CRAMER, Albert
| Service Number: | 1582 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 14 December 1914, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 6th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | South Yarra, Victoria, Australia, 20 July 1899 |
| Home Town: | Fitzroy, Yarra, Victoria |
| Schooling: | South Yarra State School, Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation: | Carrier |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Gallipoli, 8 May 1915, aged 15 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Helles Memorial, Cape Helles, Gallipoli Name listed on Panel 201 to 204 or 332. |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Helles Memorial, Gallipoli |
World War 1 Service
| 14 Dec 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1582, Melbourne, Victoria | |
|---|---|---|
| 19 Feb 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1582, 6th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '8' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Runic embarkation_ship_number: A54 public_note: '' | |
| 19 Feb 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 1582, 6th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Runic, Melbourne | |
| 6 May 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1582, 6th Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli, 2nd Battle of Krithia | |
| 8 May 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1582, 6th Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli |
WW1
The information provided has been published (2019) in the book "The Lost Boys" written by Paul Byrnes. The story of Albert Cramer is printed in pages 100 to 107. Lest We Forget Rest In Peace.
Submitted 25 August 2022 by Maxwell HILL
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Submitted 22 March 2021 by Guy Campbell
Albert Cramer alias Bert Reddaway teenage soldier
Private Clarence Cramer, Service No. 1182, embarked from Melbourne 22/12/1914 per HMAT Themistocles A32 with the 5th Battalion - 1 to 12 Reinforcements. Clarence Cramer had been born in 1896 at Bendigo to Roland Richard & Frances Amelia Cramer nee McAllary, he enlisted 17/9/1914 aged 19 years. Prior to enlisting Clarence was employed as a printer, his next of kin was his father, Mr. Ronald R. Cramer, 9 Forest Lane Bendigo. Clarence was wounded on 18/6/1915 at the Dardanelles. On 15/12/1916 he suffered shell shock, concussion and a fractured spine and died of those wounds in Heilly, France aged 21 years. Private Cramer is remembered at Heilly Station Cemetery, Mericourt-L'Abbe, France. His cousin, Albert Cramer, was only 15 years of age when he enlisted under the name of Bert Reddaway although a notice in the Bendigonian newspaper listed him as 13. He had been born in 1899 at South Yarra to Charles Christian & Elizabeth Cramer nee Reddaway. Pte Reddaway enlisted 14/12/1914 and gave his age as 20 years and occupation as a printer. His next of kin was listed as his mother, [Mrs E Reddaway, 15 Gore Street Fitzroy. Bert was issued service number 1582 and embarked 19/2/1915 with 6 Infantry Battalion - 1 to 9 Reinforcements per HMAT Runic A54. He was killed in action 8/5/1915 on Gallipoli, and is remembered on the Helles Memorial, Cape Helles, Gallipoli Peninsula, Canakkale Province, Turkey.
Bendigonian Thursday 1 July 1915 page 21 article
PRIVATE A. CRAMER. Though he was only 13 years of age, Pte. Albert. Cramer enlisted for service in the Australian Expeditionary Force, and has since been killed in action at the Dardenelles. He was the son of Mrs. Charles Cramer, 15 Gore-street, Fitzroy, and enlisted as Bert Reddaway, taking his mother's maiden name. Being determined to volunteer, and being unable at first to get his mother's consent, Cramer took his swag and walked to Albury, 10d being all the money he possessed. He enlisted in Sydney, but when told that an operation to one of his eyes would be necessary, he left camp and returned to Melbourne. He left with the 6th Batt., D Co. The late Pte. Cramer was a nephew to Mr. R. R. Cramer, of the linotype staff of the "Bendigo Advertiser."
Submitted 23 April 2015 by Bev Hanson
Biography contributed by Peter Rankin
Enlisted and served under alias of Bert REDDAWAY
His epitaph:
IT IS THE PART OF MOTHERS, TO BEAR AND SMILING BEAR,
THE TRAILS NO ONE ELSE NEED KNOW, THE ANGUISH NONE CAN SHARE
Biography contributed by Sue Smith
Albert Cramer, known as Bert, was born on the 20th July 1899 at South Yarra VIC, the 3rd eldest of 5 children born to his parents Charles and Elizabeth Cramer. His older siblings were Dulcie and Charles and younger siblings were Violet and Rowland. Bert was educated at South Yarra State School but left school at the age of 12 and worked as a carrier. At one time he was employed in the office of “The Age” newspaper. His Uncle worked for the “Bendigo Advertiser” so he may have helped him get this job. In 1914 Bert’s father was working in Bendigo and the rest of the family were living at 15 Gore Street Fitzroy VIC. Bert became best mates with a neighbour, Fred Black who was 3 years older than himself.
When WW1 broke Fred, aged 18, was determined to enlist and he encouraged Bert to join him. However, as Bert was only 15 he was under age so he would need his mother’s consent, however, she would not give it. So Bert ran away from home taking with him his swag and all his savings…a whole ten pence. He walked 200 miles to Albury NSW then made his way to Sydney where he enlisted. There is no record of this enlistment but newspaper reports state that he spent 6 weeks in camp. However, when he was told he needed a minor operation to correct an eye problem he declined that and returned to Melbourne. When he arrived back home his mate Fred persuaded him to have another crack at it so this time they went together. They enlisted at Melbourne on 14th December 1914 and their attestation papers are almost identical. Both state they were living at 15 Gore Street, Fitzroy…the address of the Cramers. There were 7 children in the Black family and tragedy had befallen them with the death of their father in 1899 when Fred was just 3 and then their mother died in 1905. The older children were all working so it would seem that after the death of their mother Fred and his sister Millie then lived with the Cramers till they were old enough to take care of themselves.
