From Ballarat & District in the Great War
Able-Seaman Leopold Thomas Newland
Early on the morning of the 23 April 1918, the Allies launched a special raid on the Belgian port of Zeebrugge. As an exercise, the raid was less than successful, but as propaganda it proved incredibly valuable. Those involved were touted as heroes throughout the British Empire and no less than eleven Victoria Crosses were awarded for the action. Twelve members of the crew of HMAS Australia volunteered to take part in the raid; one of those who distinguished himself was Able-Seaman Leo Newland from Ballarat East.
Leopold Thomas Newland was born on 16 August 1889 at the family home, 3 Princes Street, Ballarat East. His parents, Samuel George Newland and Eliza Loveday, were first-generation born Australians; but their ancestry was predominantly English, with the Newlands coming from Hertfordshire and the Lovedays from Essex. Leo was the fifth of their eight children, however, the loss of three sons was also representative of the infant mortality faced by families of the era.
The Newland children all received their education at the Humffray Street State School. Even now the large red-brick building dominates the streetscape, in the 1890’s it could be seen from miles around. Leo also received Sunday School education at the St Paul’s Church of England at Bakery Hill.
In March 1902, Leo was one of five boys (aged from 10 to 14) who were charged with petty larceny, after boxes of lollies were stolen from a goods truck left on the lines in the railyard. They were subjected to a full court case, found guilty and sentenced to 14-days imprisonment and probation for 12-months (with a £2 bond). The parents, many who were present in the courtroom, said their sons had been sent to Sunday School, and were unaware of the situation until the police came to the door. Being a first offence, the boys were seen to have been let off lightly.
By 1905, Leo had left school and was working as an assistant cordial maker. On 1 December that year, Leo was one of a group of three young men who attempted to save 26-year-old Thomas Weir when he drowned in the Victoria United Company’s battery dam. Leo had been on his way to the popular swimming spot at Black Hill when the tragic drama unfolded.
Just a month later, after having battled chronic kidney disease, Eliza Newland died from uraemia on 2 January 1906. For 16-year-old Leo this was a life-changing moment. He soon made the decision to leave for New Zealand in search of work.
After four years working in New Zealand coal mines, Leo returned to Australia where he was to make another far-reaching decision: on 16 July 1912, he joined the Royal Australian Navy – number 1937. Like so many naval recruits, Leo began his training on HMAS Cerberus. It was a brief association – he was transferred to HMAS Encounter, a second-class protected cruiser, on 6 August as an ordinary seaman.
Leo sailed to England onboard HMS Drake and joined the London Depot on 1 January 1913 in preparation for the projected acquisition of the new battle cruiser that would become the flagship of the Royal Australian Navy. On 21 June 1913, HMAS Australia was commissioned at Portsmouth – the crew joined the following day. As an ordinary seaman, Leo had achieved ‘satisfactory ability,’ and was described as being of good character.
The voyage home to Australia, accompanied by the new light cruiser HMAS Sydney, was a triumphant journey and one that fuelled pride in our emerging navy.
Stopping off at Cape Town, the crews of Australia and Sydney were feted with a round of festivities. This included a rugby match between the Olympics Athletics Club and a representative team from HMAS Australia. The match was held at the home of South African Rugby, Newlands, an interesting fact that would not have been lost on young Leo.
Sunday 5 October saw the grand procession of new warships arrive in Sydney Harbour. Thousands of people thronged the area onboard ferries and other boats, with the excited, patriotic atmosphere added to by numerous bands playing time-honoured classics such as Rule Britannia.
Inexplicably, on 10 November, Leo was listed as a deserter, along with Englishman, Able-Seaman John Allen Lankenan. A detailed description was published: at 24, Leo was 5-feet 6¾-inches tall, had a fresh complexion with brown hair and grey eyes; he also had several distinctive tattoos – St George and the dragon on his chest, rings on the first and third fingers of his left arm, a full rigged ship on the back of his left hand and a snake under the American standard on his left forearm. The authorities offered a reward of £3 for their arrest. However, the warrants were soon cancelled without explanation.
The declaration of war against Germany in August 1914 immediately opened Australia up to the possibility of attack. German colonies ringed the country’s northern coastline and the German East Asian Cruiser Squadron, under Admiral Maximilian von Spee, became a instant threat. The first task of the Australian contingent (formed as the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force) was to seize or neutralise the German ports. This included taking the important radio station at Bita Paka, which the Australian force captured after landing at Rabaul on 11 September. On the same day, HMAS Australia captured the German steamer Sumatra.
The presence of a powerful warship such as HMAS Australia was believed to have been instrumental in keeping the German East Asian Cruiser Squadron from laying waste to Australia’s coastal cities. Prime Minister Billy Hughes claimed that ‘…but for the Australia…the great cities of Australia would have been reduced to ruins, overseas trade paralysed, coastal shipping sunk, and communications with the outside world cut off…’ The significance of their role would have been clearly understood by those onboard HMAS Australia.
Towards the end of 1914, HMAS Australia was ordered to sail for England. During the voyage she engaged with and sank the German supply ship Eleonore Woermann near the Falkland Islands on 6 January 1915.
After reaching Devonport on 28 January, the Australia was ordered through to Rosyth in Scotland. As flagship of the 2nd Battle Cruiser Squadron, she patrolled the North Sea and acted as a convoy escort for shipping crossing between the United Kingdom and Europe. It was a strange, almost surreal situation, with the enemy rarely sighted. Leo had been promoted to able-seaman on 10 November 1915 and was manning the Australia’s guns, but the only shot fired in anger was at a suspected submarine on 30 December 1917.
