the fall of Bapaume.
Their next moved was to Vaulx-Vraucourt and into the front line and when they were here the distinguished enemy airman, Prince Charles of Prussia, was engaged and brought down. After landing safely and close to George’s lines, he attempted to reach his trenches but he was severely wounded and died some days later.
His unique plane, richly painted sky blue and vividly ornamented with a skull and cross bones, was salvaged practically intact by the Air Force.

George was then involved in the attack upon Lagnicourt and Noreuil, before marching to Scot’s Redoubt South Camp for a well deserved rest.
A few weeks later they moved into the front line at Noreuil and were involved in the first Battle of Bullecourt. Then on the 28th of April quite a stir was caused in the trenches by the voting in connection with the Australian general elections.
They were then involved in the second Battle of Bullecourt on the 3rd of May and then 5 days later, after 18 day’s continuous front line duty, they were relieved and moved to the Lagnicourt-Noreuil line.

Finally they marched to Bapaume and entrained, on the light railway, for Bazentin, and marched to Scot’s Redoubt South Camp.
Then on the 18th of May they marched to Senlis and engaged in training and during this time the Battalion suffered an epidemic of Trench Fever.
Four weeks later they entrained for Bapaume and marched to a tented camp situated near the brickfield for intense training.
On Sunday, July 15th, a beautiful summer day, the Battalion marched from Bapaume to the sacred spot at Flers to erect a cross and pay a last tribute to the memory of their gallant comrades who fell there on November 5th, 1916.

During the service a tiny lark arose nearby and with a beautiful flow of song seemingly strove to silence the ever-reminding rumble of artillery fire, away to the east.
The impressive notes of the Last Post had long died away before the boys dispersed in various directions, some wandered away privately as though to commune once more in the sacred presence of those particular chums they missed so much. Here and there a few simple poppies were culled and tenderly placed away to eventually find a resting place in the home of that gallant soldier whose simple grave they had once adorned.

On the 28th of July they marched to Miraumont (River Ancre) where they entrained for Cassel and then marched 6 miles to a tented camp at Rennescure.
George was granted 2 weeks leave to England on the 19th of August and then rejoined his Battalion at Rennescure.
The following week they marched to Montreal Camp, near Ouderdom and then onto Ypres and took part in the Battle on the Menin Road Ridge on the 20th of September.
Then on the 1st of October they marched through Ypres to Westhoek Ridge and took part in the Battle of Broodseinde.
ANZAC Ridge was their next destination before moving back to Ypres in early November where they were engaged in assisting the Canadian Light Tramway Company.
The Battalion moved to Neuve-Eglise on the 18th of November for 4 weeks training before moving back into the front line.
On the 23rd of December, their “digger boss”, General Birdwood, paid them a visit in the line, and personally wished them compliments of the season.
On Christmas Eve they were relieved and marched to Romarin camp, where they enjoyed Christmas morning before proceeding on the light railway, to the forward area.
Here they reported to the 7th Field Engineers and were split up into sections of wiring, digging, and trucking parties. The wiring party was engaged in putting out 500 yards of double-apron wire in front of the support line and had almost completed the task when the position was heavily shelled by the enemy with 4 men being killed and 3 wounded.
The digging parties were engaged in digging and clearing out trenches and the trucking parties between Rasine dump and the railhead.

On the 2nd of January 1918 they proceeded to the Ploegsteert area and relieved the 25th Battalion in the front line for 3 weeks before moving to Locre.
Early February was spent in training at Bellebrune before they entrained for Steenwerck and marched into Kortepyp Camp.
By early April they were in the front line near Corbie and by May they were near Ville-Sur-Ancre and fought in the Battle of Morlancourt on the 9th of June.

They then played a support role in the Battle of Hamel on the 4th of July and by the end of July they had moved to Blangy Wood.
On July 29th the Battalion was conveyed by motor lorries to the vicinity of the Tank Park, north-west of Amiens, where they practiced the latest methods of Tank and Infantry co-operation.

On the 7th of August they moved, via the northern and eastern edge of Villers-Bretonneux, to their assembly position, for the Battle of Amiens.
In the early hours on the 8th of August they advanced forward into the veil of mist which was soon further intensified by the drifting smoke and powder from our advancing barrage.

In just over 3 hours, the enemy's front line had been overrun. In total, the Allied forces captured 29,144 prisoners, 338 guns, and liberated 116 towns and villages.

The following day the 27th Battalion received orders that they were to be involved in the attack to capture the villages of Vauvillers and Framerville.

At 4.30pm the attack commenced and during this attack George suffered a severe Gun Shot Wound to his right thigh and was admitted to the 8th Australian Field Ambulance.
The following day he was transferred to the 20th Casualty Clearing Station in Vignacourt and then transferred by Ambulance Train to the 2nd Australian General Hospital in Boulogne.
Then on the 17th of August he was invalided to England and admitted into the Horton War Hospital in Epson, Surrey.

George spent 3 months here, during which time the Armistice was signed, before he was transferred to the 3rd Australian Auxiliary Hospital in Dartford on the 19th of November.
He was then granted 2 weeks leave and reported to No.1 Command Depot in Sutton Veny on the 3rd of December.

George embarked from England on the 22nd of December 1918 on board HT Bakara and spent his last Christmas away from his family and friends on the voyage.
He disembarked in Fremantle on the 5th of February 1919 and then sailed to Adelaide the following day.

George was discharged, medically unfit, from the AIF on the 17th of February 1919 and awarded the British War & Victory Medals.

WW2

At the age of 44, George enlisted into the Volunteer Defence Force on the 1st of February 1940 in Keswick, SA and was allotted the service number S212780, posted to the 4th Garrison Battalion and then promoted to Lance Corporal.
He listed his wife, of South Road Estate, as his next of kin.

On the 28th of February 1941 he was granted 3 weeks leave and then on the 18th of July he was promoted to Acting Corporal.
On the 4th of August George was admitted into the Wayville Camp Hospital suffering from an irregular heart beat.
Then on the 25th of August he was transferred to Kapara Convalescent Hospital at Glenelg until the 3rd of October, when he returned to his Battalion.

On the 20th of February 1942 he was assigned as a guard to escort ammunition on board a train to Terowie Stay Camp, for the day.
Then on the 15th of March he was assigned to do the same to Alice Springs and whilst there he was admitted into the Alice Springs Camp Hospital, suffering from a cold.
He spent a week in the hospital before being discharged on the 21st and when he returned to Adelaide he was grants 2 weeks leave from the 22nd of June.

After rejoining his guard duty and he was promoted to Lance Sergeant before being transferred back to the 4th Garrison Battalion on the 1st of October.
Nine day s later he was admitted into the 109th Australian General Hospital in Northfield, suffering from a heart complaint.
Two weeks later he was discharged from hospital and then on the 29th of November George was granted 18 days tropical leave.

George was then granted another 2 weeks leave on the 2nd of April 1943 and then on the 8th of September he was admitted into the 105th Australian General Hospital at Daw Park. Here George was medically classified Class D (unfit) as he was suffering from Auricular Fibrillation.
He was then granted leave on the 15th of December and then discharged from service, medically unfit, on the 15th of January 1944.