This division was one of the busiest and did it all! 7th Division A.I.F. These are the Battle Honours of one of the Battalions - 2/16th Battle Honours North Africa Syria 1941 Syrian Frontier The Litani Wadi Zeini Damour South-West Pacific 1942-1945 Kokoda Trail Isurava Eora Creek-Templeton's Crossing I Efogi-Menari Ioribaiwa Buna-Gona Gona Amboga River Lae-Nadzab Liberation of Australian New Guinea Ramu Valley Shaggy Ridge Borneo 1945 Balikpapan
A total of five Victoria Crosses were awarded to the 7th Division. The brave recipients were Lt Roden Cutler, Pte Jim Gordon, Cpl John French (killed in action), Pte Bruce Kingsbury (killed in action) and Pte Richard Kelliher. Heres one of them ! a brave and special man ! Kelliher had bad health after suffering from both typhoid and meningitis before the war. In 1944 he was declared medically unfit for active service and discharged. He later travelled to London to take part in the London Victory Parade of 1946. He married in 1949 and had three children. While working as a cleaner at Brisbane City Hall he applied for, but failed to get, a taxi driver's licence and the family moved to Melbourne where he got employment as a gardener. By the late 1950s Kelliher was completely disabled due to ill health and on 16 January 1963 had a stroke. He died in Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital on 28 January. In 1966, his battalion association bought his VC for $2,000 and donated it to the Australian War Memorial, where it is on display. Kelliher, Richard (1910 - 1963) Biographical Entry - Australian Dictionary of Biography Online Keliher VC. From Court Martial to VC
Hi Spidge ! I don't know if you'd be interested in this but there is a photo of his grave ! Cpl John French is now buried at the Bomana War Cemetery, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. Project PRIAM - Pacific Ghosts Annie
Guys you have forgotten about the 18th Brigade 7th Division 2nd AIF Defence of England, Siege of Tobruk and Battle of Milne Bay, the only formation in the world that was present at the first time blitzkrieg was stopped in it's tracks (Tobruk) and the first time a Imperial Japanese Military landing/invasion was defeated. (Milne Bay). Cheers Cbr
Hi Cobber, This was about one of the Battalions of the 7th Division - The2 /16th. I would never forget the 18th Brigade although the 7th division always seemed to be in the shadow of the 9th Div. There is quite a bit on the 18th Brigade on the forum. http://ww2chat.com/forums/tobruk/960-9th-australian-division-versus-afrika-corps.html#post28360 Cheers Geoff
Arhh i see, my apologies guys. Teach me to try and read too quick. Yeah the 9th i believe mainly due to their exploits against the Germans, the later fighting against Imperial Japanese in PNG as a Division from start compared to sister Divs who were initially deployed to PNG as Bgds, and finishing the war with a Seaborne invasion of Borneo, I know the 7th fought a seaborne invasion of Borneo as well, and they all spent time in PNG. The Sixth I reckon has now become the forgotten 2nd AIF Div,
Not to me - It was my dads division. They will always be known for the division that went into the fight first at Bardia and then captured Tobruk. Cheers Geoff
My Uncle started his' AIF' career as a WO1 in 6th Div (was a Regular Soldier based at a Fort at Port Phillip heads) . He too was around 6th Div during the early battles against the Italians in Libya, etc. The Germans in Greece and so on. I do not think that any Division is better than the other, some just got better publicity and some are written about more by the Historians. It was and still is a very important Division for Australia with much written about them. However when compared to the 7th and 9th division and publicity, imo the 6th AIF Div is the one pushed aside by the others. Even with it's grand history, like i also said, the 9th Div imo became the publicity legends they are by the long and very sucessful fighting against Germans.
Hi Cobber. Did you see the documentary Beyond Kokoda? A little chap from the 9th was being interviewed and was asked what he thought about coming back from the Middle East to New Guinea. Well , he said, and I quote
I have seen several but not this one. I also have seen the thread that deals with this and other Kokoda Doco's/films. Yeah i suppose after such fighting in the Western Desert's (Tobruk), in 1941 & late 1942 El Alamein, also being posted aspart of the Occupation force of Syria during much of 1942, the 9th Div AIF morale would of been very high, with espirt de corps to spare. I'll have to watch the Vid.
