Charles Barnett

Charles Barnett

Personal Information
Date of Birth	c 1889
Place of Birth	Fremantle, Western Australia
Death	30 May 1916
Place of Death	Fromelles, France
Age at Enlistment	26 years, 1 month
Description	5'7" (1.70m) tall ; 150 lbs 68.039 kg ; dark complexion ; brown eyes ; dark hair
Occupation	Labourer
Religion	Church of England
Address	Jarrahdale, Western Australia
Next of Kin	Sister , Mrs Maria Clarke
Military Information
Reg Number	600
Date of Enlistment	10 Mar 1915
Rank	Lance Corporal
Unit/Formation	28th Battalion, D Company / 7th Brigade 2nd Division
Date of Embarkation	29 Jul 1915 ‒ 23 Aug 1915
Ship Embarked On	HMAT A11 Ascanius
Fate	Died of Wounds 30 May 1916 at Fromelles
Monument	Jarrahdale War Memorial Australian War Memorial
Medals	1914-15 Star British War Medal Victory Medal

War Service

On entering Blackboy Hill camp Charles received a month's training before being allocated to the 28th Battalion then being raised at Northam. He embarked as a member of 'D' Copany on the HMAT A11 Ascanius in Fremantle on 9 Jun 1915 for Port Tewfik (Suez), disembarking there on 2 July 1915. Further training awaited them in Egypt before they were ready to reinforce Gallipoli.

Charles embarked with his battalion on the HMT Ivernia for Gallipoli on 4 Sep 1915 and on 10 Sep 1915 he transferred to the HMT Sarnia for the journey from Mudros harbour to Anzac Cove. He later returned to Mudros from Gallipoli aboard HMT Osmanieh, and following a period on Lemnos Island aboard HMT Ausonia for Alexandria on 10 Jan 1916. On 21 Sep 1915 while at Gallipoli, Charles was appointed Lance Corporal. With the battalion, he boarded HMAT A32 Themistocles in Alexandria which sailed at 5:30pm on 16 Mar 1916 for Marseilles where it arrived at 3:30pm on the 21 Mar 1916. A train journey of more than 48 hours awaited them in trucks meant to move cattle before they arrived near the French battlefields.

Charles' death was caused by a wound to the head. It is likely that Charles was one of those impacted when the Germans dropped 250 High Explosive artillery shells on the battalion's position on the 29th, killing three and injuring 11 (three of whom later died from their wounds). He was admitted to he 2nd Australian Casualty Clearing Station early on 30 May 1916, but died of his wounds at 7:30am the same day. The battalion's war diary records very light casualties for the month of May 1916 (11 KIA/DOW and 38 wounded) as they were intrenches in front of Rue Marle, a southern suburb of Armentières.

• 

  Punchevillers British Cemetery
• 

  Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Notes

Buried in Bailleul Communal Cemetery Extension, Nord, France Plot II, Row A, Grave No 11.

External Links

• AIF Project
• RSL Memorial