DAVEY, Claude
| Service Number: | 1456 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 15 December 1914, Oaklands, South Australia |
| Last Rank: | Corporal |
| Last Unit: | 10th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Hyde Park, South Australia, 28 August 1895 |
| Home Town: | Semaphore, Port Adelaide Enfield, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Goodwood and Flinders Street Schools, South Australia |
| Occupation: | Brick-layer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Bullecourt, France, 6 May 1917, aged 21 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" No known grave, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Adelaide Gilles Street Primary School WW1 Honour Roll (New), Adelaide National War Memorial, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Goodwood Public School WW1 Roll of Honor |
World War 1 Service
| 15 Dec 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1456, Oaklands, South Australia | |
|---|---|---|
| 19 Feb 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1456, 10th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Runic embarkation_ship_number: A54 public_note: '' | |
| 19 Feb 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 1456, 10th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Runic, Melbourne | |
| 7 May 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1456, 10th Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli | |
| 22 Aug 1916: | Wounded Private, 1456, 10th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , Shell wound (right shoulder) | |
| 6 May 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Corporal, 1456, 10th Infantry Battalion, Bullecourt (Second) |
Awarded the Military Medal
'L/Cpl. DAVEY displayed great bravery and devotion to duty near LE BARQUE on the 24th and 25th February, 1917. This N.C.O. rendered valuable service patrolling to our front before it was certain whether the enemy had evacuated their front line, and it was largely due to him that we were able to establish this fact. On the afternoon of the 25th the team of a Lewis Gun well out in front were all wounded. L/Cpl DAVEY immediately went forward under a heavy machine gun and rifle fire, and succeeded in bringing the gun back. On his own initiative he then organised a team and got the Lewis gun into action.'
Source: 'Commonwealth Gazette' No. 140
Date: 27 August 1917
Submitted 11 January 2015 by Steve Larkins
Biography
Claude Davey was one of three brothers who served in the 10th Battalion, and each was awarded the Military Medal for conspicous bravery. One of his brothers, Philip, went on to win the Victoria Cross and survived the War. Richard recieved a MM and a French distinction. Lce-Cpl Joseph Davey and Act-Cpl Arthur Davey. Richard and Arthur survived the War.
Biography contributed by St Ignatius' College
Before the war
Claude Davey was born on the 28th of August 1895 in South Australia, with his mother and father both having British heritage. He was a young man who lived in Hyde Park with his dad and mum. He was then placed in Goodwood and Flinders Street Schools. Claude Davey's occupation was as a bricklayer. When enlisting at Oakland enlistment camp on 15/12/1914, he was 22 years old and 11 months old. He was enlisted in the 2nd Australian division in the 10th battalion.
Claude Davey started as a Private, with his roles and duties only being to listen to senior officers, but before he was sent to Europe, he had to endure 4 months of intense training with the 10th Battalion
Davey embarked from Melbourne 15th February 1915 and was taken on strength at Gallipoli 7th May 1915. He remained at Gallipoli until the evacuation of the peninsula and disembarked at Alexandria Egypt 29th December 1915
On 2/1/1916, while at Alexandria, Claude Davey was apprehended by the military for abandoning camp for 1 day, leading to him getting punished by having to spend the next 14 days in a form of military prison and his pay was docked.
He proceeded to join the British Expeditionary Forces and disembarked at Marseilles 3/4/1916.
During the Battle of Pozieres Claude Davey was shot in the leg by a German soldier on the 22/8/16. He was then sent to London to get treatment on 7/9/16, where he would spend the next two months. He returned to France on 18/11/16 to his battalion at Hobart camp. When coming back to his battalion, he was greeted by getting ranked up to Lance Corporal in January 1917.
In February 1917 Davey was awarded a Military Medal great bravery and devotion to duty for his actions at Le Barque and was promoted to Corporal the following month.
Davey then fought in the battle of the (second) Bullecourt on 5/5/17. The aim of the battle was to try and back through the Hindenburg line. The 10th Battalion, with other battalions, were placed at Ballcourt Village on 3/5/17. The 10 Battalion and some Canadian battalions made it through the first few objectives, with the 10-battalion holding a street called Sunken Road. This is where they would stay until the other battalions would advance, but before then, the 10th Battalion was forced to fight a group of Germans trying to push them back, with Claude Davey getting shot and killed in the process by an LMG gun on 6/5/17. He died at the age of 21 years old, with no known burial site.
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