BAILEY, Victor Arthur
| Service Numbers: | 4903, VX45594 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 10 June 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Captain |
| Last Unit: | Australian Army Ordnance Corps |
| Born: | Tamworth, New South Wales, Australia, 6 June 1897 |
| Home Town: | Tamworth, Tamworth Municipality, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Sailor |
| Died: | Illness, Australia, 22 October 1946, aged 49 years |
| Cemetery: |
Springvale War Cemetery, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 10 Jun 1915: | Enlisted Royal Australian Navy, Ordinary Seaman, 4903, HMAS Cerberus (Shore) | |
|---|---|---|
| 24 Dec 1919: | Discharged Royal Australian Navy, Leading Stoker (Mechanic), 4903, HMAS Melbourne (I), Medically unfit |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Sep 1939: | Involvement Captain, VX45594 | |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Jul 1940: | Enlisted VX45594 | |
| 22 Oct 1946: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Captain, VX45594, Australian Army Ordnance Corps |
Help us honour Victor Arthur Bailey's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by VWM Australia
Enlisted and served in WWII under alias George Vernon BAYLEY
Biography contributed by Evan Evans
From How We Served
The final resting place for; - 4903 & VX45594 Captain Victor Arthur Bailey (aka George Vernon Bayley) of Tamworth, New South Wales, and North Melbourne, Victoria, enlisted for War Service, and joined the Royal Australian Navy on the 10th of June 1915.
After training with HMAS ‘Cerberus’, he was posted to the Australian Light Cruiser, HMAS ‘Melbourne’ on the 14th of January 1916 as a Stoker. Victor remained with HMAS ‘Melbourne’ for the duration of the War, serving with the North Seas Fleet as part of the 2nd Light Cruiser Squadron.
Still serving with HMAS 'Melbourne'’ following the War’s end in November 1918, Victor returned to Australia as an invalid, and received his official discharge from the Royal Australian Navy for his re-entry into civilian life on the 24th of December 1919.
With the outbreak of a Second World War, Victor again presented himself for enlistment with the Australian Military Forces, under the name of George Vernon Bayley, and dropped his age by nearly six years on the 8th of July 1940, so he would be accepted for fulltime service outside Australia.
Victor was posted to the 1st Ordnance Field Park 2nd AIF, and on the 26th of December 1940 he was embarked for the Middle East and served continuously during the desert campaign before being returned to Australia on the 22nd of March 1942.
Following his return to Australia, Victor was promoted to the Commissioned rank of Lieutenant during June, and embarked for service in New Guinea on the 16th of July 1943, before again returning to Australia on the 17th of May 1944.
Promoted to Captain, Victor now serving with 2nd Base Ordnance Depot was embarked for Morotai on the 22nd of May 1945, and with the end of the War, returned to Australia on the 7th of September 1945. Just on 12 months following his return to Australia, Victor was hospitalised for illness caused by his service in the jungle, and whilst being still under medical care, he succumbed to sickness on the 22nd of October 1946, at the premature age of 49.
Captain Victor Bailey, a naval veteran of the ‘Great War’, and who had served most of the Second World War outside of Australia, was officially laid to rest within Springvale War Cemetery, Victoria.
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