BROWNE, Robert Walter Henry
| Service Number: | 3013 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 14 July 1915, Enlisted in Melbourne, and allocated to the 10th reinforcements for the 8th Infantry Battalion. |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 60th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Botany, New South Wales, Australia , 1897 |
| Home Town: | South Melbourne, Port Phillip, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Sandringham, Victoria, Australia , 5 December 1962, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Springvale Botanical Cemetery, Melbourne Ashes scattered in cemetery gardens. |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 14 Jul 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3013, 8th Infantry Battalion, Enlisted in Melbourne, and allocated to the 10th reinforcements for the 8th Infantry Battalion. | |
|---|---|---|
| 29 Sep 1915: | Involvement Private, 3013, 8th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '9' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: RMS Osterley embarkation_ship_number: '' public_note: '' | |
| 29 Sep 1915: | Embarked Private, 3013, 8th Infantry Battalion, RMS Osterley, Adelaide | |
| 26 Feb 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 59th Infantry Battalion | |
| 15 Mar 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 60th Infantry Battalion | |
| 20 Jul 1916: | Wounded AIF WW1, Private, 3013, 60th Infantry Battalion, Fromelles (Fleurbaix), Sustained severe gunshot wounds to groin and left shoulder in Boulogne, France. | |
| 21 Jul 1917: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 3013, 60th Infantry Battalion, Embarked in England aboard HMAT Euripides for return to Australia. | |
| 5 Dec 1917: | Discharged AIF WW1, Private, 3013, 60th Infantry Battalion, Discharged in 3rd Military District, Melbourne, due to being medically unfit for further service. |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Karan CAMPBELL-DAVIS
Robert Walter Henry BROWNE was born in 1897 in Botany, New South Wales, Australia, the second of seven children to Sarah A. (nee HALL) and Charles W. BROWNE. His six siblings were William, Lizzie, Sadie, Douglas, Ruth and Emily.
An 18 year old single labourer, living with his parents at 137 Buckhurst Street Montague (South Melbourne) at the time, Robert enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) in Melbourne on 14th July 1915, his elder brother William having already done so six months earlier. He was allocated to the 10th reinforcements for the 8th Infantry Battalion with the rank of Private, regimental number 3013. After completing his recruit training at Broadmeadows Camp, Robert embarked in Melbourne aboard HMAT "Osterley" on 29th September 1915, for active service overseas.
Having arrived in Egypt, Robert underwent further training with the 2nd Australian Training Battalion in Zeitoun. He was then transferred to the newly raised 59th Infantry Battalion on 26th February 1916, in Tel-el-Kebir, following the doubling of the AIF. He was again transferred on 15th March 1916, when he was taken on strength with the fledgling 60th Infantry Battalion, half of which were veterans of the 8th Battalion's Gallipoli campaign and the remainder being new recruits from Victoria.
On 20th July 1916, only three weeks after their arrival in France, the 60th Battalion had a baptism of fire in the Battle of Fromelles, when Robert was wounded in action, sustaining severe gunshot wounds to his lower abdomen/groin and left shoulder. He was evacuated to the 14th Stationary Hospital in Wimereux, and on the 23rd July embarked aboard the Hospital Ship "St. Denis" from Boulogne, to return to England. The next day, he was admitted to H.M. Queen Mary's Royal Naval Hospital in Southend-on-Sea, for what was to be a long road to recovery.
Robert had finally recovered enough to be transferred to the Glen VAD Hospital in Southend-on-Sea, on 21st March 1917. He was granted furlough on 13th April, and ordered to report to the No. 3 Command Depot in Hurdcott on 28th April. At the end of his furlough, Robert was admitted to the Fovant Hospital sick on 29th April, where he remained for two weeks. He marched into the No. 3 Command Depot on 13th May, but was classified by a Medical Board the next day as "B2b". This meant that Robert was "unfit for overseas training camp for six months, and temporarily unfit for Home Service". On 30th May, Robert was marched out to the No. 2 Command Depot, in Weymouth. This was because, according to the Department of Veterans' Affairs, the "No. 1, No. 3 and No. 4 Australian Command Depots dealt with the soldiers deemed able to return to duty. No. 2 Australian Command Depot managed those who were to be invalided back to Australia."
On 21st July 1917, Robert embarked in England aboard HMAT "Euripides" for return to Australia, arriving in Melbourne on 18th September. He was subsequently discharged in the 3rd Military District, Melbourne, on 5th December 1917 due to being medically unfit for further service. Robert was later awarded the 1914 - 15 Star, British War Medal and the Victory Medal for his service.
Robert's mother Sarah passed away at their home at 137 Buckhurst Street Montague, aged only 50, on 7th August 1919. Robert died in Sandringham, Victoria, on 5th December 1962, aged 65. His ashes were scattered in the gardens of the Springvale Botanical Cemetery in Melbourne. His death certificate is recorded in the name of Robert Henry Walker BROWNE.
Compiled by Karan CAMPBELL-DAVIS from historical records kept by the National Archives of Australia (Service Record); Australian War Memorial (Unit War Diaries of 60th Infantry Bn); Department of Veterans' Affairs ANZAC Portal; Births, Deaths and Marriages (NSW and Victoria); and newspaper articles on Trove.
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