Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

GEOFFREY GORDON McCRAE who was killed in action on 20th July 1916 in France was the younger son of Mr. George Gordon McCrae. He was born in 1890 and entered the School in 1905 and left in 1906. He took an interest in military matters, and was Captain 58th Infantry A.M.F. As soon as war broke out he enlisted and went to the war as Captain in the 7th Battalion, having had previous advantage of six years' military training. For several weeks he was in military charge of transports in the 2Egean, being promoted to Major on 26th April 1915, and so, though in full sight of it, was unable to be with his men at the Gallipoli Landing, which was a source of lasting regret to him. Obtaining leave, however, he rejoined the battalion, and thereafter was hard at work in the trenches up to the time of the
Evacuation. He was twice wounded at Anzac, once severely in the shoulder. He was on 1st May 1916 transferred to 60th Battalion, and on 1st July 1916 during the temporary absence of his Colonel was appointed to the temporary command of his battalion. He lost his life in the attack of the Australians at Fleurbaix. He was beloved by all his men, as well as by his brother officers, and had a name for
coolness, courage and resource. His Brigadier-General, in a letter to the young soldier's father, particularly remarked on his indifference to danger when acting as intelligence officer on Gallipoli. He was Mentioned in Sir Douglas Haig's Despatches.

Major Geoff McRae's biography appears in Ross McMullin's anthology of ten potential future community leaders who were lost in action in the Great War, titled "Farewell Dear People" (2012).

Geoffrey Gordon McCrae was born on 1st January 1890 at Hawthorn, Victoria. After finishing his schooling he joined the Permanent Forces of the Commonwealth Military Forces. In 1912 Gordon was officially commissioned as a second lieutenant. On 14th August 1914, shortly after the outbreak of the First World War, he applied to join the Australian Imperial Force (AIF). Several days later, on 19 August 1914, the 24-year-old captain was officially assigned to the newly-formed 7th infantry Battalion. Two months later, on 19th October 1914, McCrae and the first contingent of the 7th battalion set sail from Melbourne aboard the troopship HMAT Hororata, bound for Egypt. The 7th Battalion was among the first infantry units raised for the AIF during the First World War, it was recruited from Victoria and, together with these Battalions, formed the 2nd Brigade.

After arriving at Egypt on the 2nd of December, the men spent the next few months encamped at the foot of the pyramids, spending their time training whilst partaking in the occasional sightseeing trip to Cairo. On 3rd 1915 he was made commander of “D” Company and two days later embarked for Lemnos aboard the troopship HMAT Mashobra. After staging at Lemnos the Battalion landed at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915 as part of the second wave ashore. Ten days after the landing, the 2nd Brigade was transferred from ANZAC Cove to Cape Helles to help in the attack on the village of Krithia. He re-joined the Battalion in the trenches of Gallipoli in May and was twice wounded in action during the following months On 26th  August McCrae was appointed as second in command of the Battalion and several days later assumed temporary command of the Battalion for two weeks. The Battalion returned to Gallipoli in November and was evacuated the following month.

On 7th January 1916, McCrae arrived back in Egypt and was admitted to hospital with Enteric fever that is a bacterial infection. It took him several months to fully recover and during this time he continued to write letters home to his family, in one letter included a sketch of the city outside his hospital room window. In May McCrae returned to duty and was transferred to the 60th Battalion with the rank of major. On 18th June the devastated French countryside towards the trenches of the Western Front. On the 2nd Of July, with the transfer of Lieutenant Colonel Alfred Jackson to the 58th Battalion, McCrae took temporary command of the 60th Battalion. He wrote one last letter to his family on 19th July 1916, shortly before leading the battalion into action at Fromelles. McCrae was killed in action later that same day leading his battalion in the attack against the enemy trenches. He was 26 years old. By Lucy O'Neil

Bibliography

Major Geoffrey Gordon McCrae | Australian War Memorial. 2016. Major Geoffrey Gordon McCrae | Australian War Memorial. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.awm.gov.au/people/P10677286/. [Accessed 12 May 2016].

Australian War Memorial. 2016. Australian War Memorial. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/1DRL/0427/. [Accessed 12 May 2016].

Obituary - Geoffrey Gordon McCrae - Obituaries Australia. 2016. Obituary - Geoffrey Gordon McCrae - Obituaries Australia. [ONLINE] Available at: http://oa.anu.edu.au/obituary/mccrae-geoffrey-gordon-19084. [Accessed 12 May 2016].

2016. Details. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=195039. [Accessed 12 May 2016].

Stained Glass Australia. 2016. Geoffrey Gordon McCrae | Stained Glass Australia. [ONLINE] Available at: https://stainedglassaustralia.wordpress.com/tag/geoffrey-gordon-mccrae/. [Accessed 12 May 2016].

RSL Virtual War Memorial | Geoffrey Gordon MCCRAE. 2016. RSL Virtual War Memorial | Geoffrey Gordon MCCRAE. [ONLINE] Available at: https://rslvirtualwarmemorial.org.au/explore/people/241716. [Accessed 12 May 2016].