WALKER, Leonard Stanley
| Service Number: | 3295 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 19 July 1915, Melbourne, Vic. |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 57th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Castlemaine, Victoria, Australia, 1891 |
| Home Town: | Castlemaine, Mount Alexander, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Iron moulder |
| Died: | Castlemaine, Victoria, Australia, 15 July 1966, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Campbell's Creek Cemetery, Victoria |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 19 Jul 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3295, 23rd Infantry Battalion, Melbourne, Vic. | |
|---|---|---|
| 26 Nov 1915: | Involvement Private, 3295, 23rd Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '14' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Commonwealth embarkation_ship_number: A73 public_note: '' | |
| 26 Nov 1915: | Embarked Private, 3295, 23rd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Commonwealth, Melbourne | |
| 15 Mar 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Lance Corporal, 57th Infantry Battalion, Egypt | |
| 2 Aug 1916: | Promoted AIF WW1, Corporal, 57th Infantry Battalion, Fromelles, France | |
| 30 Mar 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Lance Sergeant, 57th Infantry Battalion, France | |
| 16 Apr 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Sergeant, 57th Infantry Battalion, France | |
| 26 Apr 1918: | Involvement AIF WW1, Sergeant, 3295, 57th Infantry Battalion, Villers-Bretonneux | |
| 18 Jun 1918: | Honoured Distinguished Conduct Medal, Villers-Bretonneux, For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. A party of the enemy was defending a house, and holding up our advance as we were clearing a village. Sergeant Walker, with a few men, working round the house attacked it from the rear. Under very heavy machine gun fire, they rushed the enemy with the bayonet, and forced the garrison, which included two officers, to surrender. The courage and initiative displayed by Sergeant Walker during this operation were worthy of the highest praise, and he revealed qualities of leadership of a high order. | |
| 8 Aug 1918: | Involvement AIF WW1, Sergeant, 3295, 57th Infantry Battalion, The Battle of Amiens | |
| 29 Sep 1918: | Wounded AIF WW1, Sergeant, 3295, 57th Infantry Battalion, Breaching the Hindenburg Line - Cambrai / St Quentin Canal, SW to left thigh. Evacuated to UK. Never rejoined unit. | |
| 3 Apr 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Sergeant, 3295, 57th Infantry Battalion, RTA 21 December 1918 and discharged as MU (wounds). |
Help us honour Leonard Stanley Walker's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Robert Wight
Castlemaine born, Len Walker was an iron moulder at Thompsons Foundry when he enlisted in the AIF on 19 July 1915, aged 23.
He departed for Egypt on 26 November 1915, where he was promoted to Lance Corporal and joined the 57th Battalion on 17 March 1916. The battalion arrived in France on 23 June and less than a month later was in reserve for the disastrous Battle of Fromelles. The battalion remained in the front line for eight weeks, and Len was promoted to Corporal on 5 August. During this period, many soldiers crept into no-man’s land at night to rescue their wounded comrades. While against direct orders, the practice nevertheless saved many Australian lives.
On 30 March 1917, Len was promoted to Lance Sergeant and, shortly thereafter, to Sergeant. In July 1917, Len was transferred to the 15th (Brigade) Training Battalion in England as an instructor. By late 1917 however, the shortage of fresh troops resulted in the recall of instructors. On 5 January 1918, Len rejoined the 57th Battalion in northern France.
In late March 1918 the battalion was rushed south to the Somme area as part of the desperate, and ultimately successful, bid to stop the German Spring Offensive. On 24 April, Len and the battalion took part in the famous Australian counterattack to recapture the village of Villers-Bretonneux.
For displaying “…. conspicuous gallantry…. courage and initiative, and qualities of leadership of a high order” during the Villers-Bretonneux action, Len was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM), which ranks second only to the Victoria Cross for bravery in the field.
After Len returned from a month at the Australian Corps School on 23 September, he then participated in the combined Australian and American attack on the Hindenburg Line at Bellicourt. It was here that Len sustained a gunshot wound to his left thigh on 29 September 1918, which saw him hospitalized in England for a month.
Robert Wight, March 2024
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