BYRNES, Bertram Joseph
| Service Number: | 3371 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 30 December 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 56th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Grenfell, New South Wales, Australia , January 1892 |
| Home Town: | Forbes, Forbes, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Forbes, New South Wales, Australia, 18 February 1965, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Forbes Cemetery, NSW |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 30 Dec 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3371, 56th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 24 Jan 1917: | Involvement Private, 3371, 56th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '19' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Anchises embarkation_ship_number: A68 public_note: '' | |
| 24 Jan 1917: | Embarked Private, 3371, 56th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Anchises, Sydney | |
| 4 Oct 1917: | Wounded 3371, Gunshot Wound to Left Thigh | |
| 2 Sep 1918: | Wounded 3371, Gunshot Wound to Face | |
| 29 Nov 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, 3371 |
Help us honour Bertram Joseph Byrnes's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Tim Hanna
From Facebook ‘Scott Bennett’
Private Bertram Byrnes never forgot the date – 2 September 1917 – when a bullet tore through his face near Peronne during the Great War. The shot entered his cheek and exited beneath his left eye, shattering his jaw and destroying his palate. At Queen’s Hospital in England, known for treating facial injuries, doctors did what they could, but Bertram was left disfigured, toothless, and unable to speak or eat properly.
When he returned to Australia in 1919, Bertram dreaded seeing his wife, Elizabeth. He had left as a proud, handsome man with twinkling blue eyes and a roguish grin, and returned as a shadow of himself. But Elizabeth’s love was unwavering – she welcomed him home without hesitation. Bertram endured his injuries without complaint, living on liquid food and managing constant discomfort with quiet resilience.
The couple struggled to survive on a meagre pension after Bertram proved too frail to work the land allocated to him as a soldier settler. Yet he remained proud of his service, and in 1938, requested replacements for his war medals lost in a bushfire so he could march on ANZAC Day. Bertram Byrnes passed away in 1965, remembered for his dignity, endurance, and the love that never faltered.
Lest we forget.
Click images to start slideshow.