28 OCT 1916: World War I and the first conscription referendum is held. Dismayed by heavy losses at Fromelles and Pozières on the Western Front, Prime Minister Billy Hughes proposed that conscription be introduced for overseas service. The proposal was defeated, despite Prime Minister Hughes proposing raising the numbers needed to maintain Australian troops at […]
Military History
PTE Percy Gratwick, VC
25-26 OCT 1942: World War II and WX10426 Private Percival Eric Gratwick, 2/48th Battalion, originally from Katanning, Western Australia, earns the Victoria Cross at El Alamein, Egypt. Percy Gratwick was a 38-year-old former gold prospector from Western Australia. Gratwick was born in Katanning, Western Australia on 19 October 1902, the fifth son of the local […]
Japanese Run at Eora
24 OCT 1942: World War II at Eora Creek, on the Kokoda Trail. The 16th Brigade, 7th Division, continued to drive the Japanese back along the Trail but met heavy resistance at Eora Creek in late October. The 16th Brigade commanded by Brigadier John Lloyd made up of the 2/1, 2/2, 2/3 Battalion. The Japanese […]
SGT William Kibby, VC
23-31 OCT 1942: World War II and SX7089 Sergeant William Henry Kibby, 2/48th Battalion, originally from Durham in the United Kingdom, earns the Victoria Cross at the battle of El Alamein, Egypt. William Kibby arrived in Australia from Britain with his parents in 1914. He was a 37-year-old family man when he enlisted in 1940. […]
The Battle of El Alamein Begins
23 OCT 1942: World War II and the Battle of El Alamein begins. El Alamein, in Egypt, one of the turning point battles of the Second World War, began with a massive artillery bombardment preceding attacks by British and Australian divisions. On the night of 23 October 1942, a massive artillery barrage heralded the great […]
Battle of the Apple Orchard
22 OCT 1950: Korea, and today sees the Battle of the Apple Orchard at Yongju. Kapyong and Maryang San in 1951 are the two better-known Australian battles of the Korean War. However three less well-known battles occurred the year before, in the early months of the war, when 3 Battalion Royal Australian Regiment (3RAR) established […]
CPL James Ronald Sewell, GM
22 OCT 1946: Post World War II and NX73515 Corporal James Ronald Sewell, 10th Australian Bomb Disposal Platoon, British Commonwealth Occupation Force, was awarded the George Medal for his rescue of Japanese survivors after an explosion in a boat carrying high explosives. Australians were allocated the largely rural and severely devastated prefecture of Hiroshima. Huge […]
5th Div to The Somme
21 OCT 1916: The 5th Australian Division entered the western front line near Flers on the Somme. By October the Somme battlefield was a waste of mud-bound craters. The troops’ misery is depicted in the Somme Winter diorama in the Memorial’s galleries. The Division began to form in Egypt in February 1916, after a decision […]
Deakin Opens Cairo Centre
21 OCT 1915: Australian Red Cross Missing and Wounded Enquiry Bureau is established on this day. Miss Vera Deakin, daughter of ex-Prime Minister Alfred Deakin, establishes the Australian Red Cross Missing and Wounded Enquiry Bureau in Cairo. The Missing and Wounded Enquiry Bureau handled many thousands of enquiries from Australian families seeking information on wounded […]
HMAS Australia Kamikaze Attack
21 OCT 1944: HMAS Australia is damaged by Kamikaze aircraft. The Japanese first used special air units (Tokkō-tai) to undertake suicide attacks on warships in the Allied fleet supporting the American landings on Leyte in the Phillipines. HMAS Australia was a battle-hardened heavy cruiser. She had fought in the North Atlantic campaign, West Africa, the Indian […]
