MALTHOUSE, William Henry
| Service Numbers: | 537, 79736 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force |
| Born: | South Norwood, Surrey, England, 1872 |
| Home Town: | Burwood, Burwood, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Motor Mechanic |
| Died: | Illness while a POW, Germany, 6 December 1918 |
| Cemetery: |
Hamburg Cemetery, Germany Hamburg Cemetery, Hamburg, Germany |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial, Burwood Memorial Arch |
World War 1 Service
| 27 Jul 1917: | Involvement Private, 537, Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '21' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: SS Matunga embarkation_ship_number: '' public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 27 Jul 1917: | Embarked Private, 537, Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force, SS Matunga, Sydney | |
| 6 Dec 1918: | Involvement Private, 79736, Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 79736 awm_unit: Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1918-12-06 |
WW1
The details that are provided are taken from the book "Just Soldiers" written by WO1 Darryl Kelly, published 2004, chapter 23, pages 149 to 154. William enlisted 13 July 1917 aged 53, but his enlistment papers showed he lowered his age to 46 years. The enlistment talked him out of joining the Western Front and gave him the offer to join the Australian Naval & Military Expeditionary which had been raised to garrison Rabaul and prevent re-occupation by any German force. Harry accepted the challenge, he and others were soon on a ship to land them at Rabaul. Unfortunately, this ship was captured by a German raider ship "Wolf". All of the personnel and all of the cargo were transferred to the Wolf and the local ship was sunk. The Wolf then sailed back to Europe where the prisoners were taken ashore and placed in Prisoner of War camps. The conditions in the camp was quite poor and he suffered terribly with the cold which caused his natural illnesses to worsen. At the end of the war he was to be evacuated to the UK and then to Aust but the wait became a torture to him, he lost the will to live and died so far from home. Rest in Peace Lest We Forget
Submitted 19 February 2020 by Maxwell HILL
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