Edward Briggs
From Our Contribution
 | |
| Personal Information | |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | c1893 |
| Place of Birth | Rutherglen, Victoria |
| Death | 13 Jan 1930, aged 36 |
| Place of Death | Wooroloo (TB Sanatorium), Western Australia |
| Age at Enlistment | 21 years, 9 months |
| Description |
5' 6" (1.68m) tall ; 147lbs 66.678 kg ; dark complexion ; hazel eyes ; blonde hair |
| Occupation | Grocer |
| Religion | Church of England |
| Address | NOK Mornington Mills, Western Australia |
| Next of Kin | Father , Mr. Robert Briggs |
| Military Information | |
| Reg Number | 231 |
| Date of Enlistment | 3 Mar 1915 |
| Rank | Private |
| Unit/Formation | 28th Battalion, B Company / 7th Brigade, 4th Division |
| Date of Embarkation | 9 Jun 1915 ‒ 30 Jun 1915 |
| Ship Embarked On | HMAT A11 Ascanius Fremantle to Egypt |
| Date of Return | 28 Feb 1919 ‒ 7 Apr 1919 |
| Ship Returned On | HMAT A68 Anchises Devonport to Albany |
| Fate | Returned to Australia |
| Monument |
Not on Armadale War Memorial Bedfordale Roll of Honour |
| Medals |
1914-15 Star British War Medal Victory Medal |
Pre War
War Service
On entering camp Edward was placed in the 9th Depot Company before being allocated to 'D' Company of the 24th Battalion. He was very soon after transferred to 'B' Company of the 28th Battalion and following the completion of their basic training they boarded HMAT A11 Ascanius in Fremantle on 29 Jun 1915 for Egypt, disembarking at Port Suez on 2 Jul 1915. With the rest of the 7th Brigade they moved to Abbassia near Caro to complete their training.
Along with the rest of the battalion, on 4 Sep 1915 Edward boarded the HMT Ivernia in Alexandria harbour for Mudros Harbour on the island of Lemnos arriving on 10 Sep 1915. To land at Gallipoli they transferred to HMS Sarnia for the journey from Mudros harbour to Anzac Cove. Following the withdrawal to Lemnos aboard HMT Osmanieh, they returned to Alexandria from Mudros, arriving in there on 10 Jan 1916 aboard HMT Ausonia. While waiting to deploy to France they were sent to guard the Suez Canal, where Edward was AWOL from 3:30pm on 3 Feb 1916 until 1:30pm on 5 Feb 1916 in Ismailia, Egypt (Ferry Post). His punishment was the loss of 4 day's pay.
He arrived in France on 21 Mar 1916 aboard HMAT A32 Themistocles having left Alexandria on 16 Mar 1916 with the rest of the 28th Battalion. Soon after arriving in France he took the opportunity to again go AWOL and on 3 Sep 1916 he was charged with "Absent from marching out parade at 8:00am 20 Aug 1916 until 12:30pm 23 Aug 1916. For this crime, he was awarded 7 days Field Punishment No.2 and the forfeiture of 11 day's pay.
On 4 Nov 1916 he reported ill to the 5th Field Ambulance, and was sent on the next day to a Casualty Clearing Station before being admitted on 8 Nov 1916 to the 6th General Hospital in Rouen with trench foot. His NOK was advised on 14 Dec 1916 that he was sick, not wounded as had been reported to them earlier. His battalion records for the period report him as wounded and missing at first, followed by Killed in Action between 3-6 Nov 1916. (It appears that his records were corrected after he rejoined the battalion on 18 May 1917.) On 14 Nov 1916 he was released to the No 2 Convalescent Depot and then five day's later to the Division's Base Depot. From there, he was admitted to the 18th General Hospital in Étaples with the mumps on 8 Feb 1917. Recovered, he was released to the 2nd Division Base Depot again on 28 Feb 1917, and it was not until 18 May 1917 that he rejoined the 28th Battalion.
In late Sep 1917 he was given leave in England and was away from the battalion until 29 Oct 1917 as he extended his leave without permission (AWOL) by a period of 20 days. For this he was awarded 28 day's Field Punishment No. 2, and a total forfeiture of 49 day's pay. Hospitalised again on 6 Mar 1918, he was seen first by the 7th Field Ambulance who sent him on the same day to the New Zealand Stationary Hospital in Wisques. Edward rejoined the 28th Battalion on 23 Mar 1918, and remained with them until he was again granted English leave from 23 Oct 1918. He rejoined the battalion in France on 19 Nov 1918. (At the time of the Armistice the battalion was resting and rebuilding in the small village of Berteaucourt, north-west of Amiens. Soon after the Armistice the 28th Battalion and the rest of the Australian 7th Brigade was initially earmarked as part of the British 4th Army to relocate to Coblenz as part of the Army of Occupation. They began their move on 23 Nov 1918, travelling through Amiens and Péronne by train, and then marched via stops at Busigny, Ribeauville, Grand Fayt, Beaufort, and Cousolre into Belgium. At this point it was decided that the Australian troops would not proceed into Germany, but wait in Belgium for their return to Australia, with the 28th Battalion basing itself in Marcinelle, some 2 miles from the large industrial city of Charleroi.[1])
Having enlisted in 1915 he was one of the early departures for England on 18 Jan 1919 via the Australian Infantry Base Depot in Le Havre, France for the No. 4 Command Depot at Hurdcott in England to prepare for his return to Australia. His return journey was from Devonport on HMAT A68 Anchises, disembarking in Albany (7 Apr 1919) and his expected return was reported in the Kalgoorlie Miner on the 1st and 8th of April 1919. Edward was discharged 10 Jun 1919 by the 5th Military District.
Post War
On the Electoral Roll in 1925 as a grocer at Mornington. Deaths BRIGGS, Edward, at Wooroloo (TB Sanatorium), on January 13, aged 36.[2]
References
- ↑ The 28th Battalion AIF - A Record of War Service. Henry K. Kahn. Hesperian Press.
- ↑ "Family Notices". Western Mail. XLV, (2,293). Western Australia. 23 January 1930. p. 54. Retrieved 30 May 2017 – via National Library of Australia.