James ROBERTSON
Born 1890 in Richmond, Victoria, Australia [54]
Son of William ROBERTSON and Mary MORRIS [54]
In 1915 he was working as a Miner and living at Barry Street in Kanowna on the eastern goldfields in Western Australia [30]
Accepted as fit for active service in the Australian Imperial Force in Kalgoorlie on 2 December 1915 [30: item 8034604]
Officially enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force at Blackboy Hill in the Perth hills on 13 December 1915 [30]
Upon enlistment he was 5 feet 11 inches tall and had blue eyes, brown hair and a medium complexion [30]
Gave his mother Mrs Mary ROBERTSON as his next of kin, her address at the time being Barry Street in Kanowna [30]
After training at Blackboy Hill was appointed to the 15th Reinforcements of the 11th Infantry Battalion on 28 February 1916 [30]
Embarked from Fremantle, Western Australia for active service abroad on the H.M.A.T. A38 Ulysses on 1 April 1916 [18]
Disembarked in Alexandria, Egypt on 25 April 1916 and was transferred to the 51st Infantry Battalion on 20 May 1916 [30]
Embarked from Alexandria, Egypt for active service in France and disembarked in Marseilles, France on 14 June 1916 [30]
Private 4881 in the Australian Imperial Force's 51st Infantry Battalion in France during the First World War [30]
While helping to take Mouquet Farm from German forces on 3 September 1916 he was surrounded, injured and taken prisoner [30]
During the attack a bullet passed through his left elbow and he was struck on the cheek and hip by shrapnel from a grenade [30]
Uninjured soldiers within his company were immediately taken by their captors while himself and other injured ones were left [30]
He attempted to crawl back but was too weak from loss of blood and remained laying there all night and into the next morning [30]
In the morning German stretcher bearers came and took him to a German dressing station where his wounds were dressed [30]
He underwent an operation to remove shrapnel from his hip, and on 14 November 1916 his left arm was amputated [30]
Reported Missing in Action in France on 3 September 1916 and confirmed a Prisoner of War in Germany on 9 November 1916 [30]
Spent time at numerous camps in Germany where food was almost always scare and living conditions often very poor [30]
At one camp the food consisted of coffee for breakfast, soup for lunch and a single piece of dry black bread in the evening [30]
At another he was housed in a wooden hut and slept on old bags with straw in them with only two thin blankets and no fire [30]
Due to his condition he wasn't made to work, did a lot of reading and had more food once his Red Cross parcels arrived [30]
Received good medical attention within the camps, and when in hospital received treatment equal to that of German soldiers [30]
Repatriated to England via Holland in January 1918 and was immediately admitted to hospital in a severe condition [30]
Discharged from the Australian Imperial Force on 20 November 1918; received the British War Medal and the Victory Medal [30]
School Teacher of the Carnamah State School in 1924 and 1925 [9: 13-Feb-1925] [73]
Received £192 per year less £12 for rent for his services as sole teacher of the Carnamah State School [73]
| Reference: Carnamah Historical Society & Museum and North Midlands Project, 'James Robertson' in Biographical Dictionary of Coorow, Carnamah and Three Springs, retrieved 18 November 2024 from www.carnamah.com.au/bio/james-robertson [reference list] |
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