TULLY, Henry
| Service Number: | 1558 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 12th Light Horse Regiment |
| Born: | Glebe Point, New South Wales, Australia , 14 September 1888 |
| Home Town: | Bungendore, Palerang, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Captains Flat School, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation: | Grazier |
| Died: | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia , 25 February 1978, aged 89 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: | Bungendore WW1 Roll of Honour, Bungendore War Memorial, Queanbeyan Presbyterian Parish Queanbeyan-Canberra Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 2 Oct 1915: | Involvement Private, 1558, 12th Light Horse Regiment, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '3' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: RMS Moldavia embarkation_ship_number: '' public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 2 Oct 1915: | Embarked Private, 1558, 12th Light Horse Regiment, RMS Moldavia, Sydney |
Henry Hugh 'Harry' Tully
Also known as Harry, he was born on 14 Sep 1888 in Glebe Point, New South Wales to David Thomas Tully & Mary Agnes Hughes
He lived at 'Duntroon' from 1889 to 1903 where his father was station manager. The family then moved to 'The Springs' near Captains Flat where Tully completed his schoolling and was sent to the Sydney Technical College to study wool classing
He enlisted in the AIF Aug 1915 at Liverpool & embarked as a Trooper with the 6th reinforcements to the 12th Light Horse Regiment in November 1915 before joining the regiment in Mar 1916
His regiment were part of the Suez Canal defences & spent much of the next year patrolling the Sinai desert. On 19 Apr 1917 they were part of the ill–fated Second Battle of Gaza but by September Tully had fallen victim to an epidemic of septic sores caused by poor diet & living conditions
He recovered & re–joined the regiment in time to take part in the 'charge' of the 4th Light Horse Brigade at Beersheba in Palestine on 31 Oct 1917
The 4th Light Horse on the right jumped trenches, before turning to make a dismounted attack on the Ottoman infantry in the trenches, gun pits & redoubts & the 12th Light Hosse on the left rode on, across the face of the main redoubt to find a gap in the Ottoman defences, eventually crossing the railway line into Beersheba – 11th Light Horse rode 'at the trot' in reserve, mopping up & helping with the wounded along the way
During the charge, Tully was wounded in action, receiving a bomb wound to his right thigh. He was evacuated for treatment & re–joined the regiment in Jan 1918 but was hospitalised in February with a septic finger
He re–joined his regiment again in May 1918 & spent the summer in the heat & harsh conditions of the Jordan valley, where in August, the Light Horsemen were issued with swords & trained in cavalry tactics which they, including the 12th Light Horse Regiment, used in the Battle of Sharon the following month. The British forces quickly rolled up the Turk defenders & Tully & his regiment entered Damascus on 1 Oct
The following month he succumbed to malaria. He returned to Australia in Aug 1919 and was discharged on 18 Nov 1919
After the war Tully worked as a wool classer & travelled around woolsheds in NSW, particularly in the Brewarrina district. He briefly held a soldier settler block near Mount Stromlo in the 1920s but he preferred to work in the shearing sheds rather than settle in one spot
He married Stella Oldfield from Brewarrina in 1932 in Sydney & they had two children. Tully eventually retired to Castlecrag in Sydney & by 1955 was living in Manly
He passed away on 25 Feb 1978
Submitted 6 November 2024 by James Coleman
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