MAGUIRE, Laurence Leslie
| Service Number: | 4840 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 9 October 1915, Gilgandra, NSW |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 13th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Curban, New South Wales, Australia, 1889 |
| Home Town: | Curban, Gilgandra, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Curban Public School, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Albert, France, 2 April 1918 |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Gilgandra Coo-ee March Gallery, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 9 Oct 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 4840, 13th Infantry Battalion, Gilgandra, NSW | |
|---|---|---|
| 8 Mar 1916: | Involvement Private, 4840, 13th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '11' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Star of England embarkation_ship_number: A15 public_note: '' | |
| 8 Mar 1916: | Embarked Private, 4840, 13th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Star of England, Sydney |
Help us honour Laurence Leslie Maguire's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Faithe Jones
Son of Richard Gould and Charlotte MAGUIRE, Gulgong, New South Wales
Laurence joined the Cooee March after passing his medical examination in Gilgandra on October 8, 1915. He trained at Liverpool and embarked for Egypt on the HMAT Star of England on March 8, 1916. He trained in Egypt and transferred to the 45th Battalion in April 1916. The battalion arrived in France in June to face the Battle of the Somme, Pozieres and Mouquet Farm. In November 1916 he was admitted to hospital with scalded feet (no reason given). Treatment and convalescence kept him in England until September 1917 when he returned to France to face a battle near Passchendaele and the German Offensive in the Somme in 1918.
Laurence was killed in action on April 2, 1918 near Albert in France. He has no known grave.
He sent cigarette silks home to Curban and Ida (Bonnington) Lummis stitched them into a cushion, which is on display in the Gallery. Laurence is commemorated on the Villers Bretonneux War Memorial.
How 'Laurie' Maguire
was Killed.
LETTER FROM HIS CAPTAIN.
Mr. R. Maguire, of Gulgong, has received the following letter from France, describing how his son, Laurence, was killed in action :—
"Dear Mr. Maguire,— On behalf of the officers and men of your late son's company I wish to convey deep sympathy and sincere regret. Your son was killed in a highly successful action on 2-4-18, in which the battalion played no minor part. It is to be deeply regretted that such victorious actions must be marred by the death of those we love best. Your son was one of my most valued and trusted N.C.O.'s, and his loss in an official capacity is no small matter. He was killed by a rifle bullet through the head, and death was instantaneous. His grave is on the embankment of the Albert Amiens railway, and about 2000 yards from Albert. I fully recognise how futile it is to offer sympathy in a case such as yours, but I cannot help taking this opportunity of expressing the heartfelt sorrow of we, his officers and comrades. Yours in deep sympathy, "V. J. H. HOLMAN, Capt.. "O.C., "A" Coy., 45th Batt."
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