Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Early Life

Dennis Neabo Harkin was born in Britain, to parents Dennis and Cecelia Harkin. After migrating to South Australia, he lived in School House, Magill, with his wife Henrietta Jessie Maud Harkin and their two children, Jim James and Vera Ellen Harkin. Before enlisting for war, Dennis’ occupation was a laborer. His brother-in-law Private G.J Gregory (no. 680) also served Australia, he was part of the 42nd Battalion and served on the Western Front.

As the war went on and death rates increased, there was a decline in the number of men volunteering to enlist, especially from 1916 onwards. Despite this, Harkin enlisted as a private solider on the 21st of June in 1916, aged 34 and a half. He was 5.5 feet tall, well-built with a medium complexion, blue eyes and dark coloured hair at this time.

Service

He embarked on board the HMAT A68 Anchises, from Adelaide, on the 28th of August of 1916, before arriving at Plymouth almost two months later in October. He was a part of the 10th Battalion in the 20th reinforcement and joined the battle in Estaples, France, on the 5th of December of that same year.

In 1917, the 10th Battalion took part in a major British offensive, the Battle of Passchendaele (also known as the Third Battle of Ypres). This battle was fought by the allies against the German from July to November of 1917. This battle on the Western Front was fought in order to take control of the east and south of Belgium in West Flanders.  Only 8 km away from Passchendaele, there was a railway junction at Roulers, which was a major supply system for the German Army, so if the Allies could take control of this area, they would have a significant advantage. After three months of brutal fighting, the Canadian and British troops captured this village on the 6th of November although there were 310,000 casualties. This battle is still remembered, as it was said to be one of the most costly offensives throughout all of World War One.

After Dennis came back from leave in the UK in December of 1917 he was sent to France to defend against the German Spring Offensive, which started on the 21st of March 1918.  This battle was Germany’s attempt to end the war, adding an additional half a million troops to the front line. While Dennis was fighting on the Western Front during April, he was reported missing in action. It is not known exactly how he died although there were four different accounts by soldiers in the 10th Battalion, explaining all sorts of situations.

First letter

On the night of the 24th of April at 12o’clock at Meteren (a village in France about 17 km south-west of Belgium) the 10th Battalion’s objective was to take over this land, however they had to retreat back. The letter reported that Harkin was last seen with David George Scholz by the light of star shells and they were together about 10 yards from the enemy trench.

Second Letter

At Meteren, about midnight on the 24th of April while the battalion was raiding an enemy machine gun arm house, Harkin was supposedly taken prisoner. He was thought to have been posted on the far left of the trench and although all of the battalion had been told to retire, he didn’t. A patrol was sent out but no trace of him could be found.

Third letter

This letter reports seeing Harkins’ grave at Borre with his name, rank and religion although the man who wrote the letter did not witness the death of Harkin. In this letter, the solider says that a friend told him Harkin was shot in the head. It states that he was unsure of the date but he believes it was at the end of April or early May. 

Fourth letter

This letter reports that Harkin went with his Battalion to Meteren just before day break on the 24th of April 1918, without any artillery preparation. They were met about 200 yards out, by a withering M.G. Barrage, so they had to take cover and get back as soon as they could, although Harkin never returned. They retired to the trenches at daybreak and did not further the attack. The land for which they were fighting became neutral. Some of the wounded and dead soldiers were brought back although many were left out on the land. They did not advance for quite a few weeks later.

Although all of these letters explain different situations, Dennis Neabo Harkin was still officially reported killed in action by The Red Cross Wounded and Missing on the 24th of April in 1918.   

Medals/Awards and the ANZAC Spirit

During 1922, memorial plaques and scrolls were presented to the next of kin of fallen soldiers, acknowledging their service to Australia in the First World War. On the 25th of July, Harkin’s wife collected his memorial plaque and scroll. Harkin was also posthumously awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.

The British War Medal was established on the 26th of July in 1919. It was awarded to soldiers of the British and Imperial Forces who entered service overseas between the 5th of August 1914 and the 11th of November of 1918. About 6.5 million of these medals were awarded to soldiers with the recipient’s service number, rank, unit and name impressed on the rim.

The Victory Medal was awarded to all men who served in the First World War in the armed forces. There is a rainbow coloured ribbon to which the medal is attached, and the medal has a figure of a women with her left arm extended and her right arm holding a palm branch.

The ANZAC Spirit defines Australia’s military past and the unity of Australians. Even today, the ANZAC Spirit is still burning strong and this spirit is powered by the remembrance of all the Australian and New Zealand soldiers who fought and defended their countries during the war. It is the spirit of all those soldiers who were killed on foreign soil as well as all of those who returned in triumph.

Dennis Neabo Harkin reflected the ANZAC spirit throughout his time serving during World War One. Although there are no complete records of his death, he showed bravery and courage for the years in which he did serve. By the time he enlisted in 1916 the excitement and anticipation of going to war had gone, as people had discovered how serious the war really was. Never the less, he still showed outstanding bravery by joining the armed forces at a late stage as he knew there was a strong chance he would not return home.

Villers- Bretonneux Australian National Memorial is located in Somme, France and is a World War 1 memorial for Australian Soldiers. All of the soldiers in this memorial were killed between the landing of AIF forces in France and Belgium in 1916 and the end of the war. There are over 10,000 soldiers listed at this memorial, who do not have a known grave and Dennis Harkin Neabo is amongst them.

Bibliography

Dennis Neabo Harkin 2016, Australian War Memorial, accessed 8 March 2016, <https://www.awm.gov.au/people/rolls/R1637179/>.

Dennis Neabo Harkin 2016, RSL, accessed 10 March 2016, <https://rslvirtualwarmemorial.org.au/>

Dennis Neabo Harkin 2016, National Archives of Australia, accessed 10 March 2016, <http://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/SessionTimeout.aspx>

Dennis Neabo Harkin 2016, AWM Collections, accessed 12 March 2016, <https://www.awm.gov.au/unit/U51450/>.

Dennis Neabo Harkin 2016, Red Cross Missing and Wounded, accessed 12 March 2016, <https://www.awm.gov.au/people/rolls/R1489300/>.

Dennis Neabo Harkin 2016, Commonwealth War Graves Commission, accessed 15 March 2016, <https://sarcib.ww1.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/soldier/dennis-neabo-harkin>.