Captain Percy Lay, 8th Battalion, AIF.

LAY, PERCY (1892-1955), soldier and farmer, was born on 8 February 1892 at Ballan, Victoria, son of Edward Lay, farmer, and his wife Annie, née Slack, both Victorian born.
Before enlistment in the Australian Imperial Force on 19 August 1914 he worked as a sheep and cattle dealer for W. J. Andrews of Ballarat.

He was posted to the 8th Battalion and embarked for Egypt on 19 October. The 8th landed at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915 and from then until the evacuation Lay continually volunteered for dangerous patrols. He was promoted lance corporal in June, corporal in February 1916 and sergeant next August. On the Western Front particularly, in 1916-17, he showed the remarkable coolness, courage and determination which made him a legend in his own battalion and in the A.I.F.

Lay won his first decoration during fighting near Pozières on 18 August 1916. When the 7th and 8th Battalions attacked, he and three others managed to get into the enemy trenches but were assaulted with bombs. When Lay's bombs were exhausted and he realized that the second attacking wave would not reach the trench he left it, carrying one of his men who was wounded; despite heavy fire he successfully brought him in. When his company was relieved in the front trench he remained behind and assisted the relieving company commander. His own company commander recommended him for the Victoria Cross but on 20 January 1917 he was awarded a Croix de Guerre avec Palme.

For his courageous actions during the 2nd battle of Bullecourt on 8-9 May 1917 Lay was awarded the Military Medal. When his unit was exposed to constant artillery barrage and repeated counter-attacks Lay, wounded during the first few hours, declined to go to the rear until the battalion was relieved. During the attack he was of 'invaluable assistance' and at one stage left a newly captured post to bring in six prisoners, 'belting the hide off them with his tin hat'.

At Polygon Wood near Ypres on 20 September 1917 Lay won the Distinguished Conduct Medal. When his platoon commander was wounded he took charge and led the platoon through a barrage to the assembly position, into the attack, and on to the final objective. The success of the attack was very much due to his inspiration. Nine days later, in the field, he was commissioned second lieutenant. At Broodseinde, east of Ypres, on 4 October he was awarded the Military Cross. After all the other company officers had become casualties he took command during a critical period of the attack. During the final fight for the ridge his unit was opposed by a field-gun firing at point-blank range. Ordering his company to take cover he and two other men worked to the right flank of the gun position. They then attacked with bomb and bayonet, killing the entire crew and capturing the gun. General Sir William Birdwood sent him a personal letter of congratulations.

Before the 3rd battle of Ypres concluded Lay was to again show his courage. During the Canadian attack at Passchendaele he reconnoitred the German forward positions on the Keiberg. C. E. W. Bean described Lay's reconnaissance as 'magnificent scouting'. He was detached in 1918 for special duty with Dunsterforce in Persia and in February was promoted lieutenant, A.I.F. On 9 March 1919 he embarked for Australia and was demobilized in June, soon afterwards establishing a small farm at Alphington, Melbourne.

During World War II Lay served in garrison, works and training units in Victoria, reaching the rank of major. He then remained at Alphington until illness forced him to enter Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital. He died there, unmarried, on 28 August 1955 of a cerebral tumour and was cremated. His estate was sworn for probate at £19,459.

An archetypal digger, 'Perce' Lay was greatly admired by his mates. Many felt that he was the bravest man in the A.I.F. and he was often compared to Albert Jacka and others.

The Young Lieutanant by Edward Dyson

The young lieutenant's face was grey.
As came the day.
The watchers saw it lifting white
And ghostlike from the pool of night.
His eyes were wide and strangely lit.
Each thought in that unhallowed pit:
"I, too, may seem like one who dies
With wide, set eyes."

He stood so still we thought it death,
For through the breath
Of reeking shell we came, and fire,
To hell, unlit, of blood and mire.
Tianced in a chill delirium
We wondered, though our lips were dumb
What precious thing his fingers pressed
Against his breast.

