LYONS, Cecil
| Service Number: | 1929 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 16 February 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 58th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Drysdale, Victoria, Australia, 1897 |
| Home Town: | Drysdale, Greater Geelong, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Drysdale State School, Victoria |
| Occupation: | Farmer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Villers-Bretonneux, France, 25 April 1918 |
| Cemetery: |
Crucifix Corner Cemetery Plot V, Row C, Grave No. 18, Crucifix Corner Cemetery, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Drysdale Methodist Church Honor Roll, Drysdale State School No 1645 Honor Roll, Drysdale War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 16 Feb 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1929, 58th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 8 Jul 1916: | Involvement Private, 1929, 58th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '20' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Ajana embarkation_ship_number: A31 public_note: '' | |
| 8 Jul 1916: | Embarked Private, 1929, 58th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Ajana, Melbourne | |
| 26 Sep 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1929, 58th Infantry Battalion, Polygon Wood | |
| 25 Apr 1918: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1929, 58th Infantry Battalion, Villers-Bretonneux |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Robert Wight
“In a lonely grave he’s sleeping. One of Australia’s best”.
This is the epitaph on the grave of Drysdale-born Private Cecil Lyons from the 58th Battalion Australian Imperial Force, who rests in the Crucifix Corner Cemetery near Villers-Bretonneux in France.
Cecil was killed in battle during World War I on April 25, 1918.
“Private Cecil Lyons’ service record lists the many battles on the Somme and in the Flanders mud he shared with his mates,” Kevin said.
“Cecil was able to write letters to his family back in Drysdale and the surviving letters show they were written on the battlefield.
“The last letter to his sister May was written on April 21, 1918 and the last page reads, ‘Well May, we cannot grumble about our Easter dinner, as luck was in and although we were in the line we reckoned it was a good war, for a few days. I hope you don’t think it was the Australians who let the Hun through over here, we fight while we have a fighting chance and I think the old chap is the sorriest man (the Kaiser) when he does meet us. There is only one fault with here, and is only a handful of us and of course you can guess what will happen in time.’”
Cecil was born in Drysdale, went to school there and worked on farming properties nearby.
He lived with his parents James and Elizabeth, his sisters May, Esther and Mabel and brothers Ernest, James, Alfred and Victor.
Source: Surf Coast Times 25 April 2018 & Kevin Lyons (great nephew).
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