GILBERT, Thomas William
| Service Number: | 5587 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 14 January 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 25th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, 4 June 1888 |
| Home Town: | Fortitude Valley, Brisbane, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Tinsmith |
| Died: | Killed in action, Belgium, 4 October 1917, aged 29 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres, Flanders, Belgium |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Milton Christ Church Honour Board, Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 14 Jan 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 5587, 25th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 7 Sep 1916: | Involvement Private, 5587, 25th Infantry Battalion, Third Ypres, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '15' embarkation_place: Brisbane embarkation_ship: HMAT Clan McGillivray embarkation_ship_number: A46 public_note: '' | |
| 7 Sep 1916: | Embarked Private, 5587, 25th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Clan McGillivray, Brisbane |
Help us honour Thomas William Gilbert's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Thomas was the son of Thomas and Alice Matilda Gilbert and husband of Mona Mary Gilbert, of Red Hill, Queensland. He also had a daughter who was born only a few months before he enlisted.
His younger brother, 3304 Pte. Francis Theodore Gilbert 52nd Battalion AIF, was later killed in action at Dernancourt on 5 April 1918, aged 25.
Thomas enlisted in early 1916 and when he arrived in England, he got himself into trouble several times for being absent without leave. In fact, on the last occasion he was court martialled and jailed for several months. He joined the 25th Battalion during June 1917 and was mortally wounded in the Battle of Broodseinde on 4 October 1917.
A soldier of the 25th Battalion described what happened in Gilbert’s Red Cross wounded and missing file, “On October 4 working in trench (first objective) with Pte. Gilbert shrapnel burst struck us down. Gilbert was quite paralysed. At his request feel down his back and discovered wound must have struck his spine. He laid patiently for many hours, could not get stretcher bearers and at night we carried him down on a waterproof sheet to Battalion headquarters. Heard that he died on the way to the dressing station. Gave me a message for his wife to say that he died happy. Had not known this man before, he must have been of good courage. He had desired to carry a wounded lad of the 26th who had been left in the trench for a long time till stretcher bearers could be found. He was most patient especially as he was certain he was done for. Trench fell on him, fortunately able to release him, only two of us in this part of the trench, as it was waterlogged.”
Thomas Gilbert’s grave was subsequently lost and he is remembered on the Menin Gate Memorial.
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