CHRISTOPHER, Charles Leslie
| Service Number: | 1249 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 16th Infantry Battalion (WW1) |
| Born: | Kadina, South Australia, 12 February 1892 |
| Home Town: | Kadina, Copper Coast, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Miner/driver |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Bloody Angle, Gallipoli, Gallipoli, Dardanelles, Turkey, 2 May 1915, aged 23 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Memorial Panel 79 Cemetery 6 Lone Pine Memorial Gallipoli, Lone Pine Memorial, Gallipoli Peninsula, Canakkale Province, Turkey |
| Memorials: | Adelaide National War Memorial, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Kadina & District WW1 Roll of Honor, Kadina Town Hall WW1 & WW2 Roll of Honour, Kadina War Memorial Arch, Lone Pine Memorial to the Missing |
World War 1 Service
| 22 Dec 1914: |
Involvement
AIF WW1, Private, 1249, 16th Infantry Battalion (WW1), Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '12' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Ceramic embarkation_ship_number: A40 public_note: '' |
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|---|---|---|
| 22 Dec 1914: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 1249, 16th Infantry Battalion (WW1), HMAT Ceramic, Melbourne | |
| 25 Apr 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1249, 16th Infantry Battalion (WW1), ANZAC / Gallipoli |
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Add my storyBiography
Sadly I'm not able to write an exciting tale of our Great Uncle's life, nor the reason why he joined up. We only discovered he existed when our eldest brother visited the War Memorial in Canberra. After researching for a few years I've only been able to discover basic information about his joining and that he was the second youngest of nine children. I've tried for some time to contact other relatives but even his own nieces and nephews knew nothing of him, sadly they have all since passed away.
Charles enlisted on 16th September 1914 at Morphettville S.A., he was placed with the 16th Battalion "H" company which trained at Broadmeadows in Victoria. They were shipped out on the 22nd December 1914 aboard the troopship "Ceramic." He was born in Kadina S.A., a mining town in those days, his occupation was given as a Miner/Driver on his Enlistment records. His war records don't show much information, so he must have kept his nose pretty clean before being thrust into the action.
Charles was the only child from his immediate family who enlisted. His poor mother must have been heart broken when finding out about his death, her husband had only passed away in January 1915. It took several months before an inquest finally confirmed that Charles was killed on 2nd May 1915. Letters were sent back and forth saying that he was missing and then missing presumed dead. Imagine how hard it was for these poor families waiting on news from their loved ones. His body was never recovered and we often hear of horrendous stories of rotting corpses and how some bodies were just throw over the cliffs to prevent disease spreading. So many beautiful young men.
We have hoped that some day another researcher will find information or know of other family who have details to pass on about our dear Great Uncle. His tale is not one of storming trenches, taking machine gun nests single handed or winning Medals. However, his courage deserves mentioning like so many other young men and women who signed up to fight the wars. Charles was 23 when he was killed, no chance for marriage or a family. We want him remembered and honoured. We feel he has been forgotten for so many years, probably not an intentional act, but the Great War especially wasn't discussed much among a lot of families, I guess it was just too painful.
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