Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Distinguished Conduct Medal

'For conspicuous bravery on 7th August, 1915, at Lone Pine (Dardanelles). Throughout several determined attacks by the enemy, Lance-Corporal Tallon threw bombs with great effect, exposing himself freely when necessary, regardless of all personal danger. Finally his arm was blown off and he was compelled to retire. His courage and devotion to duty gave a fine example to all ranks with him.'
Source: 'Commonwealth Gazette' No. 28
Date: 24 February 1916

A GALLANT SOLDIER.
Corporal James Tallon, D.C.M., who returned from Gallipoli about 12 months ago minus his left hand, is to be presented with a cottage to-day. Corporal Tallon, who is a married man with three children, owned a block of land at Putney, and had a little two-roomed weather board cottage on it, and his friends rallied around him on his return, and, without waiting for a voluntary workers' association to be formed, undertook the work of adding four rooms to the little
cottage and making it into a very pleasing dwelling. Corporal Tallon, it will be remembered, obtained the D.C.M. for distinguished conduct at Lone Pine, when he and two comrades kept a section of Turks busy with his bombs. They were succeeding well, when a bomb prematurely exploded in Corporal Tallon 's hand, shattering the member badly, killing one of his comrades and badly wounding the other. Corporal Tallon got his hand temporarily dressed in the trench, and then walked nearly two miles to the beach, where the hand was amputated above the wrist.