STENNETT, Ashley Lionel Wright
| Service Number: | 6382 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 4 October 1916, Lismore |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 19th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Bega, New South Wales, Australia, 31 August 1894 |
| Home Town: | Lismore, Lismore Municipality, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Farmer |
| Died: | Illness (Pneumonia), Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa, 25 December 1916, aged 22 years |
| Cemetery: |
Cape Town (Maitland) Cemetery Maitland Cemetery, Cape Town, Western Cape Province, South Africa |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Dunoon Methodist Circuit HR, Lismore & District Memorial Honour Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 4 Oct 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 6382, 19th Infantry Battalion, Lismore | |
|---|---|---|
| 11 Nov 1916: | Involvement Private, 6382, 19th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '13' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Suevic embarkation_ship_number: A29 public_note: '' | |
| 11 Nov 1916: | Embarked Private, 6382, 19th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Suevic, Sydney | |
| 25 Dec 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 6382, 19th Infantry Battalion |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Michael Silver
Private Ashley Stennett and his brother-in-law, 6287 Private Frederick Edward Bryen joined the AIF together at Lismore on 4 October, 1916, starting an eventful and tragic journey that would see both young men dead within 12 months. Fred, it appears, had only married Ashley's sister 'Irene' Muriel Stennett a few days prior to enlistment.
The pair then entered camp together at the Sydney Showgrounds on 30 October where they were issued with Australian Imperial Force service numbers and assigned to the 19th Battalion AIF, 18th Reinforcements. The pair sailed from Sydney in HMAT 'Suevic' on 11 November, 1916 bound for Captetown, South Africa and then for England.
Illness seems to have been rife on the ship with numerous soldiers admitted to hospital and several deaths recorded. The pair were disembarked at Capetown and hospitalized at No 2 General Hospital suffering from measles.
Tragically, Ashley Stennett developed complications and within a week of admission to hospital was dangerously ill. Cables to Base Records in Australia revealed that his state of health was rapidly deteriorating. His mother desparately sought information on his condition on 19 December, advising authorities he would struggle because of a poor constitution to overcome any illness - she begged authorities to discharge him. He died from pneumonia on Christmas Day and was buried at Maitland Road Cemetery the following day.
Fred Bryen recovered from his illness and was transferred to the 37th Battalion and sent to the Western Front. He was killed in action near Zonnebek, Belgium on 4 October 1917.
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