WHYTE, Charles Alexander
| Service Number: | Officer |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 20 August 1914, Sydney, NSW |
| Last Rank: | Major |
| Last Unit: | 5th Pioneer Battalion |
| Born: | Invereighty, Forfarshire, Scotland, 14 August 1882 |
| Home Town: | Granville, Parramatta, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Fofar, Scotland |
| Occupation: | Clerk |
| Died: | Natural causes, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 7 February 1960, aged 77 years |
| Cemetery: |
Woronora Memorial Park, Sutherland, New South Wales Wall of Mem AIF J Flor Ct, 0102 |
| Memorials: | Granville M.U.I.O.O.F. Loyal Happy Moments Lodge No. 127 Roll of Honor |
World War 1 Service
| 20 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Second Lieutenant, Officer, 2nd Infantry Battalion, Sydney, NSW | |
|---|---|---|
| 18 Oct 1914: | Involvement 2nd Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '7' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Suffolk embarkation_ship_number: A23 public_note: '' | |
| 18 Oct 1914: | Embarked 2nd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Suffolk, Sydney | |
| 15 Aug 1918: | Discharged AIF WW1, Major, 5th Pioneer Battalion, Medically unfit |
Help us honour Charles Alexander Whyte's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Faithe Jones
Bro Whyte was born on the 14th of August 1882 in Fofar, Scotland. From the age of 11 he left school to become a bread carter in Perth, Scotland for a local baker. He joined the local militia on the 23rd of September 1899 and then transferred to the Black Watch (Royal Highlanders) on the 10th of October 1899. In late 1899 he was sent with the Black Watch to serve in the Boer War, earning him the Queen’s South Africa Medal with four clasps, for services rendered.
After his stint in the Boer War he was sent to British India, where he was the personal escort for His Majesty Habbibullah Khan, Amir of Afghanistan. He transferred from the Black Watch to the Army Reserves on the 19th of December 1907 and remained with the reserves until the 19th of October 1911. During his military service he was taught to be an accountant as a secondary skill, which provided him with employment post his military career with the Burma Oil Company as their travelling accountant in the far east, travelling the jungles of Burma, Bengal and Assam for two years.
Whyte came to Australia and gained employment in the Taxation Department, in which he served for 31 years retiring in 1942. He also resumed his part time military career with the senior cadets on the 1st of September 1913 with the rank of Lieutenant, a position which he held until enlisting into the Australian Imperial Forces on the 20th of August 1914 for active service during the Great War.
Circa Sept 1914
Captain Whyte was posted to the 2nd Battalion to participate in the Gallipoli Landings, wounded twice on the peninsula, he remained there until the evacuation on the 9th of January 1916. He was mentioned in despatches by General Sir Ian Hamiliton for services rendered in the Dardanelles Operations in January 1916.
Posted to the 5th Pioneer Battalion in March 1916, he then proceeded to France in October 1916 with the promotion to Major. He stayed with the Pioneers in France until February 1917, before being sent to England and eventually back home to Australia in mid 1918 for discharge.
Major Whyte remained active in the ex-servicemen community with holding various positions on the South African Soldier’s Association and the New South Wales Black Watch Association. He was made a Member of the British Empire on the 1st of June 1953 for his services to the ex-servicemen.
Bro Whyte passed away on the 7th of February 1960, he survived by his son Lieutenant Charles Whtye Jnr (RAN Retd). His wife Joanna and son Norman had predeceased him.
References –
NLA Trove Website
NSW BDM Website
NAA Website
Samual Cox, PM, September 2023
Click images to start slideshow.