Sergeant Basil Lowingham Henderson DCM (1891 – 1967)

Born and raised in the South Australian country, an early volunteer for the first world war, Basil Henderson appears to fit the classic, bronzed, Australian stereotype. Long silences in his army records speak volumes about his character and fitness for service. Waves of diarrhea, diphtheria, and venereal disease, plagued other soldiers. He fought in rocky, hillside trenches in Gallipoli and flat, muddy trenches in France, slowly advancing from private to sergeant. His service was ended abruptly, a few months before the armistice when he was wounded for a second time, in an action that earned him a Distinguished Conduct Medal.  One brother was killed in action, another wounded and disabled, and his mother died within months of the war’s end. He returned as a hero to a different world and appears to have coped. Stoic, is the word that comes to mind.

Basil Lowingham Henderson was born 12 May 1891 on the family farm in Muloowurtie, Daly, South Australia¹, the eighth child of ten. His family was well known in the small community of Ardrossan, his parents having owned the General Store for many years before taking up farming². This was a time when every town had its own local newspaper, and so the Henderson’s lives are surprisingly well documented.

As one of the people on whom the modern “ANZAC legend” is based, Basil could be said to fit the stereotype. At the age of two, he went missing from the farm, the whole district engaged in the search for him, and when he was found some twenty-three hours later it was reported that “… having been warmed up and refreshed with some food one of the search party had with him, he became quite merry and talkative.”³ At the age of eleven he was bitten by a snake whilst rabbit hunting, he chopped off a piece of his thumb with the snake still attached, this time he was reported to be “plucky”⁴. His eldest brother died when Basil was three⁵, and his father was killed in a farm accident when Basil was seventeen⁶, so he was no stranger to death. On enlistment, he was five feet, seven and a half inches (171 cm) in height, of medium dark complexion, and 161 pounds (73 kg) in weight⁷. It could be said, therefore that Basil was tall, bronzed, independent, and of strong character.

On 4 August 1914 when war was declared in Britain⁸ the nine surviving Hendersons, two females⁹ and seven males, were aged from 17 to 32 years old, none were married. Basil was 23. In October 1914, his brother George, enlisted at Morphetville, South Australia, aged 26¹⁰. Basil joined on 30 January 1915 in Ennogra, Queensland, where he listed himself as a farmer⁷. Surprisingly, he was pipped to the post by his younger brother Leonard, who enlisted in January in Oaklands, South Australia at the age of 17 years and nine months, by passing himself off as being 21¹¹. The enlisting officer could hardly be blamed for being fooled as Leonard was six feet and half an inch (184cm) tall¹². The last of the brothers to enlist was Edward who enlisted in Adelaide in February 1916 aged 29¹³. The three eldest, John aged 29¹⁴, William aged 31¹⁵ and Isaac aged 33¹⁶ never enlisted which is not surprising as the most common age of soldier volunteers was between 18 and 25, with 21 being the most common¹⁷.

Basil embarked from Brisbane, Queensland, on board HMAT A15 Star of England¹⁸. There is no record of his disembarkation port, his record states only that on 26 May he joined ANZAC, and no further record until he disembarked in Alexandria from Murdos on 4 January 1916¹⁹. It is not surprising that there are no records for this period. It is common knowledge that Gallipoli was a steep, rocky terrain, backed only by sea, and completely outside the scope of British and allied lands. There was no bureaucracy to record the minutiae of individual service, and the peninsular was being furiously defended by the Turks.

It is possible to browse through the diaries of the 9th Battalion and gain an overview of what kind of situation Basil was in during this time. There is no mention in the battalion diary of the 4^th reinforcement’s arrival²⁰ although 5^th reinforcements are mentioned in June²¹. It is therefore safe to assume that Basil was in Gallipoli by the beginning of June and his experience in Gallipoli was like others of the 9^th Battalion.

In June, they were supplying fatigue parties to help dig trenches as casualties during the day were too great, followed by attempting to retrieve bodies under heavy rifle fire²². In July, they were rotated to the front line, and Cholera Inoculations began. Platoons were being taken to the beach for a swim, there were three cases of men cutting or shooting off fingers hoping, unsuccessfully, to get evacuated to hospital, and by the end of the month diarrhea was prevalent²³.

August²⁴, September²⁵ and October²⁶ were a continuous cycle of heavy fighting interspersed with quiet days, and the sick leaving and returning as troops and officers were infected with amoebic dysentery reducing the strength of the battalion. To top off the month of October, there was a very close encounter with a Turkish digging party, and a fierce storm that damaged piers on the beach.

At the beginning of November²⁷, they rotated off the front lines and were sent on a bivouac. On November 16 they embarked SS Abassiah for Lemnos. They spent the rest of November and then December²⁸ training and regrouping. It was cold and snowing, the soldiers did not have enough warm clothing or blankets. Another outbreak of diphtheria at the beginning of December caused Battalion to be quarantined, their health gradually improved and they began to organise sports and entertainment. The quarantine was lifted and on 31 December and they embarked the Grampian for Alexandria.