His left hand clutched so lovingly
What none might see.
All bloodless were his lips beneath
The straight, white, rigid clip of teeth.
His eyes turned to the distance dim;
Our sleepless eyes were all on him.
He stirred; we aped a phantom cheer.
The hour was here!

The young lieutenant blew his call.
"God keep us all!"
He whispered softly.Out he led;
And over the vale of twisted dead,
Close holding that dear thing, he went.
On through the storm we followed, bent
To pelt of iron and the rain
Of flame and pain.

His wan face like a lodestar glowed
Down that black road,
And deep among the torn and slain
We drove, and twenty times again
He squared us to the charging hordes.
His word was like a hundred swords.
And still a hand the treasure pressed
Against his breast.

Our gain we held. Up flamed the sun.
"The ridge is won,"
He calmly said, and, with a sigh,
"Thank God, a man is free to die!"
He smiled at this, and so he passed.
His secret prize we knew at last,
For through his hand the jewel's red,
Fierce lustre bled.

8th Battalion Poet at Natimuk

The 8th Battalion poet Tom Skeyhill, in a previous post was famous for the poem 'Naked Army' toured after he was invalided out. He gave readings and lectures - he was described as "a silver-tongued master of eloquence - a matchless orator, whose powers of description are more vivid, and word pictures of battles are more graphic than those of any other speaker on the war."

This report was found in the WEST WIMMERA MAIL for Friday May 20, 1916

Signaller Tom Skeyhill, the blind soldier poet, who lectured to a packed house at Natimuk on Friday evening had a wonderfully interesting story to tell, and be told it eloquently. His elocutionary training before he left for the war has proved providential. He knows exactly when and how to emphasise a .point, and the personal touches introduced throughout gripped and thrilled his audience. His story was not one of what he had heard and read, but what be had seen and taken part in. His wonderful collection of slides, actual photographs taken fighting with the boys, his description of life in the trenches, the close comradeship existing between the boys, and the many self-sacrificing acts be had witnessed, made a story absorbingly interesting and worthy of remembrance by all. During the evening he recited two or three of his stirring poems, actually written in the firing line. Private Bobbie Pearce, who accompanies Signaller Skeyhill sang several songs, favorites with the boys in the trenches. He has a powerful voice, and received a great ovation. Those who were not present undoubtedly missed a treat.

Man in the Corner

A chiel's amang ye takin' notes and faith he'll print 'em.—Burns

Signaller Tom Skeyhill interspersed his war story with some humorous stories.

One I think I have told before—about the soldier who explained his absence from the lines by the fact that he wanted a pair of boots and had to shoot 24 Turks before he got a pair to fit him.
Another was about an Australian soldier who was shaving himself—using the water from a pool in a rock—when an officer came along and enquired how he was. "Oh, I'm alright, but I'd like you to take your bloomin' foot out of my shavin mug."

A good one was about an Australian who had just put his hat on the parapet over his trench when it fell at his feet with a bullet hole through it. " My word," he said to his mate, " I was lucky I didn't have my hat on."

A story that appealed to the audience was purely Australian. Two of our boys had to flee from the Turks One of them was not fleet of foot, and was hampered by his kit. His mate, becoming alarmed, shouted. "Come on come on: the- Turks are gaining on you!" To which the laconic reply was made, " Bli me, d'ye think I'm runnin' stiff."

The full mail extracts can be found at this excellent site: (http://www.ballaratgenealogy.org.au/goroke/wwm1916.htm)

