CLANCY, John Charles
| Service Number: | 2252 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 1 May 1915, Liverpool, New South Wales |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 13th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Forbes, New South Wales, 28 June 1886 |
| Home Town: | Daroobalgie, Forbes, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Forbes State School |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Gallipoli, Gallipoli, Dardanelles, Turkey, 22 August 1915, aged 29 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Lone Pine Memorial, Gallipoli Peninsula, Canakkale Province, Turkey |
| Memorials: | Ashfield Presbyterian Church Great War Memorial Window, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Breakfast Point War Memorial, Lone Pine Memorial to the Missing |
World War 1 Service
| 1 May 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 2252, Liverpool, New South Wales | |
|---|---|---|
| 14 Jun 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 2252, 13th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Wandilla, Sydney | |
| 14 Jun 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 2252, 13th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1 | |
| 2 Aug 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 2252, 13th Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli | |
| 22 Aug 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 2252, 13th Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli |
Help us honour John Charles Clancy's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Paul Trevor
'War Service: Gallipoli.
John and the 6th Reinforcements departed Sydney on HMAT Wandilla on 14 Jun 1915 for Egypt.
At this stage some confusion occurred in the records. John’s brother Leonard, who had joined up with John and also allocated to 13th Bn, became ill with malaria and did not embark. However Leonard’s papers sailed with John, and John’s stayed behind with Leonard. So according to the paperwork it was Leonard who sailed for Egypt.
John joined 13th Bn on Gallipoli 2 Aug. The Battalion War Diary notes that the 6thReinforcements had received only 6 weeks training in Australia and 1 in Egypt and had “no field firing” rifle practice.
The Battalion then advanced on 6 Aug as part of a general offensive and unsuccessful battle for Hill 971. Other units suffered greater casualties but 13th had 45 killed, 129 wounded, and 153 evacuated sick. In this depleted state the Battalion then provided 259 men for an attack on Hill 60.
Unfortunately many of the wounded and missing were lying in the open when a brush fire was started by exploding shells. The wounded were either burnt alive or killed by enemy gunfire.
Now the paperwork error becomes evident as his mother was notified that Leonard was missing and she wrote to the Army to say that Leonard was in Sydney and that in fact it was John who was Missing. This mistake was cleared up so that eventually it was John who was posted Killed after a board of inquiry in Apr 1916 reviewed the circumstances of the attack. READ MORE (bpwarmemorial.wordpress.com)
'PRIVATE J. C. CLANCY.
Private John C. Clancy (missing) enlisted on May 1 with his brother, L. A. Clancy. The latter had previously served with the New Guinea Expedition, but was prevented from going to the front through an attack of malaria, and is still in camp at Liverpool. Private J. C. Clancy, who was born in Forbes, and resided there for several years, is 29 years of age, and a son of the late Mr. Thomas Clancy, a well-known stock-buyer, and Mrs. Clancy, of Queen Street, Ashfield. Previous to enlistment he was employed by the A.G.L. Company.' from The Daily Telegraph 25 Sep 1915 (nla.gov.au)
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