MARTIN, Roy Leslie
| Service Number: | 1584 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 18 July 1915, Liverpool, New South Wales |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 30th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Young, New South Wales, Australia, 26 May 1896 |
| Home Town: | Cobar, Cobar, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Cobar Convent School, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Fromelles, France, 20 July 1916, aged 20 years |
| Cemetery: |
Fromelles (Pheasant Wood) Military Cemetery Identified 2026, grave to be identified with full military honours 19th July 2026 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, V.C. Corner Australian Cemetery Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 18 Jul 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1584, Depot Battalion (AIF), Liverpool, New South Wales | |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Nov 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 1584, 30th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Beltana, Sydney | |
| 9 Nov 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1584, 30th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '16' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Beltana embarkation_ship_number: A72 public_note: '' | |
| 16 Jun 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 1584, 30th Infantry Battalion, Embarked Alexandria for B.E.F per H.M.T. "Hororata" | |
| 23 Jun 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 1584, 30th Infantry Battalion, Disembarked Marseilles, France | |
| 19 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1584, 30th Infantry Battalion, Fromelles (Fleurbaix) | |
| 20 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1584, 30th Infantry Battalion, Fromelles (Fleurbaix), Killed In Action |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Evan Evans
From Australian Dept of Defence - Emma Thompson, Released 28 April 2026
Private Roy Leslie Martin, 1584, 30th Infantry Bn
More than a century after they were killed in action in World War I, the remains of two missing Australian soldiers have been identified.
Second Lieutenant Duncan McKenzie and Private Roy Martin will now have their names engraved on new headstones.
Australia’s Chief of Army Lieutenant General Simon Stuart said the identifications showed Australia’s enduring commitment to honouring its war dead.
“The formal identification of Second Lieutenant McKenzie and Private Martin, more than a century after their deaths, reflects our ongoing responsibility to those who served and sacrificed for our nation,” Lieutenant General Stuart said.
“Time does not diminish our obligation to remember their service and to honour them with the dignity of a named grave.”
Private Roy Martin, from Cobar in NSW, was among the more than 1800 Australians killed during the Battle of Fromelles in July 1916.
His body was recovered by German forces and was among the 250 Commonwealth soldiers exhumed from an unmarked mass grave at Pheasant Wood in 2009.
Private Martin was then reburied as an unknown Australian soldier at the Fromelles Military Cemetery.
His identity has now been confirmed through a detailed process involving DNA analysis and historical research, in collaboration with the Fromelles Association of Australia.
Defence has now formally identified 181 of the 250 soldiers recovered at the mass grave.
Private Martin will receive a new headstone at Fromelles on the 110th anniversary of the Battle of Fromelles in July.
“By formally identifying Second Lieutenant McKenzie and Private Martin, their families receive long-awaited reassurance and clarity,” Lieutenant General Stuart said.
“Their families have lived generations without knowing where their loved ones lay.”
The identifications were conducted in partnership with the soldiers’ families, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission Commemorations team, historical research organisation Fallen Diggers Incorporated and the Fromelles Association of Australia.
Click images to start slideshow.