BURNS, John
| Service Number: | 2562 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 9 June 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 4th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia, 1895 |
| Home Town: | Chatswood, Willoughby, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Wesley College, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation: | Carpenter |
| Died: | Killed in action, Pozieres, France, 22 July 1916 |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 9 Jun 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 2562, 4th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Aug 1915: | Involvement Private, 2562, 4th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '8' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Runic embarkation_ship_number: A54 public_note: '' | |
| 9 Aug 1915: | Embarked Private, 2562, 4th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Runic, Sydney | |
| 20 Jan 1916: | Promoted AIF WW1, Corporal, 4th Infantry Battalion | |
| 8 Mar 1916: | Promoted AIF WW1, Sergeant, 4th Infantry Battalion | |
| 22 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Sergeant, 2562, 4th Infantry Battalion |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
John Burns was the son of John and Ethel Alexandra Reid Burns, of Chatswood, New South Wales.
His older brother, 3478 Pte. Robert Bell Burns 2nd Battalion AIF, died of wounds on Christmas Day, 1916, five months after his brother’s death, aged 25. Both brothers had been born in Hawthorn, Victoria.
John reached Gallipoli in November 1915, in time to take part in the evacuation. He was only 22 years of age but was promoted to Corporal then Sergeant during the early part of 1916. He was killed in action during the heavy fighting that took place when the Australians captured Pozieres in July 1916.
There is no record of John’s death, and his remains were lost on the battlefield.
His mother noted on his roll of honour form, “he headed the list of Victorian Public school Mining and Agricultural scholarships for 1909 and won a Wesley College scholarship for the same year.”