To avoid detection, when Bert enlisted he gave a false name…Bert Reddaway. He gave his age as 20 years and 5 months when he was actually only 15 years and 5 months. He gave his father’s name as Richard Reddaway which was a combination of his father’s middle name and his mother’s maiden name. Bert’s service number was 1582 and Fred’s was 1503. Their rank was Private and they were assigned to the 6th Infantry Battalion. They proceeded to the 3rd Reinforcements Depot but were in different companies of the 6th Battalion…Fred in A Company and Bert in C Company. The 6th Battalion was part of the 2nd Infantry Brigade, 1st Division.
Bert is described as being 5ft 7ins tall with a pale complexion, hazel eyes and light brown hair. After he and Fred completed their training at Broadmeadows Camp they embarked for Egypt from Melbourne on HMAT Runic on 19th October 1914 then sailed with the 1st Convoy from Albany WA on 1st November. They disembarked at Alexandria on 2nd December and proceeded to Mena Camp. The Battalion remained there until early April 1915 when they embarked from Alexandria on HMT Galeka bound for Gallipoli. However, for whatever reason, Fred did not join them. The ship anchored in Mudros Bay off Lemnos Island where they completed more training then they proceeded to Gallipoli arriving there in early hours of the 25th April. They went ashore under heavy fire at 6am in the 2nd wave. In the following days the 6th Battalion held positions at 400 Plateau above Anzac Cove and west of what is now known as Lone Pine.
Fred arrived at Gallipoli on 7th May but 2 days prior to this the 6th Battalion had received orders to proceed to Cape Helles. The British had landed there on the 25th April but had failed to take their objectives. The 2nd Infantry Brigade, which included the 6th Battalion, was called upon to take part in the 2nd Battle for Krithia. They arrived at Cape Helles in the early morning on the 6th May and disembarked at V Beach at Sedd-el-Bahr. The strength of the 6th Battalion was 22 Officers and 703 other ranks. The attacks on the 6th and 7th May failed so on 8th May, the 2nd Infantry Brigade, under the command of Brigadier-General McCay, was given 35 minutes warning that it was to join the attack at Krithia. Their objectives were to capture Krithia and Achi Baba. The Australians were to advance along Krithia Spur between the right flank of the New Zealand brigade and the edge of Kanli Dere. They had to move up to 800yds from their reserve position just to reach the start line at "Tommy's Trench". The attack commenced at 5.30pm with bayonets fixed. The Brigade managed to advance a further 500yds beyond the start line but suffered 50% casualties in the process losing 1,000 men in the first hour who were cut down by machine gun fire. When it was all over the 2nd Infantry Brigade had lost a third of its men and the 6th Battalion had lost 133 men. Bert was one of them. He was killed in action on 8th May 1915 aged 15. He has no known grave. They failed to take their objectives and it had been extremely costly for the Australians and the New Zealanders who lost 835 men. It was a battle that should never have happened, advancing on an enemy they could not see. It was a day of heartbreaking bravery and loss with the ANZACs showing once again that spirit that made them famous on the 25th April 1915 when they first set foot upon Gallipoli.
There were 2 spectators there watching the attack on the 8th May at Krithia…Sir Ian Hamilton, Commander of the Allied Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, and Charles Bean…Australia’s official historian for WW1. Bean was in the trenches with the Australians and watched them move forward despite the odds. He was in awe and he reports hearing one of the Officers shout “Come on chaps, we’ve got to go get it sometime.” Hamilton was watching from a hill and later wrote that he heard a wounded British Officer say “It was worth 10 years of tennis to watch the Australians and New Zealanders go in.”
The war diaries for both the 6th Battalion and the 2nd Infantry Brigade don’t start until May 1915. The reason for this is that there was a bombardment of the headquarters on the 8th May 1915 resulting in the wounding and deaths of the Brigade’s staff. The diaries and other documents were also lost in this bombardment.
Fred’s service record doesn’t state whether he joined Bert and the Battalion at Krithia. If he was there, then he was one of the few to survive the battle. It was reported in an Australian newspaper that in referring to Bert’s death Fred said: “Poor old Bert was killed in the second engagement. I was sorry for him as he would not have enlisted only for my asking him.” Just 2 months later Fred was killed in action on 12th July 1915 at Gallipoli aged 18. He was buried in Shrapnel Valley Cemetery at Gallipoli.
Bert is commemorated on panels 201-204 (or 332) of the Helles Memorial at Cape Helles, Gallipoli, west of Sedd-el-Bahr. The memorial sits on the headland at the tip of the Gallipoli peninsula overlooking the Dardanelles. It is the main Commonwealth battle memorial for the whole Gallipoli campaign, and also commemorates over 21,000 Commonwealth servicemen with no known grave who died in the campaign during WW1.
Bert is also commemorated on panel 46 of the Roll of Honour at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra ACT.
Bert’s father died in 1917 so after the war his mother Elizabeth received a Memorial Scroll, Plaque and Royal Letter from the King. These were presented to the next of kin of those who died while serving in the Australian Imperial Force in WW1, acknowledging the soldier’s service and their loss as a family.
Albert Cramer was awarded for service in WW1 the 1914-1915 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal and the Anzac Commemorative Medallion.
Respectfully submitted by Sue Smith 24th February 2024.
Sources
The Lost Boys by Paul Byrnes (book)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Battle_of_Krithia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helles_Memorial
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