Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

David Evans was born in 1892 in the parish of Aberdare in South Wales. He was described as having brown eyes, black hair, a dark complexion and several tattoos. He stood at a height of 5 feet and 5 inches and he weighed 63.5 kg. He moved to Adelaide at some point in his adult life. A very high percentage of Australians born overseas are British and have been for a long time. Before enlisting in the war, he was a labourer. The only family member of his that is known is his father, Denis Evans, who was put down as his next of kin. He has no prior military involvement. 
 
David enlisted in Adelaide on the 28th of December 1914. He was then taken on strength from the 10th infantry battalion, fourth reinforcement on the 10th of May 1915 and he travelled to Gallipoli on HMAT A17 Port Lincoln. The nature of his arrival and the timing suggests he wasn't part of the first or second Gallipoli landing, meaning that his landing probably would have been much less deadly than some others, but still extremely hard. Only a few days after his arrival on May 19th the Turks launched a counterattack that was at the time his battalion happened to be on the front line. The Turks lost badly as although the 10th battalion had less than optimal training, they managed to pull together and rally an extremely strong defence. Four months after his arrival, he contracted diarrhoea from the terrible conditions in the trenches. His location two days later was listed to be in Malta, which was where many injured and ill soldiers from Gallipoli were taken, so we can assume that he was admitted to hospital. While in hospital, it was also discovered that he was suffering from an ulcer of the ankle. He was kept in the hospital until October when he was transferred to Egypt and then to England, presumably to train for service on the western front.
 
After being released from the hospital, he was transferred to the 50th infantry battalion. This was fairly common for soldiers from his battalion as the 50th battalion was new and seen as the "pup" of the 10th battalion of which he was a part of. A month after his transfer he was hospitalised for tonsillitis and peritonitis in May of 1916. His frequent ailments and hospitals trips indicate that his immune system had been weakened significantly by his time in the war and he was not built for a life in the trenches. He was then once again cleared for active duty a week later. His battalion trained in Seraphina for a month before heading to the Western Front in June.
 
David's battalion travelled to France through Marseille and arrived in one of the battlefields. Although they arrived in June, it was not until late July they became involved in serious fighting, at Pozieres. On 28 July David was admitted to hospital with what was eventuall diagnosed at tonsilitis. He only returned to active duty with his battalion in November.

In early 1917 the 50th Battalion fought during the German withdrawal to the Hindenburg line. In early June David was admitted to hospital with influenza, meaning he missed the Battle of Messines. While recovering in England he went absent without leave and was docked 33 days pay. He re-joined his unit on 26 January 1918.

In March the German army launched a new offensive. David's battalion was stationed south of the River Ancre in France to defend the position. In April, on Anzac Day, the 50th battalion started a new counter-offensive that continued until August. Many soldiers were injured or killed in this as the Germans heavily used planes and advanced technology to fight back. This is unfortunately how David was injured on the 26th of April from a gunshot wound to the right buttock. This indicates that he was in the front line at this time and at the start of the battle, which would have been very hard. He was injured very close to the start of the attack which is when there were the most casualties and the battle was the deadliest. He was passed around from hospital to hospital until October when he was finally returned to Australia after failing his medical examination. He was discharged for medical reasons on 25 March 1919.