Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Leonard was born in the gold mining town of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia to Alice Maud and Frederick William Rex on the 7th October 1917. The family moved to South Australia, living in the suburb of Colonel Light Gardens where Len found work as a labourer. In his late teen and early 20’s years, Leon was caught in some wild escapades which saw him before the Courts, firstly as a 19-year-old for breaking and damaging a window and having to pay 2/- damage, a 5/- fine and 10/- costs. His second appearance, aged 21, was for unlawfully being on the South Road Estate enclosed premises stealing olives with two other ‘friends’ from Colonel Light Gardens with each being fined 10/ with 7/6 costs.
Ten months later, aged 22 Len enlisted in July ’40, already showing scars of his life experiences, with several scars and a forearm tattoo. He was allocated the number SX7990 and placed in the newly formed 2/48th Battalion. Following his early days at Wayville, in the cold of the Pavilions, now part of the Royal Adelaide Showgrounds he headed to Woodside for preliminary training. A few days pre-embarkation leave preceded him boarding the Stratheden on the 7th November and arriving in the Middle East on the 17th December ’40. His battalion then completed a few months training in Cyrenaica before heading to Tobruk at the start of April 1941 where the dust, flies, heat, minimal water supplies and constant bombardment were quite a challenge to these fresh new enlistees. Leonard was to become one of the famed Rats of Tobruk, but his life was to be irrevocably changed. He narrowly escaped death soon after arriving in the Middle East.
In May ‘41 he sustained a gunshot wound to his neck and was evacuated to hospital for treatment that lasted almost two months. His injury occurred in the fierce fighting for Hill 209 which claimed the lives of seven others. John Glenn in his book, ‘Tobruk to Tarakan’ described conditions that day at Dimra: “At 3:50am on 1st May the men of the 2/48th stood-to to await the outcome of the battle which had raged all through the night. In thick mist, darkness, and bitter cold they snatched a quick breakfast of bully beef and hard biscuits.” Attempting to take Hill 209 in the heavy dust storm was marked by overhead enemy aircraft targeting their carrying vehicles, ‘D Company moved out steadily with two platoons forward- 18 Platoon under Lieutenant Larkins on the right and 17 Platoon with Sergeant Tonkin in command on the left.’ ‘The company then moved well forward under control, and came under small arms fire, but continued until they came under very heavy machine-gun fire from the direction of the Water Point and Post S4.’
The remainder of that day was chaotic, information scant, the men weary and under heavy fire and a raging sandstorm. The next morning there was a terrific dust storm, but a foot patrol set out to find their soldiers who had not returned. For a few of those missing men it was some time before their fate was confirmed. An appalling day for the close knit 2/48th.
Back home in May ’41, the Chronicle listed Leonard as one of 29 wounded in action from this battalion. These included Pte. Laurence S. Baker, SX7282, Mambray Creek; Pte. Percival G. Bartholomew, SX7122, Narrung; Pte. Thomas Bell, SX8265, Snowtown; Joseph Buckley, SX8459, Albert Park, Vic; Pte. Robert W. Carvosso, SX7888, Glenelg; Pte. Ernest H. Chapman, SX7289, Koongawa; Pte. Ronald R. Collins, SX7163, Gulnare; Pte. M. G. Day. SX7434, Nairne; Pte. Harold W. Gass, SX7147, Mannum; Pte. Ronald A. Gepp, SX7884, Ashborne; Pte. Roy D. Goodes, SX6917. Cur ramulka; Pte. John Kennedy. SX7842, Adelaide; Lieut. Geoffrey D. Larkins, SX10332. St. Peters; Pte. Wilfred. J. Lewis, SX8856, Scott's Creek; Pte Henry O. Lohman. SX7771, Murray Bridge; Pte. Keith H. Pointon. SX7143. Prospect; Pte. Leonard G. Rex, SX7990, Colonel Light Gar dens; and Pte. Leonard J Rodda, SX7327, Moonta.
When Leonard was finally discharged, he was transferred to the Infantry Training Depot, but inevitably, his medical classification was that he was ‘fit for duties other than active service with field battalions.’ By October ’41 Leonard was graded as a Group II Textile Refitter. The following year he returned to Australia via Melbourne and was allocated to the 2/1 Tank Workshop Company at Rutherford.
This became challenging for Leonard, with him receiving a five-day penalty confined to barracks for not boarding a bus back to camp in October ’43, as per his orders. He was caught (sober) and arrested at Newcastle, admitting to the arresting Corporal from the Provost Corps that he had no leave pass. Still wearing his army uniform, Leonard was taken to Broadmeadows Lockup where he was formally charged with being Absent without leave. Moves to New South Wales, then Queensland followed before he left Townsville for Lae and work with the 2/7th. With the war successfully drawing to a close, Leonard returned to Australia via Townsville, then home to South Australia. He was cleared from the Military hospital and formally discharged on the 22nd October ’45.
Leonard married Laurel Caroline (Carol) and had four children, Leon, Barry, Kevin and daughter Janne. Len died aged 40 on the 20th January 1958. A plaque commemorating his service is in the Derrick Gardens Path 9 Grave 198, of Centennial Park. In the same Cemetery, both of Leonard’s parents also rest. Alice lived to be 90 and Frederick 80. They are together in Path 16 Grave 887.
Carol remarried and had a further child, Donald. Aged 80, she died in on the 11th July 2005 and is remembered with a plaque on Leonard’s grave.
Researched and written by Kaye Lee, daughter of Bryan Holmes SX8133, 2/48th Battalion.