Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Completed by St Ignatius College, Adelaide

James Herbert Trice was born in Clarence Park Adelaide on the 1st of October in 1905. He lived at 51 Young St. Parkside SA, alongside his wife Phyllis Ethelwyn Davies William. His parents were Bridget Ryan and Herbert William Trice. He worked as a clerk which was considered a stable job. Trice had 16 previous years of service before WW2, which helped grant him a promotion to Second rank Warrant Officer, sharing his knowledge and experience.

Trice enlisted on the 19th of March 1940 in Adelaide, where he embarked on the H.T X1 on the 4th of May 1940 from Sydney. Trice then disembarked on the 17th of July 1940 arriving in Gourock Scotland. They originally sailed alongside the 18th Brigade, aiming to travel to the Middle East. However, they were forced to change course and travel to Britain to help strengthen their defence forces. From Gourock Scotland, the 2/1 machine gun Battalion travelled via train to English, where they trained in camp at Tidworth Pennings on Salisbury Plain. The Battalion trained and remained in the camp for months, until November 1940. Where finally they sailed to the Middle East from Colchester, arriving by the end of December. Before their arrival, on the 13th of December Trice was promoted to Corporal. This promotion entitled him in commanding a portion of soldiers which consist of either two fire teams, bricks or to be in command of detachments, crews, or teams.

At the beginning of 1941 Trice and his Battalion moved into a camp located in Ikingi Maryut. At Ikingi Trice not only went through dessert training but was the one responsible for training a crew. In Ikingi on the 1st of January 1941, the 2/1st Machine Gun Battalion started their first day of work. However, were faced with water problems, this continued till the 21st when a slight downpour occurred, regularly filling up a tank. Before this, water supply was limited in which specific transport was needed, to obtain water from a local well. During the Battalion’s time training in Egypt, they also faced severe weather. This included severe dust storms interrupting and disturbing training. Each day consisted of a morning compass march and normal coy training. This was until the 29th of January of 1941 when they introduced extra exercise, building upon their endurance, and challenging these men once more.

On the 2nd of March, it was discussed the move to a new camp, in which the move commenced on the 5th of March. His status then progressed, as on the 17th of March he was promoted to not only Sergeant but a second-ranked Warrant Officer. This title focused on training plus discipline training, warfare, and controlling a squadron of roughly 200 soldiers. The next goal for the Battalion was to embark to Greece in early April.

However, due to tragic events, James Herbert passed, only at the age of 35 in Al Qahirah Egypt. It was the 19th of March 1941, exactly one year of his enlistment. Trice was in a civilian car alongside Corporal Lance Thomas Cavanough, an NSW-based officer. When they were driving on the main road of Alexandra when they crashed into a parked civilian lorry. Both were rushed to general hospitals in Cairo and granted Cairo leave. However, only one survived. After a day in the hospital, on the 20th Trice passed due to his injuries. Cavanough on the other hand luckily survived and pursued his service and role until the end of the war in 1945. Trice was awarded the long service medal, and his wife Phyllis and mother Bridget were issued a mother and widow’s badge. James Herbert Trice now rests at Chatby Memorial cemetery in Alexandria Grave number 132. 

Reference list:

James Herbert TRICE 2023, Vwma.org.au, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/607351>.

‌ James Herbert Trice 2023, Awm.gov.au, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1695857>.

‌ 2023, Amazonaws.com, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/awm-media/collection/RCDIG1069307/large/5622596.JPG>.

‌ AWM52 8/5/1 - 2/1 Machine Gun Battalion 2023, Awm.gov.au, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1361163>.

2/1st Machine Gun Battalion 2023, Awm.gov.au, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/U56170>.

‌ James Herbert Trice 1905-1941 - Ancestry® 2021, Ancestry.com.au, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www.ancestry.com.au/genealogy/records/james-herbert-trice-24-27zctzr?geo_a=r&o_iid=41019&o_lid=41019&o_sch=Web+Property>.

‌ ACT, R 2023, Department of Defence, Defence.gov.au, viewed 1 June 2023, <https://www.defence.gov.au/adf-members-families/honours-awards/badges/mothers-widows-badge>.

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