GILBERT, Clarence Claude
| Service Numbers: | 2678, 2678A |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 9 February 1915, Initial enlistment to unallotted infantry and his Unit shown as 1st MD Depot. No Service Number shown. |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 9th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Ashby Island, New South Wales, Australia, 4 July 1882 |
| Home Town: | Ashby, Clarence Valley, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Ashby Public School, Clarence River, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Pozieres, France, 23 July 1916, aged 34 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial (Australian National Memorial - France) |
World War 1 Service
| 9 Feb 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, Initial enlistment to unallotted infantry and his Unit shown as 1st MD Depot. No Service Number shown. | |
|---|---|---|
| 4 Apr 1915: | Discharged AIF WW1, Private, Clarence Claude Gilbert was discharged medically unfit for service. Service record signed by the Camp Adjutant. | |
| 19 Aug 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 2678, 25th Infantry Battalion, Brisbane, Queensland | |
| 21 Oct 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 2678, 25th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Seang Bee, Brisbane | |
| 21 Oct 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 2678, 25th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '15' embarkation_place: Brisbane embarkation_ship: HMAT Seang Bee embarkation_ship_number: A48 public_note: '' | |
| 4 Mar 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 9th Infantry Battalion, Clarence embarked with the 6th Reinforcements for the 25th Battalion but was transferred to the 9th Battalion in Egypt on 4 March 1916. | |
| 23 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 2678A, 9th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 2678A awm_unit: 9th Australian Infantry Battalion awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1916-07-23 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Greg Towner
Research by Greg Towner
Clarence Gilbert's father established one of the first sugar cane mills at Ashby near Maclean, NSW. There is a record of employees being injured by the crushing machinery. This may have been how Clarence lost half of the fourth and fifth fingers of his right hand. He was still described as having a firm grip and being very powerful and accustomed to heavy manual work. Three years before his first enlistment in February 1915 Clarence suffered an injury due to heavy lifting while working as a labourer in Childers, Queensland. This injury may have been the reason for his discharge after his first period of enlistment.
Clarence's No. 9 Battalion was ordered to attack near Pozieres at 2.30 am on 22 July 1916 but without artillery support were driven back. The battalion attacked again on the 23rd and 24th, and Pozieres was finally captured after what was described as strenuous hand to hand fighting on the 25th. After the capture of Pozieres on the 25th the 9th Battalion Unit Diary states the wounded were evacuated and the dead buried. There is no account of what happened to Clarence on the 23rd other than he was killed in action. His body may have been buried and the grave later lost or his remains could not be identified. His name is listed among the missing on the Australian National Memorial at Villers-Bretonneux.
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