O'MALLEY, Charles Arthur
| Service Number: | 413 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 19 August 1914, An original member of D Company |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 52nd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Wilmot, Tasmania, Australia, 25 January 1895 |
| Home Town: | Waratah, Waratah/Wynyard, Tasmania |
| Schooling: | Waratah State School, Tasmania, Australia |
| Occupation: | Miner |
| Died: | Killed in action, Mouquet Farm, France, 3 September 1916, aged 21 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Kentish Municipality Honour Roll Mural, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial (Australian National Memorial - France), Waratah Roll of Honor 1918 |
World War 1 Service
| 19 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 413, 12th Infantry Battalion, An original member of D Company | |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Oct 1914: | Involvement Corporal, 413, 12th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Hobart embarkation_ship: HMAT Geelong embarkation_ship_number: A2 public_note: '' | |
| 20 Oct 1914: | Embarked Corporal, 413, 12th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Geelong, Hobart | |
| 3 Sep 1916: | Involvement Sergeant, 413, 52nd Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 413 awm_unit: 52nd Australian Infantry Battalion awm_rank: Sergeant awm_died_date: 1916-09-03 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
The son of Edward and Isabel Mary O'Malley, of Waratah, Tasmania.
Charles was one of the first Australians to enlist during August 1914. He served right through the Gallipoli campaign from the day of the landing without injury or sickness, a rare feat in itself. He was promoted to Sergeant prior to the evacuation.
He was transferred to the 52nd Battalion during the reorganisation of the AIF in Egypt during early 1916. He was killed in action during the fiercest of trench fighting at Mouquet Farm. He was not reported as missing and seems to have been buried on the battlefield.
A mate later wrote to his mother, and the letter was published in the The North Western Advocate 14th November 1917,
"I was with your, son Charlie from the beginning of the war and was with him up till the time he was killed. He was a man that was well liked, and who did all he could to make the men cheerful. ‘Whilst in Turkey and in France, I was in his section for over 18 months and we had great respect for one another. It was on the morning of September 3 that we made a charge at Mouquet Farm and both your son Charlie and the officer in charge were killed. I cannot say where he was buried, as I did not see him after he was killed. It was the biggest battle up to that date. There is nothing more I can say in the matter, only that we were the greatest of pals, and he was one of the best among his men."
A younger brother, 6774 Pte John Edwin O'Malley 12th Battalion AIF, returned to Australia in late 1919.