MCKAY, Alfred Robert
| Service Number: | 5876 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 22 May 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Gunner |
| Last Unit: | 5th Field Artillery Brigade |
| Born: | Port Albert, Victoria, Australia, April 1888 |
| Home Town: | Brunswick West, Moreland, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Heyfield State School,Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Wounds, France, 30 April 1918 |
| Cemetery: |
Vignacourt British Cemetery, Picardie Plot I, Row E, Grave No. 6 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, City of Brunswick Honour Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 22 May 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 5876, 24th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 2 Oct 1916: | Involvement Private, 5876, 24th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '14' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Nestor embarkation_ship_number: A71 public_note: '' | |
| 2 Oct 1916: | Embarked Private, 5876, 24th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Nestor, Melbourne | |
| 20 Nov 1917: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 2nd Divisional Ammunition Column | |
| 22 Jan 1918: | Transferred AIF WW1, Gunner, 5th Field Artillery Brigade | |
| 30 Apr 1918: | Involvement Gunner, 5876, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 5876 awm_unit: 14th Australian Field Artillery Battery awm_rank: Gunner awm_died_date: 1918-04-30 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Evan Evans
From François Berthout
Today, it is with deep respect and gratitude that I would like to pay a very respectful tribute to Gunner number 5876 Alfred Robert Mckay who fought in the 14th Battery of the 5th Brigade of the Australian Field Artillery and who died of his wounds 102 years,ago, on April 30, 1918 at the age of 29
Alfred Robert Mckay was born in 1888 in Port Albert, Vctoria and was educated at Heyfield State School, Victoria. Before the war, he worked as a labourer, he was married to Rosina Mckay and they lived at 68, Thistle Street, West Brunswick, Victoria.
Enlisted on May 22, 1916 in the 24th Australian Infantry Battalion, he embarked with his unit from Melbourne, Victoria on board HMAT A71 Nestor on October 2, 1916 and arrived in Plymouth, England on November 16, 1916 and received his training at Parkhouse before to be transferred to the Australian Field artillery on November 20, 1917.
Robert embarked with his unit in Southampton and arrived in France on January 28, 1918 and joined his unit on the Somme front. Unfortunately, three months later, on April 30, 1918, during an instruction in the handling of the Lewis Gun at Méricourt- Sur-Somme, he was accidentally wounded in the right thigh and was evacuated to Vignacourt, Somme, but he died of his wounds at the end of the day at the age of 29
Today, Alfred Robert Mckay rests in peace at the Vignacourt British Cemetery, Somme.
Thank you with all my heart Alfred, you did your duty with bravery by answering the call of your country to fight in France, for freedom, for your comrades, for your family and for us who are the heirs of peace for which you fought and gave your life, for this noble idea of a peaceful world and today we respectfully stand in front of you. Today I am proud to be present for you and for all your comrades who are here, on the lands of the Somme which will always be yours. we will never forget you, France owes you a so much, respects honors, love, all united around you.The somme will never forget your sacrifices.At the going down of the sun and in the Morning,we will remember him,we will remember them🌺
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