Poems by Edward George Dyson

Edward George Dyson was born at Morrisons near Ballarat in March 1865. His father, George Dyson, arrived in Australia in 1852 and after working on various diggings became a mining engineer, his mother came from a life of refinement in England. The family led a roving life during Dyson's childhood, moving successively to Alfredton, Bendigo, Ballarat and Alfredton again. Unconsciously the boy was storing for future use the life of the miners, farmers and bushmen, among whom he lived. At 12 he began to work as an assistant to a travelling draper, after that was a whimboy in a mine, and for two or three years an assistant in a factory at Melbourne. This was followed by work in a newspaper office. At 19 he began writing verse, and a few years later embarked on a life of free-lance journalism which lasted until his death. His first notable work was "The Golden Shanty", which appeared in the Bulletin, and many other short stories followed. In 1896 he published a volume of poems, Rhymes from the Mines, and in 1898 the first collection of his short stories, Below and On Top. In 1901 his first long story The Gold-stealers was published in London, which was followed by In the Roaring Fifties in 1906. In the same year appeared Fact'ry 'Ands, a series of more or less connected sketches dealing with factory life in Melbourne in a vein of humour. Various other stories and collections of stories were published in the Bookstall Series and will be found listed in Miller's Australian Literature. Another volume of verse Hello, Soldier! appeared in 1919. All through the years Dyson did an enormous amount of work until he broke down under the strain and died after a long illness on 22 August 1931. He married Miss Jackson who survived him with one daughter.

Dyson was an admirable workman but does not rank among the greater prose-writers of Australia. The Gold-stealers and In the Roaring Fifties are two interesting tales, and the short stories are capably written. His work has the merit that it was written out of his own experience and observation. Of his two volumes of verse the first, Rhymes from the Mines, is the better, and gives Dyson an honourable place in the ranks of Australian balladists.

In his book "Hello, Soldier!" Khaki Verse, many poems were originally printed in the "Bulletin," others in "Punch," "The Leader" and Melbourne "Herald."

This poem was entitled - MUD

This war's a waste of slurry, and its atmosphere is mud,
All is bog from here to sunset. Wadin' through
We're the victims of a thicker sort of universal flood,
With discomforts that old Noah never knew.

We have dubbed our trench The Cecil.
There's a brass-plate and a dome, And a quagmire where the doormat used to be,
If you're calling, second Tuesday is our reg'lar day at home,
So delighted if you'll toddle in to tea!

There is mud along the corridors enough to bog a cow;
In the air there hangs a musty kind of woof;
There's a frog-pond in the parlour, and the kitchen is a slough.
She has neither doors nor windows, nor a roof.

When they post our bald somnambulist as missing from his flat
We take soundings for the digger with a prop.
By the day the board is gratis, by the week it's half of that;
For the season there's a corresponding drop.

Opening off the spacious hallway is my natty little suite,
A commodious and accessible abode.
By judicious disposition, with exclusion of my feet,
There is sleeping room for Oliver the toad.

Though the ventilation's gusty, and in gobs the ceiling falls--
Which with oral respiration disagrees--
Though there comes a certain quantity of seepage from the walls,
There are some I knew in diggings worse than these.

On my right is Cobber Carkeek. There's a spring above his head,
And his mattress is a special kind of clay.
He's a most punctilious bloke about the fashion of his bed,
And he makes it with a shovel every day.

Man is dust. If so, the Cobber has been puddled up a treat.
On domestic sanitation he's a toff,
For he lights a fire on Sunday, bakes his sur face in the heat,
Then he takes a little maul, and cracks it off.

After hanging out a winter in this Cimmerian hole
We're forgetting sheets, and baths, and tidy skins.
In the dark and deadly calm last night they took us on patrol.
Seven, little fellows, thinking of their sins.

It was ours like blinded snails to prowl the soggy, slimy night,
With a feeler pricking out at every pore
For the death that stalks in darkness, or the blinking stab of light,
And the other trifling matters that are war.

That's the stuff to get your liver, that's the acid on a man,
For it tries his hones, and seeks his marrow throngh.
You have got the thought to comfort you that life is but a span,
If Fritz squirts his loathly limelight over you.

We got back again at daybreak. Cobber ducked to doss and said,
From the soft, embracing mud: "No more I'll roam.
"Oh, thank Heaven, blokes," he murmured, "for the comforts of a bed!
Gorstruth, but ain't it good to have a home!"

