ROACH, Eric Mervyn
| Service Numbers: | 437 , 437 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 26 August 1914, Morphettville, South Australia |
| Last Rank: | Lieutenant |
| Last Unit: | 1st Machine Gun Battalion |
| Born: | Hackney, South Australia, 24 March 1891 |
| Home Town: | Burra (SA), Goyder, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Burra Public School and Prince Alfred College, South Australia |
| Occupation: | Electrician |
| Died: | Killed In Action, France, 10 August 1918, aged 27 years |
| Cemetery: |
Heath Cemetery, Picardie, France Plot VI, Row H, Grave No. 20 |
| Memorials: | Adelaide National War Memorial, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Burra District WW1 Honor Roll, Burra Fallen Soldiers Memorial, Kent Town Prince Alfred College 'Nobly Striving, Nobly Fell' Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 26 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 437 , Morphettville, South Australia | |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Oct 1914: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 437, 10th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Ascanius embarkation_ship_number: A11 public_note: '' | |
| 20 Oct 1914: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 437, 10th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Ascanius, Adelaide | |
| 25 Apr 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 437, 10th Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli | |
| 25 Jul 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Second Lieutenant, 3rd Machine Gun Company | |
| 25 Nov 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Lieutenant, 3rd Machine Gun Company | |
| 10 Aug 1918: | Involvement AIF WW1, Lieutenant, 1st Machine Gun Battalion , "The Last Hundred Days", --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: awm_unit: 1st Australian Machine Gun Battalion awm_rank: Lieutenant awm_died_date: 1918-08-10 |
The LANE & ROACH Family in WW1
Stanley Monteith LANE, his niece and 3 nephews all enlisted in WW1.
Stanley Monteith LANE, 37100, Gunner, Field Artillery Brigade, AIF
Dorothy ROACH, Staff Nurse, AIF
Eric Mervyn ROACH, 437, Lieutenant, 10 Bn, 1 MG Bn, AIF, KIA
Harry Keith ROACH, 4537, Private, 25 Bn, AIF
John Carlyle ROACH, 3620, Sapper, 14 Field Artillery Brigade, AIF
Submitted 24 August 2020 by Graham PIKE
Biography contributed by Cheryl Hutchins
"...Lieutenant Eric Mervyn Roach of Bulla, SA. An electrician with one and a half years service in the Citizens' Military Forces (CMF), Roach enlisted with the rank of Private on 26 August 1914. He embarked with the service number 437 from Adelaide aboard HMAT Ascanius (A11) with the 10th Battalion, Machine Gun Section on 20 October 1914. Private Roach was wounded in action on 25 April 1915 at Gallipoli, however he returned to the unit soon after. He was transferred to the 3rd Machine Gun Company in March 1916 and was promoted to Lance Corporal in August of that year. He was further promoted to Lieutenant on 25 November 1917. Lt Roach was killed in action on 10 August 1918, aged 27, and is buried at Heath Cemetery Harbonnieres, France. In a letter to the Base Record Office in Melbourne in 1922, his father quotes Euripides when discussing his sons "glorious end" - "Who knows but life be that which men call death, and death that men call life". - SOURCE (www.awm.gov.au)
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