Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Waldemar Ernst Wilhelm Hamann was born in Tanunda, South Australia in 1895, to father Carl H Hamman (next of kin) and mother Wilhelmine Marie Elizabeth. There is no knowledge of siblings or extended family. Hamann was a Lutheran, which is a branch of Christianity. From Hamann’s name and religion we can gather that he was of German heritage. Prior to enlisting for the war, Hamann worked as a clerk. This occupation would have involved completing general office tasks, such as filing and filling in reports and he wouldn’t have earnt a lot of money.

Hamann enlisted on the 23rd of August 1915 in Adelaide, South Australia. He embarked to Egypt on the 27th of October 1915 and arrived at Zeitoun training camp on the 27th of February 1916. There is mention of both Serapeum and Zeitoun in his service record which are both training camps in Egypt. At these camps he would have been prepared for the war, this would have included not only physical fighting but also first aid and how to survive. On the 27th of March 1916 Hamann proceeded to join B.E.F, British Expeditionary Force, on the ship Saxonia arriving in France at the Marseilles port on the 3rdof the April 1916. Hamann was originally placed in the 27th battalion, however, he was transferred to the 10th infantry battalion before arriving in France.
 
Hamann was wounded multiple times during the war. His first wounding was in the field in France of the 11th of November 1916 and he received a shrapnel wound to his left leg. The 10th Battalion was in Guedecourt, France at the time, which is in close proximity to Pozieres. However, this wounding was not fatal so, on the 5th of January he re-joined the 10th Battalion in France. Hamann was wounded a second time on the 2ndof October 1917 in the field in Belgium. This wounding was to his right arm, the 10th battalion was in action on the first line from the 1st to the 10thof October. Therefore, Hamman was wounded on the second day that the battalion was on the first line. Prior to the date his battalion moved out from Steenvoorde and arrived at Chateau Segard at 7:30 pm on the 29thof September. On the 1stof October, Lieutenant Jacob was hit and there were a few deaths within the battalion. On the 2nd, the day that Hamann was wounded, there was intermittent shelling, and they were relieved by the 3rd battalion. It is not specifically noted how Hamann was wounded, however from this record we can assume that it was possibly during the intermittent shelling, or while the battalion was being relieved from the first line. Fortunately, this wounding was also not fatal and Hamann re-joined his unit in the field on the 15th of December 1917. Around five months later, Hamann was wounded for the third time. He received a general service wound to his left forearm in the field on the 27th of April 1918. The tenth battalion was on the first line in Hazebrouck on the date he was wounded, however, the unit dairies do not provide detailed information about the happenings of that day. Hamann was transferred to the 3rd Auxiliary Hospital (3AAH), located in Dartford. Here, it was discovered that he had fractured his left forearm, and he wasn’t to return to the field. Therefore, due to Hamann being unfit to fight he was discharged to a hospital ship for the return to Australia on the 13th of April 1918 after 3 years and 234 days of noble service.
 
When Hamann returned from the war he was awarded three medals for his service. These were: 1914-15-star, British War Medal and Victory medal. The 1914-15-star medal was awarded to soldiers who enlisted in the war during the first two years. The British War Medal was awarded for participating in the war and leaving home for the war. The Victory medal was awarded to people who received the previous two medals. The three medals that were awarded to Hamann were awarded because of his participation in the war.

Waldemar Hamann married Carolyne Gertrude Taylor in 1927. He became a JP in 1954 and passed away in 1969.