Lieutenant Leonard George Prentice Errey, DSO,MC, 8th Battalion, AIF.

Leonard George Prentice Errey, enlisted on 16th August 1914, as a private aged 22. In civilian life he had been a carpenter living in Campertown, Victoria. He is listed as being a member of the Campertown Rifle Club.

He received the Military Cross in April 1917, the citation reads:

“During the operations in front of Queant and Phonville, 19th April 1917, 2nd Lieut ERREY’S work was of an extremely courageous and useful nature. His duties included patrolling no man’s land in front of his Company sector. In this he showed great courage and initiative. He went through the enemy’s wire and gained valuable information at great personal risk. On the night of 10th April 1917 he encountered an enemy patrol of 56 strong. His party was only 8 strong and the enemy endeavoured to surround him. Not withstanding this he gave them fight and succeeded in driving them off with bombs and rifle fire. He handled his men with great skill and got back without a casualty, the enemy leaving 4 dead on the field. Lieut. ERREY is a young officer who has been with the Battalion since shortly after its inception and is a splendid leader and absolutely fearless.”

Ron Austin in ‘Cobbers in Khaki’ writes about the incident:

“On the night of 19th April 1917 a patrol led by 2nd Lt George Errey came upon a German patrol of about 30 men. The 2 patrols engaged each other with rifle fire and within a few minutes the Germans withdrew from the encounter leaving behind 4 dead comrades."

Later that year in September, He was recommended for the Victoria Cross, although it was turned down, he received the Distinguished Service Order in its place for his audacious work: The citation for the Victoria Cross reads:

“For conspicuous gallantry during the attack on Polygon Wood on the 20th September 1917, after the third objective had been gained, the consolidation was greatly interfered with by heavy Machine Gun fire from an enemy strong point which caused many casualties and was beginning to disorganise our line. Lieut. ERREY with four men, in the face of very heavy Machine Gun fire rushed through our own barrage and attacked and captured the strong point together with 5 officers, 60 other ranks and 2 Machine Guns. This officer’s most conspicuous bravery, determination and prompt action undoubtedly saved many lives and altered the situation at a critical moment enabling the line to be firmly established.”

But on the 3rd Oct, the eve of the attack, Lieutenant Errey who was now the Battalion intelligence officer and his men laid out the white marker tape on the ground. At 5.30 the enemy shelled the rear trenches, the shelling took its toll with 3 officers being killed, Captains Rudolph Kirsch, and John Davidson and Lieutenant Errey.

He died of wounds received, aged 25 and is buried Menin Road South Military Cemetery, Belgium.

Sergeant William Dobson SCORER, DCM, 8th Battalion, AIF.

William Dobson Scorer was a 21 year old Clerk from Essendon, Victoria when he enlisted on 30th July 1915.

During the Battle of Broodseinde Ridge on the 4th October 1917, he was awarded The Distinguished Conduct Medal. The citation reads:

“During the attack on Broodseinde Ridge eat of Ypres an 4th Oct., 1917, Sgt. SCORER did splendid work both before and after the advance. He assisted the intelligence office in guiding the Battalion on to the tapes. When the Battalion advanced, Sgt. SCORER maintained direction on the flank in a most efficient manner and when held up by machine gun fire he crept forward and alone rushed the gunners, bayoneted 8 and put the gun out of action. He was wounded in this fight but continued his task of maintaining direction on his flank until the objective was reached when he was again very badly wounded while assisting to supervise consolidation. “

In Ron Austin’s book ‘Cobbers in Khaki’ the following passage mentions him:

“When Chaplain Booth arrived at the RAP to assist the RMO the first man he saw was the Orderly Room Sergeant, “poor old Bill Scorer.” Lying next to Scorer was Lieutenant Goodwin, who was described by Booth as “One of the most courageous officers of the 8th Battalion. Bill Scorer seemed cheerful but we hold very little hope for him, while poor old Goodwin has no chance. We looked him over, he was quite unconscious.” (Goodwin died that day, Scorer died two weeks later).”

