Charles Amos George Victor Petersen
From Our Contribution
 | |
| Personal Information | |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | 27 Aug 1913 |
| Place of Birth | Bridgetown, Western Australia |
| Death | 30 Jan 1995, aged 81 |
| Place of Death | Gosnells, Western Australia |
| Age at Enlistment | 26 years, 2 months |
| Occupation | Labourer |
| Religion | Church of England |
| Address | Wokalup, Western Australia |
| Next of Kin | Mother , Mrs. Alice Mary Petersen |
| Military Information | |
| Reg Number | WX571 |
| Date of Enlistment | 9 Nov 1939 |
| Rank | Private |
| Unit/Formation | 2/11th Australian Infantry Battalion |
| Military Movement | |
| 1st Departure from Australia | |
| Journey Dates | 20 Apr 1940 ‒ 19 May 1940 |
| Transport Details | HMT Nevasa Fremantle to Kantara, Egypt |
| Transfers | |
| Journey Dates | 10 Apr 1941 ‒ 12 Apr 1941 |
| Transport Details | SS Pennland Egypt to Athens, Greece |
| Journey Dates | 25 Apr 1941 ‒ 26 Apr 1941 |
| Transport Details | SS Thurland Castle Greece to Crete |
| Return to Australia | |
| Journey Dates | 3 Jul 1945 ‒ 8 Aug 1945 |
| Transport Details | B2 England to Sydney |
| Post War Details | |
| Fate |
POW (Crete) Returned to Australia |
| Medals |
1939-45 Star Africa Star War Medal 1939-45 Australian Service Medal 1939-45 |
Pre War
Electoral Roll entries: 1936 - 1937 Manjimup, farm hand;
War Service
Charles enlisted in the AIF at Harvey on 9 Nov 1939 and was allocated to the 2/11th Australian Infantry Battalion. On 7 Dec 1939 he and his unit embarked for Ingleburn in NSW as part of the preparation for moving to Egypt. On 2 Mar 1940 he was seen by the camp dressing station and sent on with suspected mumps to the P. Henry Hospital which released him on 15 Mar 1940 with 5 further days 'No Duty'. On 30 Mar 1940 the battalion was granted pre-embarkation leave, and on 20 Apr 1940 they embarked on HMT Nevasa which sailed with Convoy US 2 on the 22nd for Kantara on the Suez Canal, disembarking there on 19 May 1940.
The battalion trained in both Palestine and Egypt before seeing combat against the Italian forces at Bardia on 5 Jan 1941 followed by action at Tobruk and then Derna before being withdrawn back to Egypt to prepare for movement to Greece. On 10 Apr 1941 they embarked for Greece aboard SS Pennland, disembarking in Athens on 12 Apr 1941. Sent to Greece too late to do other than withdrw ahead of the stronger Gewrman units, they were evacuated on the SS Thurland Castle on the night of 25 Apr 1941 and landed at Suva on Crete.
On 4 Jun 1941 Charles was recorded as Missing, and by 5 Jul 1941 it was able to be established that he was probably a POW. His POW records indicate that he was captured on 6 Jun 1941. Howerer, it was 26 Feb 1942 before he was confirmed as being a POW, detained at Stalag VIII B. On 19 Oct 1943 he was relocated to Stalag VIII A, and on 15 Jan 1944 at Stalag 3HH. On 29 May 1945 he deplaned in the UK having been recovered from Germany and was taken in by the 1st AIF Transit Camp UK. On 3 Jul 1945 he boarded "B2" for return to Australia, disembarking in Sydney on 8 Aug 1945.
Two days later he was transferred to the Western Command Recruit Reception & General Details Depot in Perth where after assessment between 11 and 19 Sep 1945 at the 109th Australian Convalescent Depot, Charles was discharged on 20 Sep 1945.
Post War
During 1953 Charles married Merle Constance Swan. Electoral Roll entries: 1949 at Eleventh road Armadale, labourer; 1954 - 1958 Southern River road, Gosnells, farmer ; 1972 - 1980 at Lot 1746 Bradley street, Southern River, farmer
Notes