ANDERS, Francis Arthur
| Service Number: | 1280 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 23 June 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 6th Machine Gun Company |
| Born: | Deniliquin, New South Wales, Australia, 4 November 1887 |
| Home Town: | Echuca, Campaspe, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Coach Driver |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 8 November 1916, aged 29 years |
| Cemetery: |
AIF Burial Ground, Grass Lane, Flers |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 23 Jun 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 23rd Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 8 Nov 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1280, 6th Machine Gun Company |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Rob Newland
Francis Arthur Anders was killed in action on 8 November 1916
On 8 November 1916, the gun crew of the 6th Machine Gun Company AIF were showing 2nd Lieutenant Frederick William Hordern Matthews DCM the lay of the land, 50 yards, (46 metres) west of Factory Corner, Ligny Thilloy, one mile north of Flers, Somme, France. The Germans would have a ‘Five Minute of Madness’s’ of bombardment which the two gun crews were caught in during the relief of No.3 section by the No.2 section led by 2nd Lieutenant Alfred Lindsay (Lin) Newland.
Killed by the enemy shell were;
2nd Lieutenant Alfred Lindsay (Lin) Newland; service number 656, from Laverton, Victoria.
2nd Lieutenant Frederick William Hordern Matthews DCM; service number 21, from Heidelberg, Victoria.
Sergeant James William Taylor; service number 457, from Shepparton, Victoria.
Private Herbert Buckley; service number 94, from Kerang, Victoria.
Private Arthur Francis Anders; service number 1280 late 454, from Deniliquin, NSW.
Pivate Edmond Rodda service number 525, Daylesford,VIC was wounded and later returned to the 2nd Machine Gun Company AIF
This was Mathews third and final bombing that he had experienced when he was killed.
He had won his DCM by digging out his fallen comrades including his two brothers whilst continuing to fire his Lewis gun during a previous bombing which he survived.
After Private Edmond Rodda recovered from a gunshot wound to his right buttock received during the ‘five minutes of Madness’s’ on the 8th November, he joined the 2nd Machine Gun Battalion during 1917 as a driver and returned to Australia in 1919.
All the lost men are buried next to each other in Plot 10 Row L, from grave 1 to 5 at the A.I.F. Burial Ground, Grass Lane Cemetery, Gueudecourt, Somme, France; not far from where they fell at Factory Corner where the original grave was marked shortly after the event.
Source: National Archives of Australia Soldier Records and 6th MCG Diaries “In Good Company; The 6th Machine Gun Company AIF” Author: W. A. Carne
Werribee Shire Banner Thursday 30 November 1916, page 2
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