Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Lieutenant Commander Percy William Forwood, RANR (1906-1941)

From information provided by son Peter and adughter Kath Forwood

Lieutenant Commander Percy William Forwood, RANR, was the only son and third child of Mr. Percy Herbert Forwood,  and Mrs Mary Anne Forwood (nee Deex).  He was born on 22 January 1906. He grew up with his three sisters Gwen, Connie and Kathleen, and they lived at at 25 Woodville Road Woodville.

Little is known of his childhood years and primary schooling, but we do know that he attended Woodville High School where his name is on their Honour Board.  While attending Woodville High School, he won a scholarship to continue his studies at Scott's Business College, where he obtained accounting qualifications. He subsequently became an accountant for leading firm Mellor Duffield and Daco.

As a young man he was very ambitious, joining the Masonic Society, and he was a member of the Adelaide Rowing Club where he was a noted athlete. His daughter Kath had some of his trophies at home and has since donated them to the Adelaide Rowing Club. 

We know from photos that he occasionally smoked a pipe and the set of wooden handled golf clubs that he left, indicate that he went out onto the course at least sometimes.  He also like a flutter on the horses.

He was interested in the sea and had joined the Royal Australian Navy Reserve at the age of 18 and was appointed a Midshipman soon after in July 1924. He was promoted Lieutenant in 1929.

He met a lovely country girl named Rhoda Thusnelda Strauss of Tepko, near Murray Bridge through a friend. They married on Christmas eve 1932 in St Paul’s Lutheran Church, Summerfield. 

During this period he was often on training missions. Kath’s mother Rhoda often complained that Percy was always ‘Away on a Cruise’ when her children were born, a scenario with which many services wives of mopre recent times, could identify.

Percy was working on a plan to go into private business with friend Ex Savvas, an orchardist at Mypolonga, but war intervened.

After mobilisation and reporting for active service on 16 April 1940, he was posted to the HMAS Parramatta (II), joining the ship in May 1940 when it was launched at Cockatoo dockyards Sydney as a new armed escort ship of 1060 tons. Percy’s son Peter has a poor but definite memory of being taken aboard with visitors when the Parramatta berthed at Outer Harbour. No doubt daughter Kathreen was there too, but she was only 3 years old then.

At that stage, Percy being from the Naval Reserve, rather than the 'Regular' Navy itself, was simply listed with the ‘Other Officers’, behind Captain Walker and three other permanent Navy Officers,.  Later he is believed to have become the first South Australian RANR man serving at sea during WW2 to gain promotion to Lieutenant-Commander, in July 1940. 

The Parramatta's roles and tasking are detailed HERE (seapower.navy.gov.au)

He was reported missing presumed lost when HMAS Parramatta was struck by a torpedo from a German submarine U559 and sunk off the coast of Libya on its way to Tobruk, in convoy as part of what was known as the 'Tobruk Ferry', the convoys that sustained Tobruk's defenders during the siege.  HMAS Parramatta (II) was mortally hit and quickly rolled and sank, in the early hours of 27 November 1941. A total of 138 lives were lost including all the officers. 

A full account can by found by clicking on the link above on this page. https://seapower.navy.gov.au/hmas-parramatta-ii (seapower.navy.gov.au)

Percy Forwood's name is listed on the Plymouth Naval Memorial, England along with other Commonwealth sailors who have no known grave.

Rhoda did not remarry after Percy's death.  Kath went to Sydney for the launch of the second Parramatta where she stayed with Mrs Fairfax’s daughter.  Mrs Fairfax' first husband was also lost on the Parramatta.

The key image has been sourced from the AWM and the Royal Australian Navy landing page for HMAS Parramatta (II) (see the link).  

According to the AWM, the original is held by the Adelaide Rowing Club.

Sources:

AWM Roll of Honour - https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/P10294454 (www.awm.gov.au)

DVA Nominal roll extract - https://nominal-rolls.dva.gov.au/veteran?id=1190054&c=WW2#R (nominal-rolls.dva.gov.au)

RAN Website - https://seapower.navy.gov.au/hmas-parramatta-ii (seapower.navy.gov.au)

Trove - https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/35190577?searchTerm=Percy%20Forwood  (trove.nla.gov.au)