Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Charles William Exton was born on the 22nd of May 1897 in Prospect, South Australia. He was the youngest of 4 siblings, belonging to Blanche Elton Johnson Davies and Thomas Joseph Exton, whom Charles listed as his next of kin. His family grew up on Grove street in Unley park and belonged to the church of England. Charles was a fairly small man, weighing 143lbs and standing at 5 feet and 6 1/2 inches. He also had a fair complexion with brown hair and grey eyes. Before Charles was enlisted, he worked as a clerk. Clerks are typically well organised and effective communicators which are valuable qualities required for war. Some of his habits included smoking and drinking alcohol, however he had no medical issues and was fit for active service. When Charles was enlisted on the 22nd of May in 1915, he was 18 and single. Despite being nervous, he had a very strong and positive mentality, suggesting he was a confident character who was supportive of his fellow soldiers.
 
Charles enlisted in the 10th battalion, which was recruited in South Australia and helped form the 3rd brigade. Charles began training in Australia for 1 month. He then embarked on board the HMAT a61 Kanowna on the 23rd of June 1915 for 1 1/2 months of training in Egypt and to protect British interests in the middle East and the Suez Canal. After completing many months of physical labour and training, Charles set sail to Gallipoli to get his first taste of war during September. The campaign on Gallipoli was eventually abandoned, and the troops left the peninsula in December 1915.
                 
After safely evacuating Gallipoli, Charles returned to Egypt momentarily before sailing to France. On the journey he was taken ill, and after landing in Marseille in early April spent several weeks in hospital with appendicitis. He eventually rejoined the 10th Battalion on 30th July 1916. This meant he missed the first round of fighting at Pozières but was present for the second, in late August. On 25 September 1916 Charles was transferred to the 4th Field Bakery. On 25 April 1917 he was promoted to Corporal and on 1 October 1917 was admitted to hospital for a few days with tonsillitis.

In March 1918 Chalres was transferred to England, meaning he missed the German spring offensive, and in May began training with the newly-formed RAF as a pilot. This training kept him out of combat until the end of the war, and in December 1918 Charles was a commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the AIF. He boarded a ship to return to Australian on 6 May 1919.

 
Charles arrived in Australia on the 14th of June 1919 and returned to Australia via the “Kaiser-i-hind”, arriving on the 13th of August.  Chares was awarded 3 medals for his service and contribution to war. These included the British war medal, victory war medal and star medal. Charles lived a pretty normal and healthy life after war. He only needed some dental attention due to his poor smoking and drinking habits, however this was quite typical amongst most soldiers. Later, Charles met his wife named Edith, and together they had a child named Thomas. Charles died on the 24th of April 1974, at age 77.
 
In terms of reflecting Anzac spirit, Charles upheld qualities including bravery, mateship, perseverance and resilience throughout his experience at war. Charles was a small, 18-year-old, with very limited knowledge or skills prior to enlisting, which put him in a very vulnerable position. Even after suffering an illness, failing countless attacks, and losing some mates; Charles remained hopeful and did not fail to let his country down.

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