WATKINSON, Robert Samuel
| Service Numbers: | 3797, 3797A |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 14 February 1917 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 47th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Warwick, Queensland, Australia, 14 February 1917 |
| Home Town: | Warwick, Southern Downs, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Warwick Central Boys School, Queensland, Australia |
| Occupation: | Orchardist |
| Died: | Killed in action, Dernancourt, France, 5 April 1918, aged 1 year |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Inverell & District Memorial Olympic Pool WW1 Honour Roll, Inverell War Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Warwick War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 14 Feb 1917: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3797, 47th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 2 Aug 1917: | Involvement Private, 3797, 47th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '19' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Miltiades embarkation_ship_number: A28 public_note: '' | |
| 2 Aug 1917: | Embarked Private, 3797, 47th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Miltiades, Sydney | |
| 5 Apr 1918: | Involvement Private, 3797A, 47th Infantry Battalion, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 3797A awm_unit: 47th Australian Infantry Battalion awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1918-04-05 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Robert Samuel Watkinson was the son of Joseph and Jane Watkinson of Warwick, Queensland. His father Joseph died in April 1917, a few months after Robert enlisted.
Robert was reported to have been rejected no fewer than five times before his successful enlistment. For 2½ years prior to enlisting he had been living and working on his fruit farm in the Stanthorpe district. On 21 July 1917 he married Miss Ida Green, only about 10 days before he embarked from Sydney for overseas.
Robert’s younger brother, Lieutenant Vernon Watkinson 15th Battalion AIF, was wounded and captured by the Germans at Bullecourt in April 1917, and was by this stage a prisoner of war at Friberg, Germany.
Robert joined the 47th Battalion in February 1918 and was killed in action at Dernancourt less than two months later on 5 April 1918. One of his mates reported he had been shot in the head by a sniper at about 5 p.m. on the day the 47th Battalion stood in the path of a very strong German attack. He was reported to have been buried in the Dernancourt Railway Line Military Cemetery but his remains could not be found after the war.
His personal belongings were shipped to his wife from England but all were lost when the transport ‘Barunga’ was sunk at sea. Over 5500 packages containing the personal effects of over 5000 soldiers were lost on the ship.
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