MARSEN, Alfred
| Service Numbers: | 473, 2622 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 41st Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, 28 August 1881 |
| Home Town: | Wynnum, Brisbane, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Belgium, 5 October 1917, aged 36 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres, Flanders, Belgium |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Brisbane 41st Battalion Roll of Honour, Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial |
Boer War Service
| 1 Oct 1899: | Involvement Private, 473, 5th Queensland Imperial Bushmen | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Oct 1899: | Involvement Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, Private, 473, 5th Queensland Imperial Bushmen | |
| 6 Mar 1901: | Embarked Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, Private, 473, 5th Queensland Imperial Bushmen, AWM Boer War Unit Details, Murray p. 488 notes 5th QIB embarked at Pinkenba 6 Mar 1901 aboard Templemore arriving Port Elizabeth 1 Apr 1901. | |
| 5 May 1902: | Discharged Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, Private, 473, 5th Queensland Imperial Bushmen, Qld State Archives- Boer War Service Paybooks 5th QIB, Bk 3 p. 138 notes returned to Australia aboard Columbia arriving Brisbane 15 May 1902, discharged from 5 May 1902. |
World War 1 Service
| 17 Nov 1916: | Embarked Private, 2622, 41st Infantry Battalion, HMAT Kyarra, Brisbane | |
|---|---|---|
| 17 Nov 1916: | Involvement Private, 2622, 41st Infantry Battalion, Third Ypres, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '18' embarkation_place: Brisbane embarkation_ship: HMAT Kyarra embarkation_ship_number: A55 public_note: '' |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Claude McKelvey
Served in both the South African (Boer) war and WW1. First service was as a Private S.N. 473, 5th Queensland Imperial Bushmen, Boer war. Second service was as a Private S.N. 2622, 41st Infantry Battalion, AIF, WW1, during which he was K.I.A. in Belgium.
When Alfred Marsen enlisted in 1901 in the 5th QIB and his details were published with the rank and file in The Queenslander, 16 Mar 1901, he noted his N.O.K. as his mother Mrs. E. Marsen, Morgan St, Valley, Brisbane.
He enlisted again in 1916 for WW1 and on his Attestation Paper, dated 14 Feb 1916, it was noted; he was born at Brisbane and was 37 years 7 months old; he was married and a labourer; his N.O.K. was his wife Mrs. Jessie Marsen, Wynnum, Brisbane; and he had previously served with the 5th QIB in South Africa.
Alfred Marsen was born on 24 Aug 1881 at Brisbane, a son to Christian Marsen and Ellen Marsen (nee Northrath). It appears his fathers surname was Mersen but he went by the name Marsen. Alfred married (as Alfred Alan Mersen) Jessie Elizabeth Stone on 13 May 1911 and they had 3 children.
According to witness reports in Red Cross files, he was involved in action at Passchendaele on 5 Oct 1917 when he took shelter behind an old building during the Gernan barrage. The building was hit by a shell collapsing a wall onto him killing him instantly.
(source- AWM Boer War Nominal Roll, Murray p. 503; Qld State Archives- Boer War Service Paybooks 5th QIB, Bk 3 p. 4; National Archives Australia- WW1 service record; AWM- Red Cross Wounded and Missing File).