COTTLE, Archibald Percy
| Service Number: | 606 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 22 August 1914 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 54th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Shadwell, East London, England, 3 July 1889 |
| Home Town: | Sydney, City of Sydney, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Council School, Brandelow Road, Putney, London, England |
| Occupation: | Railway Fireman |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 19 July 1916, aged 27 years |
| Cemetery: |
Rue-Petillon Military Cemetery, Fleurbaix, Bethune, Nord Pas de Calais Plot I, Row K, Grave No. 9 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Haymarket NSW Government Railway and Tramway Honour Board |
World War 1 Service
| 22 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 606 | |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | |
| 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.
Submitted 7 June 2023 by John Oakes
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