ANDREWARTHA, John
| Service Number: | 3761 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 24th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Stawell, Victoria, Australia, 1894 |
| Home Town: | Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Steel Moulder |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 8 Feb 1916: | Involvement Private, 3761, 24th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '14' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Warilda embarkation_ship_number: A69 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 8 Feb 1916: | Embarked Private, 3761, 24th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Warilda, Melbourne | |
| 1 Sep 1916: | Wounded Australian Army (Post WW2), Private, Mouquet Farm, Gunshot wound. Right foot.Embarked Calais for England | |
| 1 Aug 1917: | Embarked Embark Southampton. Disembark France to reinforce 22nd battalion. | |
| 1 Sep 1918: | Wounded Mont St Quentin / Peronne, Wounded in action 2nd occasion. Gunshot wound chest. | |
| 25 Oct 1919: | Embarked Embark London on HMAT Plassy. Disembark Melbourne | |
| 25 Dec 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Discharged as invalid. Jaundice |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by David Sinclair
John Andrewartha was twenty years old when he enlisted. Prior to this he was in the Citizen Forces for three years and a senior cadet for four years. His extended family lived in and around Stawell Victoria, and he worked as a steel moulder.
According to a letter from his younger sister May, they were both orphaned at a young age and were adopted by their aunty and uncle, Phillip and Mary Andrewartha, and went to live at Lydia St, Brunswick, Melbourne.
John seemed to have a bit of a difficult time in the war. He managed to be charged AWL five times, be sentanced to some serious detention time, and lose an awful amount of pay.
He was wounded twice. The first at Mouquet Farm, the second at the the Battle of Mont St Quentin, a gunshot wound to the chest. On that day, 1/9/18 his unit the 24th battalion, along with the 21st, 22nd, and 23rd played a major role in the battle. They captured the German strongpoint atop the summit on their second attempt. This battle was described by General Sir Henry Rawlinson, Commander of the 4th British Army as perhaps the greatest military achievement of the war.
John was evacuated to England and admitted to hospital on another ten occasions over the next year for related conditions. It was during one of these hospitalisations that he showed his tenacity by going AWL for four days over New Years Eve 1918/19.
John embarked England HMAT Plassy October 1919 becoming ill at sea with jaundice.
He was discharged from the army on 25/12/19 and in 1923 his sister applied for and recieved his British War Medal and Victory Medal on his behalf.
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