WEINGOTT, Alexander
| Service Number: | 695 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 7 September 1914, An original member of F Company |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 13th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, February 1889 |
| Home Town: | Annandale, Leichhardt, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Sydney Grammar School, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation: | Tailor's cutter |
| Died: | Died of wounds, Egypt, 2 May 1915 |
| Cemetery: |
Alexandria (Chatby) Jewish Cemetery No.3, Egypt Grave 1. SAM, BROTHER OF THE ABOVE DIED OF WOUNDS JUNE 5TH 1915 |
| Memorials: | Annandale North Public School Roll of Honor, Annandale War Memorial, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Victorian Jewish War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 7 Sep 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 695, 13th Infantry Battalion, An original member of F Company | |
|---|---|---|
| 22 Dec 1914: | Involvement Private, 695, 13th Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '11' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Ulysses embarkation_ship_number: A38 public_note: '' | |
| 22 Dec 1914: | Embarked Private, 695, 13th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Ulysses, Melbourne |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Alexander Weingott was the son of Harris and Sarah Weingott of Annandale, Sydney, New South Wales. He had attended Sydney Grammar School and gave his occupation as a tailor’s cutter. His family was of the Jewish faith. Alex was an original member of the 13th Battalion AIF, enlisting in 1914 and serving at the landing on Gallipoli on 25 April 1915.
He and his brother, Samuel Weingott, both died during the desperate fighting on the Gallipoli, in the first few weeks as the Australians struggled to maintain a foothold on the rugged foothills. Neither died on Turkish soil, Alex succumbing to wounds in Egypt and his brother Samuel, dying of wounds aboard a hospital ship off to sea from those fatal shores.
Alex died a week after the Anzac landing, a friend, Sergeant E.J. Kelleher, later wrote to his parents, “He was a personal friend of mine. I can, therefore; testify to his good qualities. The poor lad was a hero. On account of an injured foot, he was offered a trip back to Australia; but he preferred to take his part in the storming of Gaba Tepe, where his conduct was heroic. He took part in a bayonet charge, and received a shrapnel wound in the abdomen. He was brought to Alexandria, but he was beyond help, and died peacefully a few days later. He was accorded a military funeral with full honors. He was a great home lover, and frequently, spoke of the love he bore you. Your loss is a great one, but it may, perhaps, lessen your grief to know that, his name blazes brightly on Australia's roll of heroes.”
Alex Weingott was reported in the Sydney newspapers to be the first Jewish Australian soldier to fall in the Gallipoli fighting. He was buried in the Chatby Jewish Cemetery. This civil cemetery contains 20 First World War burials, 19 of them together in one plot, where there is also a memorial to men of the Zion Mule Corps. Alex Weingott is buried in grave 1.
Another brother, 7741 Dvr. Barron Weingott 1st Field Company Engineers, returned to Australia, 12 June 1919.
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