Archibald Percy COTTLE

COTTLE, Archibald Percy

Service Number: 606
Enlisted: 22 August 1914, Randwick, New South Wales
Last Rank: Private
Last Unit: 54th Infantry Battalion
Born: Shadwell, East London, England, 1890
Home Town: Sydney, City of Sydney, New South Wales
Schooling: Council School, Brandelow Road, Putney, London, England
Occupation: Railway Fireman
Died: Killed in Action, Fromelles, France, 19 July 1916
Cemetery: Rue-Petillon Military Cemetery, Fleurbaix, Bethune, Nord Pas de Calais
Plot I. Row K. Grave 9. Inscription: THY WILL BE DONE
Memorials: Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Haymarket NSW Government Railway and Tramway Honour Board
Show Relationships

World War 1 Service

22 Aug 1914: Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, Randwick, New South Wales
18 Oct 1914: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '7' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Suffolk embarkation_ship_number: A23 public_note: ''
18 Oct 1914: Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Suffolk, Sydney
5 Apr 1915: Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, Embarked Alexandria for M.E.F Gallipoli per H.M.T. "Derflinger"
25 Apr 1915: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli
25 Apr 1915: Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, Disembarked Gallipoli, Turkey
6 Aug 1915: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, The August Offensive - Lone Pine, Suvla Bay, Sari Bair, The Nek and Hill 60 - Gallipoli
8 Aug 1915: Wounded AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, The August Offensive - Lone Pine, Suvla Bay, Sari Bair, The Nek and Hill 60 - Gallipoli, Wounded In Action -- Bruised Back -- Gallipoli
11 Aug 1915: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, Admitted -- 24th Casualty Clearing Station -- Bruised Back -- Mudros
22 Sep 1915: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, Discharged to Duty -- Class A -- Mudros
24 Sep 1915: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli, Rejoined Unit
11 Nov 1915: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli, Admitted -- 3rd Australian Field Ambulance -- Gastritis -- Gallipoli
14 Nov 1915: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli, Transferred -- Admitted -- Australian Casualty Clearing Station -- Gastritis -- Gallipoli
18 Nov 1915: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, Transferred -- Admitted -- No 2. Australian Stationary Hospital -- Gastritis -- Mudros
17 Dec 1915: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, Anzac Advance Base, Discharged to Duty -- Base Details -- Mudros
1 Jan 1916: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, Anzac Advance Base, Base Details -- Class A -- Mudros
7 Jan 1916: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, Rejoined Unit -- Mudros
10 Jan 1916: Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, Disembarked Alexandria, Egypt -- Gallipoli Evacuation ex H.M.T. "Ausonia"
11 Jan 1916: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 2nd Infantry Battalion, Rejoined Unit -- Tel El Kebir
16 Feb 1916: Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 54th Infantry Battalion, T.O.S. from 2nd Infantry Battalion
19 Jun 1916: Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 606, 54th Infantry Battalion, Embarked Alexandria for B.E.F per H.M.T. "Caledonian"
29 Jun 1916: Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 606, 54th Infantry Battalion, Disembarked Marseilles, France
19 Jul 1916: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 54th Infantry Battalion, Fromelles (Fleurbaix), Killed In Action
19 Jul 1916: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 606, 54th Infantry Battalion, Fromelles (Fleurbaix), --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 606 awm_unit: 54th Australian Infantry Battalion awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1916-07-19

Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board

Archibald Percy COTTLE, (Service Number 606) was born on 3rd July 1879 in London, England. He began work with the NSW Railways as a cleaner at Eveleigh Locomotive Depot on 14th May 1915. Although his railway records do not show him as advancing beyond this lowest rung in the career towards driver, he claimed on his enlistment papers to be a ‘Railway Fireman’. He was released from duty to join the Expeditionary Forces on 17th August 1914. This was immediately after the war had been declared. He enlisted on the same day at Randwick.

He left Australia from Sydney aboard HMAT ‘Suffolk’ on 18th October 1914.

Read more...
Showing 1 of 1 story

Biography contributed by John Oakes

Archibald Percy COTTLE, (Service Number 606) was born on 3rd July 1879 in London, England. He began work with the NSW Railways as a cleaner at Eveleigh Locomotive Depot on 14th May 1915. Although his railway records do not show him as advancing beyond this lowest rung in the career towards driver, he claimed on his enlistment papers to be a ‘Railway Fireman’. He was released from duty to join the Expeditionary Forces on 17th August 1914. This was immediately after the war had been declared. He enlisted on the same day at Randwick.

He left Australia from Sydney aboard HMAT ‘Suffolk’ on 18th October 1914. After further training in Egypt, he embarked on HMT ‘Derfflinger’ on 5th April 1915 to join the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force as part of the 2nd Australian Infantry Battalion – the Gallipoli invasion force. He probably landed on Anzac Day or very soon after. He was wounded in action on 8th August and evacuated to Mudros. By the end of September, he had re-joined his unit.  In November he became ill with gastritis and was again evacuated to Mudros. [Moudros is a town on the island of Lemnos, which is part of Greece. During the Dardanelles Campaign of the First World War, the town and its harbour were used as an Allied base, commanded by Admiral Rosslyn Wemyss. The British Empire troops used the form Mudros.On 30 October 1918, it was the site of the signing of the Armistice of Mudros, which saw the end of hostilities between the Ottoman Empire and the Allies - Wikipedia]

By the time Archibald Cottle returned to his unit in January the Gallipoli campaign was over and the force had been evacuated to Egypt. He embarked from Alexandria in June to join the British Expeditionary Force in France. He transferred to the 54th Battalion. He disembarked at Marseilles (France) at the end of the month. Three weeks later he was killed in action on 19th July 1916.

Contemporary documents report that he was buried in the Eaton Hall Cemetery near Armentières by Rev. James Green. There are no records of an exhumation, but the Australian War Memorial records that he is buried in the Rue-Petillon Military Cemetery, Fleurbaix, Bethune, Pas de Calais, France. Whether these are one and the same place is unclear.

- based on notes for the Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board

Read more...