For the 100th anniversary of the beginning of World War I, the Hungerford & Associated Families Society, Inc, are commemorating the service and lives given by soldiers and nurses during what was commonly referred to as ‘The Great War’. There are 138 soldiers and nurses listed in Hungerfords Down Under, 2nd ed, 2013. Each serviceman or woman has been researched and their service records consulted. Family members have assisted with photographs, letters and diaries.
They served in Gallipoli, Egypt, Greece, Palestine, France, Belgium and Mesopotamia. Many also worked at headquarters in Australia and London, or in hospitals and depots. When looking at the unit name, unless otherwise stated, the unit was part of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF).
The oldest Australian born soldier to enlist was George Henry Allan, aged 50. Five others, Aubrey Francis Hungerford, Norman George Stafford Pilcher, Walter Valentia Windeyer Thompson, John Frederick Moore Wilkinson, and his brother William Henry Wilkinson, were all over 35 when they enlisted. Also Mary Catherine Hungerford and Ruby Agnes May Hungerford were similarly over 35 when they served overseas. George Henry Allan and John Frederick Moore Wilkinson had also served in the Boer War.
The youngest soldiers were Albert Henry Sault and Moritz Edward Forrest, who both enlisted at the age of 18 years and 7 months.
The longest period of service for an enlisted man was Mark Rogers. He enlisted on 17 August 1914 at Kensington in Sydney, NSW, and sailed on HMAT A19 Afric, embarking from Sydney on 18 October 1914, sailing to Albany, WA, where the fleet massed to leave for the Great War. From there he arrived in Egypt and then went on to land at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915. According to his discharge papers he served 5 years and 55 days with the Australian Imperial Force, serving abroad for 4 years and 358 days. From his records he does not appear to have been injured during his time of service, although he did spend time in hospital with influenza.
There were 15 family members who paid the ultimate price fighting for their countries. Nine died on the field of battle, two died as a result of their injuries received in battle, (one in a hospital in France and the other on a ship off the coast of Gallipoli), one as a prisoner of war, and three from pneumonia.
Richard Claude Hungerford Boyle, 1917, France/Flanders – Killed in Action
Percy Wellesley Chapman, 1917, Bapaume, France – Killed in Action
Henry Becher Forrest, 1919, Charleroi, France – Pneumonia
Edwin Francis Glover, 1917, Bullecourt, France – Killed in Action
Albert Victor Hungerford, 1914, France/Flanders – Killed in Action
Beecher Reginald Hungerford, 1916, Angora, Turkey – As a Prisoner of War
George William Hungerford, 1916, Fromelles, France – Killed in Action
Harold Aubrey Hungerford, 1915, Gallipoli, Turkey – Died of wounds on HMAT A38 Ulysses
Neville John Hungerford, 1919, Le Havre, France – Pneumonia
William Hungerford, 1915, Gallipoli, Turkey – Killed in Action
William Percy Hungerford, 1916, Mallen Court, France – Killed in Action
George Edward Murphy, 1918, Rouen, France – Died of wounds (gassed) in hospital.
James Hungerford William Roche, 1916, near Pozieres, France
Dudley James Sadgrove, 1918, Egypt – Pneumonia
Henry Thomas Richard Somerset Wright, 1916, Sudan – Killed in Action
Those who served early in the war received the 1914/15 Star Medal, and most servicemen received the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. The following distinctions were awarded:
Distinguished Flying Cross (1): Awarded to Thomas Leigh Simpson
Distinguished Service Cross (1): Awarded to Richard Hungerford Caldwell
Distinguished Service Order (1): Awarded to Geoffrey Machell Hungerford Wright
Military Cross (6): Awarded to Ernest Sleeman Anderson, Percy Wellesley Chapman, Rupert Edward Fanning, Arndell Neil Lewis, Bruce Minter and Geoffrey Machell Hungerford Wright.
Military Medal (3): Awarded to Charles James Hungerford, Edmond Hungerford and Leslie Ellis Montague
Mentioned in Despatches (4): Ernest Sleeman Anderson, Bruce Minter (twice) and Mervyn Minter
Silver War Badge (1): Arthur Leslie Cooper
Serbian White Eagle (1): Mervyn Minter
British Red Cross War Medal (2): Mary Catherine Hungerford and Ruby Agnes May Hungerford
Service Medal of the Order of St John of Jerusalem (2): Mary Catherine Hungerford and Ruby Agnes May Hungerford
Croix de Guerre (1): Henri Joseph Adolphi Duquesne
Royal Humane Society’s Medal (1): Awarded to Robert Hungerford Caldwell
Men who enlisted, but were rejected as medically unfit received a medallion to wear, so that they would not be thrown a white feather by women in the street – a sign of cowardice.
This photo shows the three sons of Edmund Thomas Hungerford who served in World War I. Two of the sons, Charles James and Edmond, were awarded the Military Medal.
Fourteen members of the family fought at Gallipoli in Turkey. William Hungerford lost his life fighting on the peninsula, and is buried at Shell Green, and Harold (Aubrey) Hungerford died as a result of his wounds on the ship HMAT A38 Ulysses, and was buried at sea. He is commemorated on the Lone Pine Memorial. Both Shell Green and Lone Pine are on the Gallipoli Peninsula, Turkey.[box type=”note” style=”rounded” border=”full”]Note: Regarding Harold (Aubrey) Hungerford – he is recorded as Harold Aubrey Hungerford on his war service records, but on his birth certificate he is just named as Harold, so we have included the ‘Aubrey’ in brackets.[/box]
The soldiers who served at Gallipoli are:
Herbert John Bancroft
Percy Wellesley Chapman
Henry Robert Dundas Connell
Charles Hume Gillham
John Hewitt
Fred Hungerford
Harold Aubrey Hungerford
William Hungerford
William Percy Hungerford
George William Johnston
Roy Wickham Lindeman
Mark Rogers
Bartholomew Shanahan
Thomas Leigh Simpson
Charles Norton Wood