PETHARD, William Henry
Service Number: | 811 |
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Enlisted: | 18 August 1914 |
Last Rank: | Sergeant |
Last Unit: | 7th Infantry Battalion |
Born: | Kyneton, Victoria, Australia, 1893 |
Home Town: | Golden Square, Greater Bendigo, Victoria |
Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
Occupation: | Brewery employee |
Died: | 24 June 1966, cause of death not yet discovered, place of death not yet discovered |
Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
Memorials: | Bendigo Great War Roll of Honor |
World War 1 Service
18 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Signaller, 811, 7th Infantry Battalion | |
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19 Oct 1914: | Involvement Private, 811, 7th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '9' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Hororata embarkation_ship_number: A20 public_note: '' | |
19 Oct 1914: | Embarked Private, 811, 7th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Hororata, Melbourne | |
25 Apr 1915: | Wounded AIF WW1, Signaller, 811, 7th Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli, GSW (& SW?) left side of face. | |
22 Mar 1916: | Promoted AIF WW1, Lance Corporal, 7th Infantry Battalion | |
23 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Lance Corporal, 811, 7th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières | |
1 Aug 1916: | Promoted AIF WW1, Corporal, 7th Infantry Battalion | |
27 Mar 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Lance Corporal, 811, 7th Infantry Battalion, The Outpost Villages - German Withdrawal to Hindenburg Line | |
11 May 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Lance Sergeant, 7th Infantry Battalion | |
17 Aug 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Sergeant, 7th Infantry Battalion | |
20 Sep 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Sergeant, 811, 7th Infantry Battalion, Menin Road | |
4 Oct 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Sergeant, 811, 7th Infantry Battalion, Broodseinde Ridge | |
16 Dec 1917: | Wounded AIF WW1, Sergeant, 811, 7th Infantry Battalion, Gassed in the field (near Ypres). | |
23 Sep 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Sergeant, 811, 7th Infantry Battalion |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Larna Malone
William Henry Pethard was born in Kyneton Vic., the son of George Albert & Miriam Hurst Pethard, of Golden Square. He was a Brewery employee, working at the Cordial Factory, Golden Square. He was 21 years old and had no previous military service.
He was amongst the early volunteers for the Expeditionary Force, enlisting on 18.8.14. The following day he left Bendigo for the Broadmeadows Camp. A large group from the Golden Square Methodist Church & Sunday School assembled at the Golden Square Railway Station, to farewell him. At Broadmeadows William Henry Pethard was allotted Service no.811 and appointed to ‘G’ Company, 7th Battalion. On August 22nd he was appointed as 7th Battalion Bugler. Later, he became a Signaller.
The 7th Battalion left Broadmeadows Camp on 18 October, 1914, and embarked for service overseas on board HMAT ‘Hororata’. Arriving in Egypt the battalion moved into camp at Mena, at the foot of the pyramids. (6/12/14)
Pethard: Letter. December 29. “This morning the 2nd Infantry Brigade went out on a bivouac. They will return about midday tomorrow. All the Signallers are going through a 10 days’ instructional course, leaving camp each morning about 8 o’clock, and returning at 3 pm.” [Bendigo Advertiser January 28, 1915]
In January, 1915, the Australian force was re-organized. In the 7th Battalion ‘G’ and ‘H’ Companies joined to form the new ‘D’ Company. This meant that all the men from Northern Victoria were together in one Company. Training was re-done to accommodate the enlarged company. In March there was an additional change. The Bugle was no longer to be used to convey signals in camp, so the role of Bugler became redundant.
The 7th Battalion was part of the force which landed at Anzac Cove on 25th April, 1915.
Pethard: “We were towed to within 50 yards of the beach by a steam pinnace, finishing the remaining portion with the oars. Several shrapnel shells burst round us, wounding several of the boys. As soon as the bow touched earth out we scrambled and made for shelter. The country is very hilly, and covered with bushes (some prickly) between 2’ to 5’ in height. At this particular spot a hill of some hundred feet in height rises directly from the water’s edge. On landing we all snuggled together in the sand at the foot of this hill for protection. I was wringing wet, for on the [sic] leaving the boat the stone on which I happened to pounce resented my weight, and under I went. You certainly would have thought I was in a sad plight if you had only seen me after rolling in the sand, but a little matter like that did not trouble me. After a short spell we had to move forwards to support the 3rd Brigade. My word, talk about snipers, they were everywhere, but we were making good progress. Occasionally a shrapnel shell would burst in close proximity to us, but that was only a trifle, and did not trouble us in the least. After advancing about a mile we were exposed to the enemy’s fire. To get to the firing line we would make short quick dashes, but owing to the bushes you could not see much of what lay before us. By now they had a shrapnel battery on us, which made matters considerably warm. On one occasion I was covered with dirt from a shell that landed only a few yards off, and more than once I would hear a groan from one of my comrades as a bullet would find a part of his skin. The enemy’s machine guns, worked mostly by Germans, were doing deadly work, and it certainly was not over-comforting to hear hundreds of bullets whistling about your ears, plenty also clipping the bushes behind which we were lying. On reaching the firing line we were ordered by an officer to entrench. No sooner had we fairly started than down poured the shrapnel in torrents – it was a hell in which I hope never to be again. It was here that two pieces of shrapnel hit me. Fortunately, the first piece was stopped by my money belt; the second struck me just below the left temple. I managed to reach the beach with my equipment, ammunition and rifle without assistance.” [Bendigo Advertiser June 10, 1915]
William Henry Pethard was Wounded, sustaining a Shrapnel wound to the left side of his face.
He rejoined the battalion in Egypt on 9/1/16 and went on to serve on the Western Front. He was appointed Lance Corporal (22/3/16); Acting Corporal (1/8/16); Confirmed as Corporal and promoted to Lance Sergeant (11/5/17); and Promoted to Sergeant (17/8/170. In December, 1917, he was Wounded (2nd occasion) Gassed. He RTA on 9/12/18. Special 1914 Leave.
“The First Lot. 7th Battalion. The first men of the Bendigo district to volunteer for service in the First World War.”: Larna Malone