Clarence Arnold PHILP

Badge Number: 3885 Mounted, Sub Branch: Partially Blinded
3885 Mounted

PHILP, Clarence Arnold

Service Number: 975
Enlisted: 27 September 1915, at Adelaide
Last Rank: Lance Corporal
Last Unit: 43rd Infantry Battalion
Born: Adelaide, South Australia, April 1894
Home Town: Tarlee, Clare and Gilbert Valleys, South Australia
Schooling: Not yet discovered
Occupation: School Teacher
Died: 3 December 1959, cause of death not yet discovered, place of death not yet discovered
Cemetery: Centennial Park Cemetery, South Australia
Memorials: Cudlee Creek Millbrook Public School Roll of Honour, South Australian Education Department Roll of Honour
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World War 1 Service

27 Sep 1915: Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 975, 43rd Infantry Battalion, at Adelaide
9 Jun 1916: Involvement Private, 975, 43rd Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '18' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Afric embarkation_ship_number: A19 public_note: ''
9 Jun 1916: Embarked Private, 975, 43rd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Afric, Adelaide
4 Oct 1917: Wounded AIF WW1, Private, 975, 43rd Infantry Battalion, Broodseinde Ridge
11 Nov 1918: Involvement Lance Corporal, 975, 43rd Infantry Battalion

Help us honour Clarence Arnold Philp's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.

Biography contributed by Saint Ignatius' College

WW1 biography on Arnold Clarence Philp

Before the war:

In April 1894, Arnold Clarence PHILP was born in Adelaide, South Australia. He grew up in Tarlee, South Australia, a town to the north of Adelaide near Clare Valley and Seven Hill. He grew up to become a schoolteacher and practiced Methodism as a religion. His next of kin at the time was his father, Louis Philp and he lived at the same address. This shows and says that families lived together even after they were old enough to move into a separate household. He was single as well also giving him a reason to stay with his father. On the 27th of September 1915, Arnold enlisted as a soldier for the war in Adelaide South Australia. He was physically and mentally checked before approved to join the 43rd Infantry Battalion as a private. He trained to become an infantry soldier for a few months before getting shipped off on the A19 HMAT Affric for England. This previous statement presents itself as a fact that soldiers had to be approved for and then trained for months in preparation. This journey to England took weeks as transportation was limited. He then arrived in England and was sent off again to the Western Front in France.

During the war:   

During the war, Arnold Clarence Philp was signed to the 43rd battalion. He traveled to Egypt for a pit stop and then finished their journey to England. They traveled with the A19 HMAT Affric and then journeyed to France via the same ship. Arnold was admitted to hospital several times for scabies as the food was not great. The first time he was admitted to hospital for scabies was on the 6th of January 1917 and the last time was on the 18th. of January 1917. Scabies is a type of lice that dig into your skin and cause an infection on the exposed area. Symptoms can include itchiness on the inflamed area.

During the battle of Broodseinde Ridge on 4 October 1917, Arnold was wounded in the hand, causing him to be out of action for two months.

In May 1918, he was promoted to Lance Corporal which was a rank higher than private. This allowed him to command a small group of marines or soldiers, and in this case the soldiers. The war ended later, and Arnold returned safely home via the same ship. They passed through the Suez Canal and traveled back to Adelaide, South Australia.

After the war:

After the war and after his safe return, he received two service medals. These were the British war medal and the Cictory medal. He was given all three of the medals even though the 1914–1915-star medal should not have been received. This was because that medal was handed and received by soldier that fought in those years. Arnold joined later so should not have been given those medals. Arnold then continued his life as a teacher in Adelaide. Later, his father passed away, and then he passed away on the 3rd of December 1959. Arnold served his country during the and is now remembered in the South Australian Garden of Remembrance.

References and bibliography:

Adfa.edu.au. (2016). Search Results. [online] Available at: https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/search?type=search&name=Arnold+®Num=975&place=&pob=&fdwFateCode=all&fdwDate= [Accessed 25 Mar. 2021].

birtwistlewiki.com.au. (n.d.). HMAT A19 Afric - Our Contribution. [online] Available at: https://birtwistlewiki.com.au/wiki/HMAT_A19_Afric#:~:text=Built%20for%20Ismay%20Imrie%20%26%20Co [Accessed 25 Mar. 2021].

National Archives of Australia. (1914). PHILP Clarence Arnold: Service Number - 975 : Place of Birth - Adelaide SA : Place of Enlistment - Adelaide SA : Next of Kin - (Uncle) DOBSON Frederick James. [online] Available at: https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=8014694 [Accessed 25 Mar. 2021].

recordsearch.naa.gov.au. (n.d.). Session expired | RecordSearch | National Archives of Australia. [online] Available at: https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/DetailsReports/ItemDetail.aspx?Barcode=8014694&isAv=N [Accessed 25 Mar. 2021].

www.awm.gov.au. (n.d.). | The Australian War Memorial. [online] Available at: https://www.awm.gov.au/advanced-search/people.

www.cwgc.org. (n.d.). The Commonwealth War Graves Commission | CWGC. [online] Available at: https://www.cwgc.org.

www.google.com. (n.d.). hmat afric a19 - Google Search. [online] Available at: https://www.google.com/search?q=hmat+afric+a19&sxsrf=ALeKk00PROqgaMWFCZcXoLA_asPQhiqE0w:1614902393427&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiS64ac7JfvAhX-xTgGHQERDJgQ_AUoAXoECAQQAw&biw=1440&bih=789#imgrc=UV1U_hk4hwyalM [Accessed 25 Mar. 2021].

www.google.com. (n.d.). star - Google Search. [online] Available at: https://www.google.com/search?q=star [Accessed 25 Mar. 2021].

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