HILLIER, Reginald Hedley
| Service Number: | 42774 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Corporal |
| Last Unit: | 1st Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment (1RAR) |
| Born: | Coonabarabran, New South Wales, Australia, 12 September 1939 |
| Home Town: | Berrimah, Darwin, Northern Territory |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Soldier |
| Died: | Killed in Action, South Vietnam, 29 November 1965, aged 26 years |
| Cemetery: |
Adelaide River War Cemetery, Northern Territory Originally buried at the Terendak military base in Malaysia, but it was announced in March 2016, by then-prime minister Tony Abbott that they would be returned to Australia. |
| Memorials: | Adelaide Post Second World War Memorial, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Grafton Clarence Valley Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Kallangur Vietnam Veterans' Place, Newhaven 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment Memorial Plaque, Pooraka War Memorial, Port Pirie Vietnam Veterans Honour Wall, Seymour Vietnam Veterans Commemorative Walk Roll of Honour, Townsville HB - 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment |
Vietnam War Service
| 27 May 1965: | Involvement Australian Army (Post WW2), Corporal, 42774, 1st Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment (1RAR) | |
|---|---|---|
| 27 May 1965: | Involvement Australian Army (Post WW2), Corporal, 42774 | |
| Date unknown: | Involvement |
Help us honour Reginald Hedley Hillier's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by John Edwards
"A Northern Territory soldier buried overseas for more than 50 years after being killed in the Vietnam War has been remembered at a memorial service in Darwin after his remains were finally returned to Australia.
Led by a horse and carried by six soldiers, the remains of Corporal Reg Hillier were taken into the Darwin Christ Church Cathedral after a march through Smith Street.
About 1,000 people attended the service, including some of Corporal Hillier's old primary school friends and his family.
"He was a bit of a larrikin. As my older sister said, he was our cool, young uncle," Mr Hillier's nephew Neil Bond told the service.
"He used to tease my parents mercilessly. He called my mother Margaret "maggot" and my father had a big hairy chest, and he used to call him gorilla or King Kong or something like that.
"He was larger than life for us, all our lives he was larger than life."
Mr Hillier died in Vietnam in 1965, aged 26, but his parents could not afford the 500 pound repatriation fee to bring him home.
His remains were buried at the Terndak military base in Malaysia, but it was announced in March by then-prime minister Tony Abbott that they would be returned to Australia.
NT Chief Minister Adam Giles and Brigadier Ben James, Commander of 1st Brigade, also participated in today's ceremony in Darwin.
Mr Hillier's remains will be buried at the Adelaide River War Cemetery on Sunday." - SOURCE (www.abc.net.au)
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