Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

"3458 Private Leonard Bibbs, 57 Battalion, AIF, who on 28 April 1918 was killed in action near Corbie, France. Other biographical details concerning him are: farmer; of Mirboo South, Victoria; born Worcester, England; educated at a public elementary school; came to Australia in September 1911; enlisted in the AIF 30 August 1915; age at time of death, 34. Son of Leonard Henry and Emily Bibbs, of 25 Arboretum Rd., Worcester, England." - SOURCE (www.awm.gov.au)

Medals: British War Medal, Victory Medal

From François Berthout

Pte Leonard Benjamin Charles Denovan Bibbs SRN 3458 57th Infantry Battalion, AIF

In the Somme, the seasons pass, under the sun which projects its rays through the shadows of the clouds to light up the old battlefields on which the poppies keep growing and which open their red petals through the cemeteries, along the long rows of white tombs on which are inscribed for all eternity the names and stories of a whole generation of young men who fought and fell here, men who side by side served and shed their blood, gave their youth and their lives for their country and for France which will never forget. Under the flame of Remembrance, they stand proud and ready, smiling and forever young, united with their comrades, their friends, they are all here, no one is missing, they stand in front of us and hold out their hands to us, link between the past and the present, between their generation and ours which will always be united around them, around Remembrance so that these young men can live forever,not only in the white, peaceful and silent cities of serene cemeteries but also in our loving hearts and in our respectful thoughts so that their stories, their faces, who they were and what they did for us are never forgotten.

Today, it is with the deepest gratitude that I would like to honor the memory of one of these men who fought and fell on the fields of the Somme, I would like to pay a very respectful tribute to Private number 3458 Leonard Benjamin Charles Denovan Bibbs who fought in the 57th Australian Infantry Battalion, 15th Brigade, 5th Australian Division and who was killed in action 103 years ago, on April 28, 1918 at the age of 34 on the Somme front.

Leonard Benjamin Charles Denovan Bibbs was born on February 1, 1884 in Worcester, Worcestershire, England, and was the son of Leonard Henry and Emily Bibbs, of 25, Arboretum Road, Worcester, England.Leonard was educated at the Worcester Public Elementary School, England then after his studies in 1901, aged 17, he became a grocer's apprentice and worked at 81, Port Street, St Peter, Bengeworth, Evesham, Worcestershire then in 1911, aged 27 he worked as a milk deliverer working for Church Farm in Claines, Worcester.On September 23, 1911 Leonard and his parents embarked from Liverpool, England, on board Belgic and emigrated to Australia and lived in Mirboo South, Victoria, where Leonard worked as a farmer.

Leonard enlisted on August 30, 1915 in Melbourne, Victoria, in the 21st Australian Infantry Battalion, 8th Reinforcement and embarked with his unit from Melbourne, on board HMAT A64 Demosthenes on December 29, 1915 and sailed for Tel-El-Kébir, Egypt, where he was disembarked on February 26, 1916 then was taken on strength the same day in the 60th Australian Infantry Battalion and a month later, on March 15, 1916, he was transferred to the 57th Australian Infantry Battalion.

The 57th Battalion was raised in Egypt on February 18, 1916 as part of the "doubling" of the AIF. Half of its recruits were Gallipoli veterans from the 5th Battalion, and the other half, fresh reinforcements from Australia. Reflecting the composition of the 5th, the 57th was predominantly composed of men from the suburbs of Melbourne. The battalion became part of the 15th Brigade of the 5th Australian Division.

Three months after his transfer to the 57th Battalion, Leonard embarked with his unit from Alexandria, Egypt, on board HT Transylvania on June 17, 1916 and sailed for France where he was disembarked in Marseilles on June 23.

A month later, on July 19, 1916, Leonard and the 57th Australian Infantry Battalion were involved in their first major engagement on the Western Front in the Battle of Fromelles.

The attack on Fromelles on 19 July 1916 was the first major battle fought by Australian troops on the Western Front. It was a feint designed to prevent the Germans reinforcing their troops on the Somme, where the Allies had launched a major offensive on 1 July. The ruse, however, was unsuccessful.

Towards the evening of 19 July 1916, the Australian 5th and British 61st Divisions attempted to seize 4000 yards of front line centred on the "Sugar Loaf". However, the British bombardment, which commenced on 16 July, had warned the Germans that an attack was likely. As the troops moved into position on 19 July, they were unaware that they were being watched by German observers a mile away. The Germans heavily shelled the assembly area and communications trenches, causing hundreds of Australian and British casualties before the attack even started.

The assault began at 6pm with three and a half hours of daylight remaining. The front line to the north of the "Sugar Loaf" was on average 200 metres wide and the Australians quickly crossed no-man’s-land, seized the German front line, and then pushed on for 140 metres in search of a supposed third and last line of the German trench system. No such line existed and the Australians began forming a thin disjointed series of posts in the intended position.

Other Australians attacked opposite the "Sugar Loaf" where no-man’s-land was 400 metres wide. The Germans had survived the British shelling and quickly manned their machine guns. Within 15 minutes they had decimated the attacking waves of Australians, forcing the survivors to find shelter. British troops attacking south of the "Sugar Loaf" suffered a similar fate and made no progress. The British planned a second attempt to capture the "Sugar Loaf" salient and asked the Australians for help. This plan was cancelled but the news arrived too late to stop the Australians mounting another attack with equally disastrous results.

