Born: 11 September 1892
Died: 27 October 1989
An orchardist who was appointed to the staff of the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force (ANMEF) on 19 August 1914. He was Orderly Officer for his father (then Colonel) William Holmes who commanded the ANMEF which was sent to occupy German territories to the north of Australia. Following his return to Australia, his appointment was terminated on 6 February 1915.
He was appointed to the AIF on 26 May 1915 and embarked for Egypt on 19 June 1915. He joined the 17th Battalion which landed at Gallipoli on 20 August. He was wounded (skull) in action on 25 August and evacuated to Malta and then Egypt. He returned to Gallipoli on 4 October and remained with his battalion until its withdrawal in December.
The 17th Battalion landed at Marseilles, France on 23 March 1916 and immediately moved to northern France. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order. The recommendation made on 26 September 1917 for the award was as follows:
"For consistent good work and devotion to duty. He is 2nd (sic) in command and is a most capable and reliable officer, has high organizing powers and is a good leader of men. His marked ability and tactful manner have been of great assistance in maintaining a high standard of efficiency in the battalion. He is in close personal touch with all ranks and thus enjoys their fullest confidence. On several occasions since February 1917 he has commanded the battalion, and during that time has proved himself highly efficient and resourceful."
His father, by then General William Holmes, commander of the 4th Division had been killed in action on 2 July 1917. He resigned his commission in the AIF on 24 December 1917 and joined the Indian Army.
Reginald John Albert Travers is his brother-in-law. [JSB]
Identifer: http://mosman1914-1918.net/people/11220/ | HTML | RDF+XML | Turtle | JSON