Bill Scorer died of wounds on the 24th October 1917 and is buried in Estaples Military Cemetery aged 24.

Feelings towards Germans during the war.

This is an interesting article from the British Nursing Journal - September 12th 1914.

It gives an indication of the feeling of fear and suspicion early in the war towards German residents.

'Agnes Freytag, 37, came to England from Germany in 1910, and from that year until May last was a nurse at the Roman Catholic Cripples' Home, Northwood, Middlesex.
On Wednesday she called at the home for a box, which contained a revolver and 51 breech caps, but the Sister Superintendent refused to hand them over until she had communicated with the police.The police arrived, and the nurse was then taken into custody on a charge, of failing to register, for travelling more than five miles from her home without a permit, and for being in possession of firearms. She was remanded at Highgate.
Every clay one hears blood-curdling stories of German women, who have been in our midst for years, being in possession of suspicious papers and articles.
We are a very trusting people.'

Why we joined up.

This is an interesting passage from the book 'Twice in a Lifetime' by M.L.Walkinton. He was just 17 when he enlisted in September 1914 and was soon a rifleman in the Queens Westminster Rifles. Three months later in December he was in the trenches in France. Reflecting years later, this is what he has to say about the reason he joined up.

'Thirteen years have passed, and looking back it is not easy to see just why we were so desperately keen to slaughter a lot of decent Germans. I suppose that we were a normal lot of healthy young men afflicted with romantic minds and large reserves of pent-up energy. Our real need was to rescue beautiful maidens from terrible dragons; but the beautiful maidens were so capable and stand-offish, and all the dragons had been slain long ago, that when the Daily Mail told us that beautiful Belgium had been violated and France was in distress we all rushed to the rescue. But I think we did it for own sakes very largely. The uniforms, the bands, the open-air life and most of all, the felling that one was a devil of a fellow attracted us irresistibly. We felt, of course , that England was in danger and we did honestly want to defend her, and we knew that it might cost us our lives, but there is no doubt that the wave of patriotic emotion which carried us into the army received much of its impetus from the publicity and glamour of it all.'

The "Ni-Shell"

A bizarre episode took place at the battle of Neuve Chapelle in October 1914, it was in fact the first 'gas' attack of the war, but not the deadly 'mustard' gas..

Early in the war, German Major Max Bauer, Chief of Artillery and the Fortress Section of Operation Branch had convened a group of scientists to develop a chemical shell of incendiary, smoke, irritant, or stink type to drive enemy troops from inaccessible places. The result was the "Ni-shell". The Ni stood for 'Niespulver'- Sneezing Powder. Professor Nernst of Kaiser Wilhelm Institute had developed the idea of placing irritant among the balls of standard shrapnel shell.

3, 000 of these non-toxic shells were fired at Neuve Chapelle. The British and Indian troops did not realise that they had been victims of the 'Ni shell' until they read about it after the the war. Legend has it the Prof Nernst's 'Ni shells' were abandonded after Erich Van Falenhayn's son had won a case of champagne by wagering that he could stand in a cloud of the irritant for 5 minutes and emerge unharmed.

Meanwhile, a new type of Gas weapon a shell filled with xylyl bromide was being devloped and would be used, against the Russian's in 1915.

8th Battalion Poet - Signaller Tom Skeyhill.

Signaller Tom Skeyhill of the 8th Battalion wrote a famous poem 'The naked Army' below.

Tom Skeyhill was the original author of, "My Little Wet Home In The Trench", a parody of the 1911 song, "My Little Grey Home in the West", by Hermann Frederic Löhr and D. Eardley-Wilmot.

