ARBLASTER, Charles
| Service Number: | Officer |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 3 November 1914, Broadmeadows, Victoria |
| Last Rank: | Captain |
| Last Unit: | 53rd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Pennyroyal, Victoria, 27 February 1895 |
| Home Town: | Footscray, Maribyrnong, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Hyde Street School & Duntroon Military College |
| Occupation: | Officer Cadet |
| Died: | Died of Wounds (septicaemia), Douai, France, 24 July 1916, aged 21 years |
| Cemetery: |
Douai Communal Cemetery |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial, Inglewood Kurting State School No 2026 District Honor Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 3 Nov 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Second Lieutenant, Officer, Broadmeadows, Victoria | |
|---|---|---|
| 25 Feb 1915: |
Involvement
AIF WW1, Lieutenant, Officer, 8th Light Horse Regiment, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '2' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Star of Victoria embarkation_ship_number: A16 public_note: '' |
|
| 25 Feb 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, Lieutenant, Officer, 8th Light Horse Regiment, HMAT Star of Victoria, Melbourne | |
| 26 Sep 1915: | Wounded AIF WW1, Lieutenant, 8th Light Horse Regiment, ANZAC / Gallipoli, GSW (left foot) | |
| 20 Jul 1916: | Imprisoned Fromelles (Fleurbaix) | |
| 20 Jul 1916: | Wounded AIF WW1, Captain, 53rd Infantry Battalion, Fromelles (Fleurbaix), 2nd occasion | |
| 24 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Captain, 53rd Infantry Battalion, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: awm_unit: 53rd Australian Infantry Battalion awm_rank: Captain awm_died_date: 1916-07-24 |
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"Charles Arblaster was born at Pennyroyal, Victoria on 27 February 1895. He attended the Royal Military College, Duntroon, and graduated as a lieutenant, soon after the First World War broke out.
At the beginning of November 1914, Arblaster enlisted in the AIF at Broadmeadows, outside Melbourne, and was posted as a lieutenant to 8 Light Horse Regiment, part of 3 Light Horse Brigade. Initially placed in charge of a troop, he was almost immediately transferred to the command of the regiment's machine gun section.
After training, the regiment embarked for overseas service at Melbourne on 25 February 1915, aboard HMAT A16 Star of Victoria. Training continued in Egypt, until the regiment sailed for Gallipoli, where they landed in late May. Arblaster served with the regiment at Walker's Ridge in June and July, and his section supported it, during the charge at the Nek on 7 August. He then acted as adjutant until 7 September, when he was appointed acting captain and placed in overall command of the Brigade machine guns at the Table Top, immediately below Chunuk Bair. Here he received a bullet wound to the foot on 26 September and was evacuated to Malta, and then to England for treatment.
Arblaster was discharged from hospital in December and returned to Egypt in February 1916, where he briefly rejoined his regiment, before being promoted to captain and transferred to command D Company of the newly formed 53rd Battalion in March. The battalion moved to France for service on the Western Front, arriving there on 27 June. Sent to the front line on 10 July they subsequently took part in the disastrous battle of Fromelles on 20 July, in which the battalion suffered 625 casualties, or three quarters of its fighting strength.
Arblaster, who was severely wounded in the fighting, was captured by the Germans. He was treated at St Clothilde Military Hospital for Prisoners near Douai but died there of septicaemia, on 24 July, at the age of 21. He is buried in the Douai Communal Cemetery." - SOURCE (www.awm.gov.au)
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