LAIDLAW, John William
| Service Number: | 3834 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 12 July 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Corporal |
| Last Unit: | 3rd Light Trench Mortar Battery |
| Born: | Nullawarre, Victoria, Australia, September 1889 |
| Home Town: | Allansford, Warrnambool, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Nullawarre North State School, Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Broncho pneumonia, 1st Australian General Hospital at Sutton Veny, Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom, France, 6 February 1919 |
| Cemetery: |
Sutton Veny (St. John) Churchyard, Wiltshire, England Plot 69, Row J, Grave No, 9 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 12 Jul 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3834, 8th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Nov 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 3834, 8th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '9' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Ceramic embarkation_ship_number: A40 public_note: '' | |
| 23 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 3834, 8th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières | |
| 26 Jul 1916: | Wounded AIF WW1, Private, 3834, 8th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , GSW left arm - Blighty | |
| 9 Mar 1917: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 3rd Light Trench Mortar Battery | |
| 4 Oct 1917: | Wounded AIF WW1, Private, 3834, 3rd Light Trench Mortar Battery, Broodseinde Ridge, GSW in shoulder first then in leg. Was awarded his DCM for this action | |
| 25 Jul 1918: | Honoured Distinguished Conduct Medal, Broodseinde Ridge, On the 4th October 1917: For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty in an advance. When his N.C.O. became a casualty he took command of the team, carrying the N.C.O.'s load as well as his own, and continued to advance, though wounded. Later, he was wounded again, but refused to give up his load until he fell exhausted. He set a splendid example of coolness and determination" Recommendation made 9/10/1917 | |
| 6 Feb 1919: | Involvement AIF WW1, Corporal, 3834, 3rd Light Trench Mortar Battery, Died of Influenza (pandemic) |
Help us honour John William Laidlaw's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Evan Evans
The summary below was completed by Cathy Sedgwick – Facebook “WW1 Australian War Graves in England/UK
Died on this date - 6th February........a very sad day indeed in 1919 - 5 Australian Soldiers died in England....
Private John William Laidlaw was wounded in action twice; awarded DCM (Distinguished Conduct Medal “For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty during the operations east of Ypres on 4-8/10/17. His N.C.O. having become a casualty he took charge of the team, carrying the N.C.O.’s load as well as his own. He was wounded in the shoulder but continued to advance. Later he was shot through the leg and refused to give up his load until he fell exhausted. He set a splendid example of coolness and determination.” (The award notice appeared in London Gazette Supplement dated 4th March, 1918.)
Private Laidlaw was one of the 1915 Personnel awaiting transfer back to Australia after the War. He was admitted to the 1st Australian General Hospital at Sutton Veny, Wiltshire on 27th January, 1919 dangerously ill with broncho pneumonia. He died at 9.30 pm on 6th February, 1919 from Influenza & Broncho pneumonia.
NOTE - 5 Australian WW1 Soldiers died on this date - 6th February, 1917 from Bronchitis/Broncho Pneumonia. They were all buried in Durrington, Cemetery, Wiltshire.
ALL 5 SOLDIERS WERE BURIED in St. John the Evangelist Churchyard at Sutton Veny on 10th February, 1919 except for Private Ryan who was buried on 11th February, 1919.
There are a total of 141 Australian WW1 Soldiers & 2 Australian Nurses buried at Sutton Veny.
To read the full stories of the above soldiers.....
https://ww1austburialsuk.weebly.com/k--m.html
https://ww1austburialsuk.weebly.com/r---s.html
https://ww1austburialsuk.weebly.com/t--y.html
Biography contributed by Evan Evans
Private John William Laidlaw was born at Bullwaree near Warrnambool in Victoria on 1889.
By the time he enlisted for service in mid 1915, he was resident at the family property, Millawarrie, near Allansford via Warrnambool, Victoria.
He was allocated to the 12th Reinforcements of the 8th Battalion (/explore/units/355) which drew its soldiers from western Victoria.
He embarked with his reinforcement draft in July 1915, too late to see service at ANZAC. Instead John and his mates were held in Egypt pending the return of the troops from Gallipoli after the withdrawal, in December 1915.
