Kenneth Charles SIMKIN

SIMKIN, Kenneth Charles

Service Number: NX1413
Enlisted: 2 November 1939, Scone, New South Wales
Last Rank: Corporal
Last Unit: 2nd/2nd Infantry Battalion
Born: Euershire, Scotland, 20 June 1913
Home Town: Scone, Upper Hunter Shire, New South Wales
Schooling: Not yet discovered
Occupation: Not yet discovered
Died: Killed in Action, Greece, 17 April 1941, aged 27 years
Cemetery: Phaleron War Cemetery, Athens, Greece
Grave ref: 2. D. 7
Memorials: Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour
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World War 2 Service

2 Nov 1939: Enlisted Private, NX1413, Scone, New South Wales
2 Nov 1939: Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Corporal, NX1413, 2nd/2nd Infantry Battalion
3 Nov 1939: Involvement Private, NX1413
17 Apr 1941: Involvement Corporal, NX1413, 2nd/2nd Infantry Battalion, "Operation Lustre" Greece 1941

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Biography

"THE LATE CORPL. K. C. SIMKIN.  A MATE'S TRIBUTE

The following letter, which speaks for itself, written from abroad on 31st August by Private A. Edwards, was received by Mrs. Simkin, widow of the late Corpl. K. C. Simkin, a few days since:— 

Please excuse my taking this opportunity of writing to you, but I have meant to do so for some time now. Yesterday I met Captain
Wilson, who, I believe, you wrote to in regard to Ken, and to see if you could find out anything about him. He, knowing that I had always been in your husband's section ever since coming over from Australia, asked me to write to you, as he had left us long before we went into action. And so I am writing to you to give you a brief inside of the marvellous courage and the wonderful esteem your late husband displayed and was held by us. I know by now you have received the sad news of Ken's death from wounds in Germany; we only heard ourselves from Sergeant R. C. Cadell a few days ago, who had received a letter from Scone, and I and the rest of the chaps wish to tender our sincere sympathy in your sad loss. To us, Ken. wasn't only our corporal, he was our pal. Nothing was a trouble to him, and, if anything, he spoilt us a bit by the way he looked after us. In the Libyan campaign it
was always Ken who cooked our breakfast of hot 'bully,' and made the tea for us. Out on patrols at night, his was the job of calculating the distance, and never once were we lost. During the fighting at Bardia, he was in his glory, laughing at some of us who were ducking from shells, while he was calmly walking around. He never lost a man out of his section in the whole campaign in Libya. I'm really sure it was a record for any company; so little wonder we thought he had some lucky charm. "Well, who wants
beer or tobacco to-night?" he'd call out. "Got no money, Simmy," they'd all cry. "O.K., I'll get it, you can fix me up later." But he had one great fault; he was never done showing up his snaps of you and his pretty kiddies. And I don't blame him for that; he had something to be proud of. He had such wonderful faith in his family that the fear of being hurt never entered his mind.

In Greece he was amazing, marching over mountains day after day with a tremendous load on his back, but always with the thought of a little bit of comfort at the end of the trek. I saw him 'pot shotting' at 'Jerry's' dive bombers whilst he was lying on his back, whilst our convoy was being given a dose on our way up to our last station. We were all dog tired from marching for days when we got to our positions on the Penios, where we fought the 'Jerry'. We dug our holes, had a good feed of fowl, which we had carried for two days and one of the boys had boiled whilst 'Jerry' was just around the comer. We didn't have to wait long for 'Jerry'— about one day. The second day we were there, about midday, the battle started. There were six of us and Ken in our little sector. Yes, I can still see it. Two of the boys in one hole, two in another, and two more of us in Ken's dugout. He, himself, was stripped to the waist, sitting on the side of the hill, spotting 'Jerries' with his glasses and giving them hell with a Bren gun. He was
in his glory, and although we knew in our hearts it was only a matter of time, no one thought about that. Came some new orders from our Company Commander; and my position was of no use for me. 'Duck up with that other section,' said Ken. Little did I think at the time as I crawled up there with bullets humming everywhere that it was this order that saved my life. Our Lieutenant had been wounded, and things were bad. Anxiously we awaited orders to get out, but none came. 'Hang on,' they said. We did from
twelve o'clock till half -past four, when 'Jerry's' tanks succeeded in crossing the river and came for us, giving us everything. Our sergeant, seeing how hopeless it was, called out and told us to make, a run for it. I had only left Ken about five minutes previously, but I could see the tanks pouring machine-gun bullets into the place he and the rest of his boys were in. Running up the gully, pursued by the 'Jerry' tanks, I met the sergeant, who asked, "Where's Simmy and his section?" I told him I had left just before the
tanks came, and I thought they were all dead or wounded. It was irnpossible to go back and see, as hordes of Germans were overrunning the place by this time. But I wasn't sure, and after escaping myself in August from Greece, learnt that none of the
others had been seen or heard of. I naturally concluded my worst fears about their safety were true, although I held out faint hopes that some, and maybe Ken, might be prisoners of war; and now, poor Ken? Gosh, it's tough. Well, of the original platoon, there are only about six of us left now; but we know that those who are gone, including Ken, died bravely and fighting till the last for the 'common cause.' I don't have to think, I know that when the danger was greatest and in Ken's last moments his thoughts would be of you and the kiddies, because I and the others knew how much he loved you all. We will remember them, now and for ever. They were our mates, a friendship, founded out of war clouds and clinched through shot and shell. I'm proud to have known Ken, and to have been his friend."from the Scone Advocate 09 Dec 1941 (nla.gov.au)

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