The key Belgian ports of Zeebrugge and Ostend were both used by the German Navy as a launching base for their powerful fleet of submarines. Admiral Sir John Jellicoe had proposed a raid in 1917 in order to neutralise these ports. The operation, however, was not launched until the 23 April 1918, and centred around the sinking of three old cruisers filled with concrete to block access to the shipping canal.
Everything was conducted under the utmost secrecy, with the raiding force was drawn from volunteers across the Grand Fleet. HMAS Australia provided one officer and eleven crew for the raid, including Leo Newland. He had been due to return to Australia after being at sea for six years, but when the call came, he jumped at the chance ‘to perform a hazardous service.’
According to sources, very little went right on the night of the raid. The attackers were assaulted by gunfire from German batteries along the harbour mole. Leo, who was onboard HMS Vindictive, was part of the Seamen Storming Party with A Company. Unfortunately, the Vindictive had arrived in the wrong position. As a consequence, the landing parties suffered heavy casualties, and failed to neutralise the guns. A simultaneous raid on Ostend met with the same problems.
Although two of the cruisers were successfully scuttled in the mouth of the canal, ultimately the area was cleared withing just a few days and had little if any impact on the German Navy’s ability to operate from Zeebrugge. Despite this, the Allies declared the raid a dramatic victory – as propaganda it probably achieved its aim. The cost was very high, however, with 600 of the attacking force killed or wounded.
To underscore the heroic triumph, a total of eleven Victoria Crosses were awarded for the night’s action. Leo Newland performed so gallantly during the raid he was nominated to take part in a ballot for the VC. This unusual occurrence was conducted to cover a significant action by a group of men.
‘…In the case of a gallant and daring act being performed by a squadron, ship's company or a detached body of men (such as marines) in which all men are deemed equally brave and deserving of the Victoria Cross, a ballot is drawn. The officers select one officer, the NCOs select one individual, and the private soldiers or seamen select two individuals…’
Although this provision still exists, there have been no further VC ballots since 1918.
Leo was unsuccessful in the ballot and only received a Mention in Despatches. However, being chosen by his peers he had already achieved a degree of hero status.
On 10 May 1918, with his war service completed, Leo sailed home to Australia. He reached Ballarat on Saturday 6 July, and was accorded a reception suitable for a returning hero. Newspapers in the eastern States were quick to seize on the opportunity to promote the “success” of the Raid on Zeebrugge.
‘…ZEEBRUGGE RAIDER RETURNS – BALLARAT MAN TELLS STORY OF SUCCESSFUL ADVENTURE
BALLARAT, Tuesday.
Able seaman Leo Thomas Newland, son of Mr S. G. Newland, of Princes Street, Ballarat East, is the first member of the Australian Navy who took part in the Zeebrugge raid to reach Victoria. Some of his comrades left the boat at Fremantle, being West Australians.
When seen at the home of his brother, Mr G. Newland, he said that he considered himself lucky to have been in such a noteworthy episode of the war, although he felt that his part was but a small one in such an enterprise. He nearly missed the "stunt," as he had been booked for a trip home after six years' sea service. The raid on Zeebrugge was invested with much secrecy, he said. Apparently, all branches of the Navy were privileged to be represented in the attack.
They left their depot at 4 p.m., and on a calm, clear, night they glided up to the Mole, but before getting there they were discovered from the shore, and were heavily shelled. The Mole, which is a solid concrete breakwater, 30ft. in height, was mounted by means of a gangway from the deck of the ship in the face of heavy fire.
Meanwhile, obsolete ships glided into the fairway, and an old British submarine was blown up underneath a viaduct which had the desired effect of preventing reinforcements from approaching the Mole from the shore.
Seemingly the enemy was surprised, as the Mole was manned by only small detachments of marines. A considerable number of machine guns was trained on the attacking party, and some casualties resulted, but with their rifles and bayonets the raiders managed to dispose of the machine guns and the gunners, and made a clean sweep of small buildings and other equipment on the Mole itself. The party made the best use of its three-quarters of an hour stay on the Mole. The officer in charge, Captain Colahan was killed actually before they landed.
The enterprise was successful to the extent that they blocked all but a short space in the passage, and the Vindictive and its consorts managed to sink two enemy destroyers. They brought back to the Vindictive all their casualties, and hurriedly evacuated the scene amid a tornado of shell fire from the shore batteries.
They were given a fine welcome on returning to England. A week or two later the Vindictive again faced the fire of the shore batteries with a mere handful of men aboard, and was designedly sunk to block a small passage that was left open on the first attack. The vessel was filled with concrete, which was poured into its hold, and, no doubt, quickly set firm…’
Leo initially returned to HMAS Cerberus and completed his time in the navy onboard the depot ship HMAS Penguin, stationed at the Sydney naval precinct of Garden Island. He was then described as being of very good character and his ability was ‘superior.’
With his engagement in the Royal Australian Navy expired, Leo requested a discharge, which was granted on 19 November 1919.
On returning to Ballarat, Leo had met young Evelyn Estella Queenie Matthews (who was born at Ballarat in 1902); at the time, she was living with her family in Drummond St north. It was a whirlwind romance, and they were married in Sydney early in 1919. Their first child, Bertrand John Leo, who was known as Jack, was born at Manly later that year. Their family was completed by the births of a second son, Kenneth, and daughter, Rosemary Gail.
For many years, Leo, Queenie and the children lived in Reed Street, Spotswood, and Leo worked as a sailmaker.
Even after Queenie’s early death on 21 September 1959, Leo continued to live in their Reed Street home. He enjoyed a close relationship with his children and grandchildren.
After his death at the Footscray Hospital on 14 September 1973, Leo was cremated at the Fawkner Memorial Park.
