Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Rex James GREER(1896-1965) Service Number-25606

Rex James Greer was born in Gundy, New South Wales, Australia, on the 31st of May 1896 a small town in the Upper Hunter Shire to the north of Sydney via Scone(1). He was born into a family with his father, mother, and three sisters. His father was Thomas Greer, his mother was Sophia Greer, and his three sisters were Edith Greer, C. Lofberg, and E.A. Chillingsworth(2). His notable physical features were his light brown hair and blue eyes(3). He attended school and received his education at Sydney Technical High School from 1908-1912(4). He also had a religious upbringing, being from the religion of The Church of England, which we can infer that he attended church regularly and was in a religious family(5). Before enlistment, from 1908 to 1912 Greer attended Sydney Technical High School, after finishing school he worked as a chauffeur, which drove motor cars and took passengers from place to place as a method of transport for people(6). This job would’ve been a job recently created at the time, as the first motor car made in Australia was introduced to the public and the Motor Driver’s Association was just born. 

Greer enlisted on the 19th of July 1916 at a time when Australia was reinforcing its army units by sending more soldiers. He enlisted in the AIF as a Corporal, number 25606 in the 2nd Division Ammunition Column. The role he took on in World War One was as a part of the Australian Medical Corps and the 2nd Division Ammunition Column, the Australian Medical Corps took on a role of contributing by working at stations by caring for soldiers who were suffering injuries from battle(7). The Ammunition Columns played a crucial role in battles by ensuring the timely supply of ammunition, a critical factor in maintaining the strength of the frontline forces, which each division had an ammunition column, Greer was in the 2nd Division’s, they kept ammunition up to guns moving it for the soldiers fighting on the frontlines in the 2nd Division, from "Third line" storage up to the Front ("First Line"), this task was huge and difficult as it involved motor and horse-drawn transport, heavy and light rail and tramways. Overall, as a part of the 2nd Division Ammunition Column, Greer played a critical role in ensuring that soldiers on the front lines were supplied with the necessary ammunition and resources to continue fighting. Without such logistical support, the success of key battles like The Assault on the Hindenburg Line would have been jeopardised.  He underwent basic training in NSW Australia where he enlisted, which consisted of physical conditioning, artillery handling, and practising drills to learn to follow commands and build discipline. He was then sent off to England, embarking on the HMAT Orsova which was ship number A67(8). While serving in the 2nd Division, he participated in the assault of the Hindenburg Line in The Second Battle of Bullecourt, The Third Battle of Ypres, helped halt the German offensive in the Somme region, The Battle of Hamel and The Battle of Amiens(9). Nearing the end of his service in WW1, Greer suffered from severe Rheumatic fever and had Rheumatic heart disease(10).

Greer returned to Australia on the 8th of April 1918 on the H.M.A.T Karoola, without injuries or battle honours and also without being captured in the war, returning to being a chauffeur in NSW(11). Then in 1922, he married his wife Margaret E Millington in Waverley NSW Australia, however, he did not have any children(12). In 1941 he enlisted in the Australian Military Forces during WW2 as a staff sergeant, which, later on, on the 10th of January 1942 he served in Malaysia until the 9th of October 1945(13). He died on the 18th of September 1965, aged 69 years old at Taree New South Wales(14).

References

Anonymous, Rex James GREER 1896-1965. Virtual War Memorial Australia
Anonymous, Rex James GREER 1896-1965. National Archives of Australia
Ibid
Anonymous, Rex James GREER 1896-1965. Virtual War Memorial Australia
Anonymous, Rex James GREER 1896-1965. National Archives of Australia
Anonymous, Rex James GREER 1896-1965. Virtual War Memorial Australia
Rex James GREER 1896-1965. Google Classroom WW1 Honour Board Name List Google Classroom
Anonymous, Rex James GREER 1896-1965. Virtual War Memorial Australia
Anonymous, Second Division AIF Project
Anonymous, Rex James GREER 1896-1965. National Archives of Australia
Ibid
Anonymous, Rex James GREER 1896-1965. NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages
Anonymous, Rex James GREER 1896-1965. National Archives of Australia
Anonymous, Rex James GREER 1896-1965. NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages

Bibliography 

Ken Stevenson, Research on Google Drive Rex James GREER 1896-1965. https://tinyurl.com/3btf8nkv

Australian marriages and birth and death records. https://www.nsw.gov.au/departments-and-agencies/births-deaths-marriages

Rex James GREER 1896-1965.Australian War Memorial. https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/309903

Rex James GREER 1896-1965.National Archives of Australia. https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/DetailsReports/ItemDetail.aspx?Barcode=4710039&isAv=N

Second Division. The AIF Project. Rex James GREER 1896-1965. https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/OrderOfBattle/2nd_Division.html