He trained in Egypt from January, 1915, to April, 1915, and landed with his battalion on Anzac Beach on 24th April. The next week he was with his Battalion at Cape Helles, and was blinded on 8th May, when a high explosive shell burst beside him. He also suffered bayonet wounds to his hands. In 1916, he published a little book called "Soldier-Songs from Anzac". Some of these had been written "in the firing-line" and some in hospital after he was injured. He was invalided home and then, after the end of the war, went to America where an operation partially restored his sight. He toured the States giving readings and lectures - he was described as "a silver-tongued master of eloquence - a matchless orator, whose powers of description are more vivid, and word pictures of battles are more graphic than those of any other speaker on the war."
He was killed in a plane accident at Hyanis, Massachusetts, in 1932, and buried in West Dennis.

The Naked Army

We ain't no picture postcards,
Nor studies in black and white;
We don't doll up in evening clothes
When we go out to fight.

We've forgotten all our manners,
And our talk is full of slang,
For you ain't got time for grammar
When you 'ear the rifles bang.

The 'eat 'ere an' the vermin'
Ad drove us nearly balmy,
So we peeled off all our clobber,
And we're called "The Naked Army."

We never wear our tunics,
Unless it's cold at night;
An' socks and shirts and putties,
We've chucked 'em out of sight.

We only wear a pair of shorts
That don't near reach our knees,
And we're burnt as brown as berries;
Still, we'd sooner sun than fleas.

The Tommies fighting round us
Think we've got a bally rat;
They're all togged up to a button,
An' us, in shorts and 'at.

The air and sun don't 'urt us
In this land of fleas and strife,
So we've chucked away our clobber
An' prefer the Simple Life.

The Rookie, when first landed,
'Angs on to all 'is clothes,
But when the grey-backs bite 'im,I
t's to the beach 'e goes.

Then off comes shirt and tunic,
Boots, socks, and putties, too;
'E dives deep in the briny,
An' wears what the others do.

If our girls could only see us,
Just as we're fightin' 'ere,
I wonder if they'd 'ug us,
Smile, kiss, an' call us Dear!

Sure thing, they still would love us,
Although we're burnt and lean;
They'd think of our 'ome-comin',
An' buy a sewin' machine.

Still, clothes don't make the fighter,
Nor speech don't show the man,
But conduct in the trenches
Proves out the fightin' man.

This aint' no bloomin' picnic,
The earth 'ides 'eaps of slain;
And we'll fight on to avenge 'em,
Or we won't come 'ome again.

We were the first at landin',
And we're 'angin' on until
The Turks get all that's comin',
Then we'll be in at the kill.

When we march through old
"Connie,"Some one will yell,
"Lor' blahmy!There lies the Young Turk's Harem.
Double up! The Naked Army!"

Captain Albert Jacka, VC, MC & bar

Albert Jacka was born on 10 January 1893 at Layard in Victoria. He completed elementary schooling before working as a labourer, first with his father and then with the Victorian State Forests Department.

He enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 18 September 1914 as a private in the 14th Battalion. After training in Egypt Jacka's battalion landed at Gallipoli on 26 April 1915. Just over three weeks later on 19 May, with the ANZACs now entrenched above the beaches, the Turks launched large-scale frontal assaults against their positions. Some Turks captured a small section of trench at Courtney's Post. Early attempts to drive them out failed, until Jacka, taking advantage of a diversion created by bomb throwers at one end of the Turkish position, leapt in, killing most of the occupants. For this he was awarded Australia's first Victoria Cross of the First World War.

The citation read:
'For most conspicuous bravery on the night of the 19th-20th May, 1915, at "Courtney's Post" Gallipoli Peninsula. Lance Corporal Jacka, while holding a portion of our trench with four other men, was heavily attacked. When all except himself were killed or wounded, the trench was rushed and occupied by seven Turks. Lance Corporal Jacka at once most gallantly attacked them single handed, and killed the whole party, five by rifle fire and two with the bayonet.'Source: 'London Gazette' No. 7279

Jacka quickly became famous - his likeness was used on recruiting posters and his exploits featured regularly in newspapers, particularly in his native Victoria. He began a rapid rise through the ranks, finally becoming a captain in March 1917. Jacka having risen no higher has been attributed to his frequent disputes with superior officers.

