41605
FRANCIS, Rupert Stanley
| Service Number: | 647 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 25 August 1914, at Morphettville |
| Last Rank: | Company Sergeant Major |
| Last Unit: | 50th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Murray Bridge, South Australia, Australia, 1892 |
| Home Town: | Murray Bridge, Murray Bridge, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Mason |
| Died: | 17 January 1961, cause of death not yet discovered, place of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: | Murray Bridge Roll of Honour WW1 |
World War 1 Service
| 25 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 647, 10th Infantry Battalion, at Morphettville | |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Oct 1914: | Involvement Private, 647, 10th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Ascanius embarkation_ship_number: A11 public_note: '' | |
| 20 Oct 1914: | Embarked Private, 647, 10th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Ascanius, Adelaide | |
| 16 Jul 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Company Sergeant Major, 50th Infantry Battalion, Detached to 13th Training Battalion in England (rejd 50th Bn Nov 1917) | |
| 11 Nov 1918: | Involvement AIF WW1, Company Sergeant Major, 647, 50th Infantry Battalion |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Saint Ignatius' College
Rupert Stanley Francis enlisted for World War One as a Private on the 25th of August 1914. He had a brother who also enlisted named Paul Maslie Francis. Paul returned to Australia on the 25th of March 1919, six months after Rupert. Before he went to war, Rupert was a mason. A mason is someone who works with many types of materials like brick and stone. He was a single man and lived at Murray Bridge. His religion was Methodist. He was not married, and he was also very young when he went to war (age 22). His next of kin was his mother.
Rupert Stanley Francis embarked on the Ascanius on the 20th of October in 1914. He was enrolled in the 10th Battalion. He would have trained with the Army for a few months before participating in the Gallipoli Campaign. He fought in Gallipoli, until he got a septic foot and was admitted to hospital in Mudros on the 18th September 1915. He ended up embarking for England on the 16th of October 1915. He spent a while there before going back to the troops on the 15th of January 1916. He ended up being transferred to the 50th Battalion on the 26th of February 1916 and taken on strength on the 29th of February. On the 1st of March, he was appointed Temporary Corporal, and later that day, Corporal. On the 5th of April, he was promoted to Temporary Sergeant, then later that day, Sergeant. He was transferred to the 13th Training Battalion in England, as Company Sergeant Major, on the 14th July 1917. Rupert was in England training new soldiers from the 16th July to 15th November 1917. On the 15th of November, he proceeds to France and arrived with the 50th Battalion on the 26th of November. On the 24th of December 1917, he goes to hospital as he had fallen ill. On the 29th of January 1918, Rupert returned to his unit and served with the 50th Battalkion though most of 1918. He left Europe to return to Australia on the 24th of September 1918, a few months before the war ended. He was allowed to do so as one of the 1914 enlistees.
The ANZAC spirit must be shown by all soldiers to be promoted during the war. Since Rupert was promoted many times, he would have shown the ANZAC spirit a lot. Courage would have needed to be shown. You would have had to be pretty brave to run at the enemy or to shoot someone and possibly kill them. These are actions that would have been shown in war and ones that Rupert would have shown. Another one is ingenuity. Ingenuity is qualities of being clever, original and inventive. As one of the leaders in the Battalion, he would have had to show that he is clever and is able to think of original and inventive strategies that could help. Mateship is another one and this is being able to company and friendship between others. He would have had to befriend the group and gained their trust, as well as a figure in authority, who would have then trusted him. Rupert would have shown all these qualities as well as many more, to have been promoted the amount of times he had.
After Rupert returned from war, it would be about six months before his brother Paul did. He probably would have worried about Paul until the war ended due to what he had seen. After war would have been a tough time for Rupert. With all the memories of war, not a single soldier would have forgotten some of the things they had seen. However, he seemed to cope through it all without ending his life soon after like many other soldiers. He ended up passing away on the 17th of January 1961. He would have been about 70 years old when he died though.