Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Albert Christian GREBER #1913 41st Battalion

Albert Greber was born at Rous Mill between Lismore and Ballina in northern NSW. He was one of least four children born to Christian and Lucy Greber.

When Albert attended the Brisbane recruiting depot on 3rd December 1915 he stated his age as 28. Albert gave his occupation as publican although his wife, Lucy Cecilia when completing the Roll of Honour Circular also noted that Albert had trained as a wardsman in a mental health facility. Albert gave his address as Club Hotel, Linville and named his wife of the same address as his next of kin.

After signing up, Albert returned to the hotel in Linville until he was required to attend training camp at Enoggera in February 1916. By the 1st April, Albert had been allocated as a reinforcement for the 49th Battalion. A month later, the 3rd reinforcements for the 49th Battalion boarded the “Clan McGillivray” in Brisbane. The embarkation roll shows that Albert had allocated 3/- of his daily rate of 5/- to his wife. After a brief stop in Sydney to take on more reinforcements the troopship sailed for Egypt arriving in Suez on 13th June.

After the evacuation of the two Australian Divisions from Gallipoli in December 1915, plans were put into effect to increase the size of the AIF from 2 divisions to 5. Most of this work would be done in Egypt by splitting the Gallipoli battalions and making up numbers from reinforcements. The 49th Battalion, to which Albert had been assigned, was made up of veterans from the 9th Battalion, and reinforcements. By the time that Albert arrived in Egypt, his battalion had already left for the Western Front in France. Rather than send these later reinforcements to France, they were sent to England where another Australian Division was being assembled. When Albert arrived in England in September, he was re-allocated to the 41st Battalion.

The 41st Battalion was part of the 11th Brigade of the 3rd Division AIF and was in training on Salisbury Plain under the command of Divisional Commander Major General John Monash. While the 4 AIF divisions in France were fighting in numerous battles along the Somme, Monash’s troops were being trained for a new offensive which would begin in the summer of 1917 around the Flemish city of Ypres in Belgium.

The 41st Battalion crossed the English Channel on 24th November 1916 and went into reserve areas behind the lines near Armentieres on the French Belgian border. Initially the battalion was engaged in fatigue work repairing roads and constructing billets. On 24th December, the battalion went into the front line for the first time. The battalion war diary records that the battalion was engaged in passive resistance interspersed with sniping.

On 5th January, Albert Greber was reported killed in action. The war diary simply records 3 deaths of ORs in the period 4th January to 10th January. Albert’s wife was informed of his death by a local clergyman and she also received a letter from the battalion chaplain. Albert was buried in the Cite Bonjean Cemetery in Armentieres.

In May, Lucy Greber was granted a pension of two pounds per fortnight as a war widow and a son, Anthony was granted one pound per fortnight. When Albert enlisted, there was no mention of a son on his enlistment papers and it is possible that his son was born after he had embarked for overseas.

For the next few years after Albert’s death, Lucy continued to reside at the Club Hotel where she received a parcel of Alberts effects including letters, photos, a notebook and a wristwatch. By the time that service medals were being distributed to next of kin, Lucy advised that she had remarried and was now Mrs Lucy Gardiner of the Prince Alfred Hotel on Petrie Terrace, Brisbane.