After Gallipoli the 14th Battalion was shipped to France, where, at Pozières in August 1916 he won the Military Cross

'For conspicuous gallantry. He led his platoon against a large number of the enemy, who had counter attacked the battalion on his right. The enemy were driven back some prisoners they had taken were recovered, and 50 of the enemy captured. He was himself wounded in this attack.'
Source: 'Commonwealth Gazette' No. 62

and at Bullecourt in 1917 he won a bar to the Military Cross .

'For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. He carried out a daring reconnaissance of the enemy's position, and obtained most valuable information. Later, he rendered invaluable assistance in guiding troops to their assembly positions.'
Source: 'Commonwealth Gazette' No. 169


The Australian official historian, Charles Bean, described his actions at Pozières, during which he recaptured a section of trench, freed a group of recently captured Australians and forced the surrender of some fifty Germans, as "the most dramatic and effective act of individual audacity in the history of the AIF." He was severely wounded during this action and was hit by a sniper's bullet in July 1917. On each occasion he returned to the front, always furthering his reputation as one of the AIF's most respected warriors. In May 1918 he received the wound that ended his combat career, this time during a German gas bombardment near Villers-Bretonneux.
Jacka returned to Australia in September 1919. Greeted by a large crowd upon his return, Jacka was described in one newspaper as "the symbol of the spirit of the ANZACs." After being demobilised in January 1920 he went into business with two former members of his battalion. He married the following year and he and his wife later adopted a daughter. In 1929 Jacka was elected to the St Kilda Council becoming mayor the following year. His political career was characterised by his strong interest in assisting the unemployed. Meanwhile his business, which had performed well until the late 1920s, was forced into voluntary liquidation in 1930.
At the same time Jacka's health began to deteriorate. He entered Caulfield Military Hospital in December 1931 and died from kidney disease the following month. More than 6,000 people filed past his coffin as it lay in state and his funeral procession, flanked by thousands of onlookers, was led by over 1,000 returned soldiers - the coffin was carried by eight Victoria Cross winners. Jacka was buried with full military honours in St Kilda cemetery.

Se also (http://www.awm.gov.au/forging/australians/jacka.htm).

Inspiration

After purchasing Ron Austins excellent book 'Cobbers in Khaki'. A history of the 8th Battalion i was inspired whilst reading this in the preface.

'Our modern 'heroes' are more likely to be TV/pop satrs or sportsmen and i doubt whether many Australians today know of the audacious heroism of Albert Jacka. 'Cobbers in Khaki' features true heroes such as Lay, Traill, Mitchell, Goodwin, Robarts, Trevena and Scorer. Perhaps it is still not too late to give due recognition to such men and the thousand's of other men who served in the 8th Battalion, to their families and friend's, who waited and in many cases wept when the fateful telegram arrived advising that a dear one had been killed.'

It is my hope that this small blog will be a place where the deeds of such men are broadcast for all to read. If you have not read 'Cobbers in Khaki' i would urge you to do so, it is an excellent book and a fitting memorial to a great battalion.

A Short History of the 8th Battalion.

A Short History of the 8th Battalion, AIF. (http://www.awm.gov.au/)

The 8th Battalion was among the first infantry units raised for the AIF during the First World War. Like the 5th, 6th and 7th Battalions, it was recruited from Victoria and, together with these battalions, formed the 2nd Brigade.

The battalion was raised from rural Victoria by Lieutenant Colonel William Bolton within a fortnight of the declaration of war in August 1914 and embarked just two months later. After a brief stop in Albany, Western Australia, the battalion proceeded to Egypt, arriving on 2 December. It later took part in the ANZAC landing on 25 April 1915, as part of the second wave. Ten days after the landing, the 2nd Brigade was transferred from ANZAC to Cape Helles to help in the attack on the village of Krithia. The attack captured little ground but cost the brigade almost a third of its strength. The Victorian battalions returned to ANZAC to help defend the beachhead, and in August the 2nd Brigade fought at the battle of Lone Pine. The battalion served at ANZAC until the evacuation in December.