At this point the exercise known as 'The Doubling of the AIF' took place, where the four Brigades of the original 1st Division were split to create the Fouth and Fifth Divisions with all the AIF Divisions moving to a three-Brigade structure. John stayed with the 8th Battalion and embarked for service on the Western Front in France and Belgium from April 1916.
They were conveyed from Egypt to Marseilles in the south of France by a convoy of ships, and thereafter by train to the area around Armentieres, known as 'The Nursery', so they could be familiarised with the nature of trench warfare in a relatively quiet sector. The 1st, 2nd and 4th Divisions were sent south to take part in the great Somme Offensive, around the village of Pozieres (/explore/campaigns/5). The 5th Division remained and was engaged in the disastrous action at Fromelles. John Laidlaw's 8th Battalion was in the 3rd Brigade of the 1st Division and they went into action on the 23rd July.
Three days later, John Laidlaw became one of the 23,000 casualties sustained around Pozieres and Mouqet Farm over five weeks in the late summer of 1916. He sustained a 'GSW" which could mean alternatively a Gunshot Wound or General Shrapnel Wound - the terminal effect was almost identical because shrapnel balls exhibited wound effects very similar. Returning to France after recuperation, in March 1917, he was transferred to the 3rd Light Tench Mortar Battery (/explore/units/363), a key fire support asset of the 3rd Brigade of which the 8th Battalion was a part.
He served through the Bullecourt (/explore/campaigns/6)campaign and then into Third Ypres (/explore/campaigns/8) which started well but bogged down in the late Spring rains around Passchendaele. John did not get that far because he was wounded again in the fighting for Broodseinde Ridge (/explore/campaigns/18).
After further recuperation he served out the balance of the war in the 3rd Trench Mortar Battery.
As the AIF concentrated backin the UK for repatriation Australia, the mis-named 'Spanish Flu pandemic swept Europe. It was actually a swine flu that had originated in the USA which was mobilised by the US troops heading to the front. Ultimately half of all US casualties were to be the result of infection with the flu virus, which was further distributed by troop ships returning troops to their country of origin, eventaully killing more than 40 million people world wide.
Sadly, John Laidlaw would never see Australia again. He was hospitalised with a respiratory condition in early January, and died on 9 February 1919 and is buried in the churchyard at Sutton Veny on the Salisbury Plain in England.
The summary below was completed by Cathy Sedgwick – Facebook “WW1 Australian War Graves in England/UK
Died on this date - 6th February........a very sad day indeed in 1919 - 5 Australian Soldiers died in England....
Private John William Laidlaw was wounded in action twice; awarded DCM (Distinguished Conduct Medal “For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty during the operations east of Ypres on 4-8/10/17. His N.C.O. having become a casualty he took charge of the team, carrying the N.C.O.’s load as well as his own. He was wounded in the shoulder but continued to advance. Later he was shot through the leg and refused to give up his load until he fell exhausted. He set a splendid example of coolness and determination.” (The award notice appeared in London Gazette Supplement dated 4th March, 1918.)
Private Laidlaw was one of the 1915 Personnel awaiting transfer back to Australia after the War. He was admitted to the 1st Australian General Hospital at Sutton Veny, Wiltshire on 27th January, 1919 dangerously ill with broncho pneumonia. He died at 9.30 pm on 6th February, 1919 from Influenza & Broncho pneumonia.
NOTE - 5 Australian WW1 Soldiers died on this date - 6th February, 1917 from Bronchitis/Broncho Pneumonia. They were all buried in Durrington, Cemetery, Wiltshire.
ALL 5 SOLDIERS WERE BURIED in St. John the Evangelist Churchyard at Sutton Veny on 10th February, 1919 except for Private Ryan who was buried on 11th February, 1919.
There are a total of 141 Australian WW1 Soldiers & 2 Australian Nurses buried at Sutton Veny.
To read the full stories of the above soldiers.....
https://ww1austburialsuk.weebly.com/k--m.html
https://ww1austburialsuk.weebly.com/r---s.html
https://ww1austburialsuk.weebly.com/t--y.html
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