Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Pte 1306 Edward Ernest Hyde
Edward Ernest Hyde was born in Williamstown in March 1894, the son of Alfred William Hyde and Elizabeth Ann Hyde nee Armstrong. By 1912 the Hyde family had moved to become residents of Jamison Street, Laverton, which was the address given by Edward at the time of his enlistment on 15 January 1916. Edward was the fifth child and fourth son to Alfred and Elizabeth and one of thirteen children, and the younger brother of Albert Hyde who had enlisted in July 1915. Edward’s enlistment form noted that he had spent 12 months in the Citizen Forces Naval Reserve at Williamstown, which is not surprising as his father had been a Mariner. It also appears that Edward had previously attempted to enlist but had been rejected due to an issue with his teeth, but this issue must have been resolved as he was now accepted as been fit to serv
On 22 November 1916 Edward was admitted to Fargo Military Hospital, Wiltshire, for observation (reason unknown) and was discharged on 16 December to re-join his battalion. On 20 December Edward proceeded overseas to France from Folkstone, Kent, on the Princess Victoria, and was marched out to his unit on 14 January 1917. At that time, his Battalion was in the trenches along the Western Front, relieving its sister battalion, the 37th, around Houplines in the Armentieres sector. At the time Edward Hyde enlisted he was 21 years and 10 months old and was employed as a fitter’s labourer. Following the completion of his training he was appointed to the rank of Private and transferred to “D” Company, 39th Battalion, which was first formed on 21 February 1916 at the Ballarat Showgrounds, in Victoria, for service during World War I. Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Robert Rankine, the Battalion was raised as part of an expansion of the 1st A.I.F. that took place at the conclusion of the Gallipoli Campaign. Following a brief period of training in Ballarat, the Battalion marched through Melbourne on 15 May as the city farewelled the unit and they subsequently embarked upon HMAT A11 Ascanius on 27 May 1916, bound for England. Sailing via Cape Town, the battalion landed at Plymouth on 18 July 1916, and moved by train to Amesbury in preparation for their transfer to France.
On 7 June 1917, Edward Hyde, during the above battle, was wounded in action, sustaining injuries to his arm and leg, and was admitted to Etaples hospital, in Picardy. After two weeks, he was moved to the Australian Convalescent Camp in Rouelles, near Le Havre. He returned to his battalion on 8 October that year. However, just four days later during the battle at Broodseinde, he was wounded for a second time, this time sustaining an injury to his right shoulder. Edward was admitted to the Australian General Hospital in Wimereux, near Boulogne.
On 25 January 1918, Edward was transferred back to England, to Command Depot No.2 in Weymouth, which accommodated those men not expected to be fit for duty within six months. There he was diagnosed with DAH (Disordered Action of the Heart) a condition characterised by exhaustion, inability to sleep, breathlessness and heart palpitations. He remained there until 26 June 1918, when he was returned to France.
Private Hyde re-joined his battalion on 10 July 1918 who were now positioned at Amiens involved in the defensive action at the Somme. However, just over a fortnight later, he was re admitted to hospital with the same condition. In October he returned to his battalion again, only to be sent back to hospital in Le Havre 18 days later, still suffering from DAH. He remained hospitalised until January 1919, when he left France for England, arriving in Southampton on 14 January.
On 9 February, Edward embarked on his journey back to Australia on HMAT A11 Ascanius, arriving back in Melbourne on 3 April 1919. Edward moved back to life in Laverton and resumed working as a fitter’s labourer. He married Catherine Sarah Walters in October 1923 and the settled in Epsom Street Laverton and around this time Edward began working for the Victorian Railways. By 1937 the family had moved to Cobram in country Victoria before moving to the Melbourne suburb of Box Hill in the mid 1940’s. Edward’s wife, Catherine, passed away in 1947 and Edward remained living in the Box Hill area until he passed away in November 1983, at the age of 89.