The next morning the Australians that had breached the enemy’s lines were forced to withdraw to their own lines. The Australians suffered 5,533 casualties in one night, the worst 24 hours in Australia’s military history. Many fell victim to German machine-guns. It was a staggering disaster that had no redeeming tactical justification whatsoever. It was, in the words of a senior participant, Brigadier General Harold Edward “Pompey” Elliott, a "tactical abortion".

Fortunately for the 57th Australian Infantry Battalion it was allocated a supporting role and suffered relatively light casualties compared to its sister battalions. This, however, meant that 57th carried the burden of holding the line in ensuing days for the battalion. Despite its grievous losses, the 5th Division continued to man the front in the Fromelles sector for a further two months.

After months of terrible fighting in Fromelles then in Belgium, Leonard left on leave for England on January 24, 1917 and a month later, on February 20, 1917, he joined the 57th Battalion on the front and fought courageously during the second battle of Bullecourt then fought in Ypres.

On February 6, 1918, he was sent on leave to England and a month later, on March 25, 1918, he joined the 57th Australian Infantry Battalion in the Somme which was fighting at Corbie to stop the German spring offensive and prevent the German army from taking the vital railway junction of the city of Amiens.
Sadly, a month later, on April 28, 1918, Leonard met his fate and was killed in action at Corbie, Somme, he was 34 years old.

Today, Leonard Benjamin Charles Denovan Bibbs rests in peace with his friends, comrades and brothers in arms at the Daours Communal Cemetery Extension, Somme, and his grave bears the following inscription "In loving memory from father, Worcester, England".
Leonard, Sir, you who today rest in peace with your brothers in arms on the peaceful soils of the Somme on which millions of poppies grow and who have become one of us, one of our sons on whom we will always watch, one of my boys of the Somme whose memory I will keep alive and strong, I would like, in these few words, to express to you my gratitude and that of my country for which you gave and did so much, I would like to tell you, with all my heart, with respect, thank you.Alongside your brothers in arms, listening to your heart and your soul, you joined the ranks of united men, gathered around the same causes, they gathered in the most beautiful spirit of camaraderie and unity under their flag and carried their colors high and proud, all took a step forward with in their hearts, the desire and the immense pride to serve their country.Brave, young and determined they left the warmth of their homes and the love of their families, of their loved ones, they left their homes, their farms, a future full of promise and walked together, confident and smiling to discover and see the world, they had in their hearts the feeling of living the greatest adventure of their lives and embarked under the rising sun, sailed on peaceful waters, turning their eyes for the last time on the land which had seen them be born and grow.soon, they arrived in France, a country they did not know but for which they were ready to give their courage and their lives and together, through the paths, through the hills, through the fields of poppies, they discovered the French people for whom they fought and who knew, seeing these young men coming from far away, with their smiles on their faces, that France was no longer alone and that thanks to the courage and determination of these young boys, the light would shine again and peace would return soon.confident and brave, they never stopped walking, even when they saw the villages of northern France and the Somme destroyed, which were nothing but flames and desolation, they kept their heads high and went forward side by side to reach the trenches and the mud of the Somme.Together, side by side, they fought with the greatest bravery for each other, with their friends, their brothers, their fathers, they fought as comrades, as brothers in arms, as a family and under the shells , under the screaming metal which rained endlessly on them, they remained strong and united in the face of the horrors of the war which tried to break them but it did not happen and with honor, with courage, they held the line, they held each one from their positions, their feet and knees deep in the mud,They never took a step back and made proud their country for which they gave their courage and their hearts, their strength and their energy in the battle, they were the brave among the bravest and with the love of their country, of their families in their hearts, without hesitation, without fear, guided by their officers and by their comrades,they went over the top, marching and running across the battlefield with their bayonets forward under murderous machine gun fire.They saw their friends, their brothers who fell one after the other but they did not retreat and moved forward, still further through barbed wire and shell holes, through poison gas and rains of blood, under storms of fire and steel, they stood united and gave their lives in a last act of courage knowing that what they did was right and that with their courage and sacrifice this war would end all wars and that the next generations would live in a better world, a world at peace in which we live today but in this present which is ours,we do not forget the past, we do not forget what so many men and women did for us and who together wrote history in golden letters to offer us a future, a life that they would have wanted to have. In the trenches they gave every part of their youth, they shed their blood and gave their lives and today, always side by side, they rest in peace in the fields and cemeteries of the Somme and still stand proudly as they were in life and with their brothers in arms, they rest together under the rows of their white tombs and tell us, through their names, their history, the history of their lives, the history of men to whom we owe so much, men who served with pride and whom we will always honor with pride. I will always watch over them with the highest respect and care, their stories and the memory of their lives, their courage and their sacrifices will always be kept alive so that now and forever they will never cease to live and for them, for each of them, I would give my heart,and I would carry high and proud the Flame of Remembrance so that these men remain forever in the light and in the love of our hearts and our thoughts.Thank you Leonard,for everything.At the going down of the sun and in the morning,we will remember him,we will remember them.