After the withdrawal from Gallipoli, the battalion returned to Egypt. In March 1916, it sailed for France and the Western Front. From then until 1918 the battalion was heavily involved in operations against the German Army. The battalion's first major action in France was at Pozières in the Somme valley in July 1916. Private Thomas Cooke, one of 81 members of the battalion killed at Pozières, earned a posthumous Victoria Cross during the action. After Pozières, the battalion fought at Ypres, in Flanders, returning to the Somme for winter. In 1917, the battalion participated in the operations that followed-up the German withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line, and then returned to Belgium to join the great offensive launched to the east of Ypres.

In March and April 1918 helped to stop the German spring offensive. The battalion subsequently participated in the allies' own offensive, launched near Amiens on 8 August 1918. The advance by British and empire troops was the greatest success in a single day on the Western Front, one that German General Erich Ludendorff described as, "the black day of the German Army in this war". For his actions on this day, Lieutenant William Joynt was awarded a Victoria Cross. The next day, Private Robert Beatham also earned a Victoria Cross by rushing four separate machine guns. He was killed in action two days later.
The battalion continued operations to late September 1918. At 11 am on 11 November 1918, the guns fell silent. The November armistice was followed by the peace treaty of Versailles signed on 28 June 1919.

In November 1918 members of the AIF began to return to Australia for demobilisation and discharge. In April, the battalion was so reduced that it and the 5th Battalion were amalgamated to form a composite battalion. In turn, this battalion was amalgamated with another, formed from the 6th and 7th Battalions, to form the 2nd Brigade Battalion.

Battle Honours: Landing at Anzac, Anzac, Helles, Krithia, Defence of Anzac, Suvla, Sari Bair, Gallipoli 1915, Egypt 1915-16, Somme 1916-18, Pozieres, Bullecourt, Ypres 1917, Menin Road, Broodeseinde, Polygon Wood, Poelcappelle, Passchendaele, Lys, Hazebrouck, Amiens, Albert 1918, Hindenburg Line, Epehy, France and Flanders 1916-18.

The 8th Battalion had 877 killed, 2410 wounded (including gassed).

Decorations
3 Victoria Cross
10 D.S.O. and 1 Bar
33 M.C. and 6 Bars
43 D.C.M.
32 M.M, 1 bar
4 M.S.M
45 M.I.D .
9 foreign awards .

Group portrait of the officers of the 8th Battalion,
photographed 20.2.1918 at Doncaster Camp, Locre Hospice.
Source: IWM photograph E 1811

Left to right, back row: Lieutenant (Lt) A. W. Finlayson MC; Lt S. W. Young MC MM; Lt J. G. Pitt; Lt F. W. Tickle MC; Lt R. W. Dowling MC; Lt R. Woodhouse. Middle row: Lt J. G. Evans MC; Lt T. Anderson MC DCM; Lt R. V. Andrewartha; Lt J. Bourke; Lt P. A. Waters MC; Lt P. G. Perkin; Lt J. L. Foott; Lt W. D. Joynt VC; Lt R. G. Hutson; unidentified; Lt W. D. N. Hooper; Lt S. Young; Lt H. G. Whitton; Lt W. G. M. Claridge. Front row: Captain A. G. Campbell DSO; Lt J. R. Blackman MC; Lt H. Fenton; Major J. H. P. Eller DSO; Lieutenant Colonel J. W. Mitchell DSO; Lt Col J. C. M. Traill DSO MC; Lt A. D. Temple MC; Honorary Capt E. Freeman MC.

Source : Crompton family History

Out of Battle, is a blog about the First World War, especially centering on the actions of the 8th Battalion, Australian Imperial Force.

My Grandfather fought with the 8th and this blog is a small homage to its men in hope that their deeds will never be forgotten.

There will be other 'stuff' posted about the war from different sources.