In January 1916, Basil was disciplined for being in Lagazig without a pass. In February, his brother Edward enlisted in Adelaide²⁹. Basil was transferred, first to the 49th Battalion, then in March to the 4th Division Artillery, as a gunner, and finally to 11th Field Artillery Brigade, mustered and posted 4S Battery. In April, he was promoted to Bombardier.  All this was still in Egypt³⁰.

In June, he joined the British Expeditionary Forces on the 10^th, he disembarked Haverford in Marseilles, and by the 26^th, was promoted in the field France, to Corporal. There being nothing in his record, we must assume he spent the next seven months fighting in France, beginning in summer through to the harshest winter in Europe for forty years³¹.

It was now January 1917, and Sarah Henderson had four sons in active service. For two years, there had been no serious incidents, but all that was about to change. The youngest brother, Leonard, who had been in service in France for as long as Basil, was hospitalised for two weeks in early January for “debility”³². On 28 January 2017, another brother Edward was killed in action³³ and buried in a makeshift graveyard in Le Boeufs, three miles south of Bapaume, in France³⁴. In February, Basil was promoted in the field in Belgium to Seargent³⁵.

On 10 June, George was seriously wounded in action in Belgium with a gunshot wound to his left hand and leg and transferred to England for hospitalisation³⁶. It is only fair to assume that Basil was aware of all this. In August, Basil is recorded as being hospitalised sick and then, soon after, being hospitalised again for an illness whilst on his way to England for leave. Although it does not record what illness he had, it is the first time he is recorded as having any kind of illness³⁷. He was certainly a healthy, hardy man.

On September 25, Basil was seriously wounded in action in France, with a gunshot wound to his leg and head, and transferred to England for hospitalisation, his mother was notified. Throughout 1917, Sarah Henderson is kept informed about her sons’ progress with short proforma letters using formal phrases, “advised to hospital”, “advised progressing favourably”, and “advised convalescent”.

In January 1918, Basil returned to duties in France³⁸, and George was discharged with a disability pension of 15 shillings per week and returned to Australia³⁹. He arrived home in March, to flags, school children and foundry workers in a guard of honour, and speeches⁴⁰.

Only a few days later, on 5 April, Basil was wounded in action for the second time, a gunshot wound to his right elbow, left leg and knee. The letters to his mother started up another round, she must have dreaded visiting the post office. On 12 May Basil was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal⁴¹. The transcript of his award which was published in 1919⁴² reads:

‘For conspicuous gallantry and devotion in operations. During a heavy shell fire at the commencement of an action he was severely wounded. As the battery was suffering heavy casualties he refused to leave his gun, and continued to direct and control his detachment until “Cease Fire” was given. As he was leaving for the dressing station, a S.O.S. call was received from the infantry. He immediately returned and effectively controlled his gun until the battery ceased firing. His sterling courage, work, and determination during the most critical period were of a high order.’

Commonwealth Gazette No. 75, June 17 1919

He spent the last three months of the war and many months after, recuperating in a hospital. His mother Sarah, died unexpectedly during this time, she survived the war by only a few months and died on 2 January 1919. His brother, still under 21 managed to serve throughout the war, a sprained ankle being his only injury.

Basil returned home in 1919 on May 17,  and Leonard on May 31.  They each had a hero’s welcome⁴³. Life appears to have returned to the rhythm of rural life. Basil married, had children, and was not mentioned in the newspaper again until he and two companions had a narrow escape in a cart accident⁴⁴.

Without any personal papers, it is not possible to imagine how Basil or any of his brothers coped with their experience of the war. War veterans rarely if ever speak of these things. Once again, it is the silence in the records that imply Basil’s stoic character.

References:

