EDWARDS, John Max
| Service Number: | 5392 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 3 December 1915, Toowoomba, Queensland |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 15th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Mitchell, Queensland, 9 February 1896 |
| Home Town: | Mitchell, Maranoa, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Mitchell State School |
| Occupation: | Stockman/Drover |
| Died: | Shell, Mouquet Farm, France, 8 August 1916, aged 20 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" No known grave, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Mitchell & Districts War Memorial, Mitchell Memorial Walls, Mitchell War Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial (Australian National Memorial - France) |
World War 1 Service
| 3 Dec 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 5392, 15th Infantry Battalion, Toowoomba, Queensland | |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Apr 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 5392, 15th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1 | |
| 20 Apr 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 5392, 15th Infantry Battalion, SS Hawkes Bay, Sydney | |
| 23 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 5392, 15th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières | |
| 8 Aug 1916: |
Involvement
AIF WW1, Private, 5392, 15th Infantry Battalion, Mouquet Farm, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '11' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: SS Hawkes Bay embarkation_ship_number: '' public_note: '' |
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769 Pte. John Max Edwards was the youngest of the four sons of Richard and Amelia Anne (Owen) Edwards, of "Chevy Chase", a property just south of Mitchell, Q., all four boys enlisted for Service. They were;
347 Pte. Arthur Guy Edwards (/explore/people/142117), survived the landing at Gallipoli and the entire campaign, Arthur was killed at Bullecourt 08 May 1917, aged 25.
769 Pte. Owen William Edwards (/explore/people/342726), Gallipoli and the Sanai. Owen was shot in the arm in the charge of the lighthorse at Beersheba, having it amputated days later. Owen returned to Australia and cared for his widowed mother, dying in 1971, aged 77.
5963 Pte. Frederick Richard Charles Edwards (/explore/people/148509), Survived the war and died in 1961 aged 73
John had only been in France for about 6 weeks before his first involvement in WW1 action at Mouquet Farm where he was "blown to pieces" by a shell on 08 Aug 1916, aged 20.
"FOUR SONS AT THE FRONT.
Mr. and Mrs. R. Edwards, of Chevy Chase, Mitchell, have four sons at the war-we should rather say "had" four sons, for two have made the supreme sacrifice. Word came through on May 21 that Corporal A. G. Edwards died of wounds at Bullecourt on May 8. He was the second son of Mr. and Mrs. Edwards, and volunteered in August, 1914, went through the whole Gallipoli campaign without a scratch, went to France with the first Australians, was wounded at Pozieres in July, 1916, was sent to the school of instruction, and had returned to the trenches a few weeks, when he was fatally wounded. Only a few days previously word had come that the youngest son, Private J. M. Edwards, who had been missing since August 8, 1916, was killed in action on that date. The eldest son, Private F. R. C. Edwards, is at present in France. These three all joined infantry battalions. The third son, Private O. W. Edwards, of a Light Horse Regiment, enlisted in 1914, was at Gallipoli, and is at present in Egypt." - from the Queenslander 23 Jun 1917 (nla.gov.au)
Described on the Honour Roll Circular (static.awm.gov.au) by his mother, Amelia, "his mother's support & joy"
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