BATT, Frank
| Service Number: | 477 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 24 August 1914, Adelaide, South Australia |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 10th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Bermondsey, London, England, 19 November 1884 |
| Home Town: | Broken Hill, Broken Hill Municipality, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Ruby Street School, London, England |
| Occupation: | Miner |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Gallipoli, Gallipoli, Dardanelles, Turkey, 25 April 1915, aged 30 years |
| Cemetery: |
Plugge's Plateau Cemetery, Anzac Grave B. 8., Plugges Plateau Cemetery, Gallipoli Peninsula, Canakkale Province, Turkey |
| Memorials: | Adelaide National War Memorial, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Broken Hill South Mine Roll of Honour, Broken Hill War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 24 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Adelaide, South Australia | |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Oct 1914: |
Involvement
AIF WW1, Private, 477, 10th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Ascanius embarkation_ship_number: A11 public_note: '' |
|
| 20 Oct 1914: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 477, 10th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Ascanius, Adelaide | |
| 25 Apr 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 477, 10th Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli |
Small World
“I have just heard an extraordinary story anent the long arm of coincidence. Mrs. Ivy Fallon, who came here with her husband from Kingsbridge, Middlesex, England, 20 months ago, is a clerk in the Motor Vehicles Department now. Before she left England she had heard about her mother's young brother, Frank Batt, who migrated to Australia and worked in some mines, and she decided that when she reached here she would ask every man she met whether he had known Frank Batt.
Now, Mr. Jack Tune is a well-known cashier in the Motor Vehicles Department, and while Mr. and Mrs. Fallon were visiting his home she said to him, 'I had an uncle in the AIF, Mr. Batt. He was in the landing at Gallipoli. Did you know him?' Jack Tune surprised Mrs. Fallon by promptly saying. 'Yes, Frank Batt. We were in the same company in the 10th Battalion. I was a few feet away from him when he was hit by shrapnel and killed on the first morning of the landing. He thereupon produced Lock's 10th Battalion history and showed her Frank Batt's record. Mrs. Tune had a search among the wartime souvenirs her husband had sent her, and found a group photograph with Pte. Batt in it.
Pte. Batt (477), of H, later C, Company, 10th Battalion, enlisted in August 1914. From Broken Hill. He was killed on the second ridge shortly after daybreak on the morning of the epic April 25, 1915.” (The Adelaide Advertiser 4 Sept 1950)
Submitted 22 October 2021 by Lori Medlin
Biography contributed by Geoffrey Gillon
Births Dec 1884 Batt Frank St. Olave 1d 205
Age on arrival in Australia - 25.
Address
27 Argent Street, Broken Hill, New South Wales.
Enlistment date 24 August 1914.
Place of enlistment Adelaide, South Australia
Private 10th Battalion, H Company
Unit embarked from Adelaide, South Australia, on board Transport A11 Ascanius on 20 October 1914-he was then 31. Embarked Alexandria to join the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force (Gallipoli Campaign), 2 March 1915.
It has been suggested that Frank Batt was actually a person known as John Albert Batt born in 1874 and husband of Jessie Mary Batt.
Australian military authorities concluded after a number of investigations that this person is NOT John Albert Batt. War Pensions were paid to Harriett Lillian Batt (wife) and Lillian Maud Batt (daughter) further strengthening the case of mistaken identity on the part of Mrs J Batt and 3 children who applied for pensions only to have them refused as having no relation to Frank Batt. However, the AIF Project records his NOK as Mrs J. Batt, 51 Vienna Road, Bermondsey, London, England-and he was,according to his attestation record, born in Bermondsey.
He was 36 and the son of John Batt; husband of Harriett L. Batt, of 11, North Parade, Camborne, Cornwall, England.
He is honoured on the war memorial in St Martin and St Meriadoc Church in Camborne, Cornwall. Also honoured here is fellow Australian soldier, Hubert William Kelly.
Biography
"...477 Private (Pte) Frank Batt, H Company, 10th Battalion, of Broken Hill, NSW. He served in the East Surrey Regiment, British Army for 6 years including the Boer War before enlisting in the AIF. Pte Batt embarked from Adelaide, SA onboard HMAT Ascanius (A11) on 20 October 1914. Pte Batt served on Gallipoli and was killed in action on 25 April 1915. He was 33 years of age." - SOURCE (www.awm.gov.au)
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