1. Australia, Birth Index, 1788-1922. p 316. Vol 479, 1891 Basil Lowingham Henderson http://www.ancestrylibrary.com/  accessed 5 January 2017.[↩]
2. 1885 ‘ARDROSSAN.’, Yorke’s Peninsula Advertiser (SA: 1878 – 1922), 17 February, p. 3. , http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article216321047, accessed 09 May 2017.[↩]
3. 1893 ‘ARDROSSAN.’, Yorke’s Peninsula Advertiser (SA: 1878 – 1922), 21 July, p. 3. , http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article216732788,  accessed 30  April 2017.[↩]
4. 1901 ‘THE COUNTRY.’, The Register (Adelaide, SA: 1901 – 1929), 21 October, p. 6., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article56509793, accessed 07 May 2017.[↩]
5. 1893 ‘Family Notices’, The Express and Telegraph (Adelaide, SA: 1867 – 1922), 14 August, p. 2. (SECOND EDITION), http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article208456031,  accessed 30  April 2017.[↩]
6. 1908 ‘INJURED BY A FALL.’, Chronicle (Adelaide, SA: 1895 – 1954), 12 September, p. 41. , http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article8830919, accessed 30  April 2017.[↩]
7. Service Record of Basil Lowingham Henderson, B2455, National Archives of Australia, p. 1.[↩][↩]
8. Australian War Memorial, ‘Timeline: Australia in the First World War, 1914-1918’, https://www.awm.gov.au/1914-1918/timeline/, accessed 20 April 2017.[↩]
9. Australia, Birth Index, 1788-1922. p 168. Vol 455, 1885 Olive Winnifred Henderson (http://www.ancestrylibrary.com/ retrieved 5 January 2017) and Australia, Birth Index, 1788-1922. p 436. Vol 519, 1885 Rosa Elizabeth Henderson (http://www.ancestrylibrary.com/ retrieved 5 January 2017) [↩]
10. Service Record of George Henderson, B2455, National Archives of Australia, p. 2.[↩]
11. Service Record of Leonard Wills Henderson, B2455, National Archives of Australia, p. 1.[↩]
12. Service Record of Leonard Wills Henderson, p. 3.[↩]
13. Service Record of Edward Osmond Henderson, B2455, National Archives of Australia. P. 1[↩]
14. Australia, Birth Index, 1788-1922. p255 Vol 356, 1885 John Hall Henderson (http://www.ancestrylibrary.com/ retrieved 3 January 2017) [↩]
15. Australian Birth Index 1788 – 1922, HENDERSON, William Cunningham, Page 327, Vol 309 (http://www.ancestrylibrary.com/: accessed 26 March 2016) [↩]
16. Australia, Birth Index, 1788-1922. p137 Vol 278, 1881 Isaac Henderson (http://www.ancestrylibrary.com/: retrieved 3 January 2017) [↩]
17. Australian War Memorial, ‘Enlistment statistics, First World War’, https://www.awm.gov.a u/encyclopedia/enlistment/wwa1/, accessed 30 April 2017[↩]
18. WWI Embarkation Rolls, 9th Infantry Battalion, 4th Reinforcements, p50[↩]
19. Service Record of Basil Lowingham Henderson, p. 13[↩]
20. Australian Imperial Force unit war diaries, 1914-18 War, 9th Infantry Battalion, May 1915 p, RCDIG1003197, Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1000591/ accessed 29 April 2017.[↩]
21. Australian Imperial Force unit war diaries, 1914-18 War, 9th Infantry Battalion, June 1915 p, RCDIG1017616, Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1000591/ accessed 29 April 2017.[↩]
22. 9th Infantry Battalion war diary, June 1915[↩]
23. Australian Imperial Force unit war diaries, 1914-18 War, 9th Infantry Battalion, July 1915 p, RCDIG1003198, Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1000591/  accessed 29 April 2017.[↩]
24. Australian Imperial Force unit war diaries, 1914-18 War, 9th Infantry Battalion, August 1915 p, RCDIG1003199, Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1000591/ accessed 29 April 2017.[↩]
25. Australian Imperial Force unit war diaries, 1914-18 War, 9th Infantry Battalion, September 1915 p, RCDIG1003087, Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1000591/  accessed 29 April 2017.[↩]
26. Australian Imperial Force unit war diaries, 1914-18 War, 9th Infantry Battalion, October 1915 p, RCDIG1003088, Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1000591/  accessed 29 April 2017.[↩]
27. Australian Imperial Force unit war diaries, 1914-18 War, 9th Infantry Battalion, November 1915 p, RCDIG1003089, Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1000591/  accessed 29 April 2017.[↩]
28. Australian Imperial Force unit war diaries, 1914-18 War, 9th Infantry Battalion, December 1915 p, RCDIG1003090, Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1000591/  accessed 29 April 2017.[↩]
29. Service Record of Edward Osmond Henderson, B2455, National Archives of Australia. P. 1.[↩]
30. Service Record of Basil Lowingham Henderson, p. 13. [↩]
31. Australian War Memorial, “Timeline: Australia in the First World War, 1914-1918”, https://www.awm.gov.au/1914-1918/timeline/, accessed 20 April 2017.[↩]
32. Service Record of Leonard Wills Henderson, p. 13.[↩]
33. Service Record of Edward Osmond Henderson, p. 6.[↩]
34. Service Record of Edward Osmond Henderson, p. 8[↩]
35. Service Record of Basil Lowingham Henderson, p. 4.[↩]
36. Service Record of George Henderson, p. 9.[↩]
37. Service Record of Basil Lowingham Henderson, p. 14.[↩]
38. Service Record of Basil Lowingham Henderson, p. 16.[↩]
39. Service Record of George Henderson, p. 30.[↩]
40. 1918 ‘THE COUNTRY.’, The Register (Adelaide, SA: 1901 – 1929), 1 April, p. 7. , http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article60343933 accessed 09 May 2017,[↩]
41. Service Record of Basil Lowingham Henderson, p. 5.[↩]
42. Commonwealth Gazette No. 75, June 17 1919, https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=134064[↩]
43. The Country. (1919, May 31). Observer (Adelaide, SA : 1905 – 1931), p. 10. Retrieved April 8, 2023, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article164133138.[↩]
44. FALL FROM A VEHICLE. (1925, November 28). Chronicle (Adelaide, SA : 1895 – 1954), p. 47. Retrieved April 8, 2023, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article90502177.[↩]