Studio portrait of 3774 Private (Pte) Patrick Joseph Bugden VC, 31st Battalion. A hotel keeper ...

Accession Number H12601
Collection type Photograph
Object type Black & white - Print silver gelatin
Place made Australia: Queensland, Brisbane
Date made 1916
Conflict First World War, 1914-1918
Copyright

Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain

Public Domain Mark This item is in the Public Domain

Description

Studio portrait of 3774 Private (Pte) Patrick Joseph Bugden VC, 31st Battalion. A hotel keeper from Alstonville, New South Wales, prior to enlistment on 25 May 1916 he embarked from Brisbane aboard the HMAT Seang Choon on 19 September 1916 for Plymouth, England, before joining his battalion on the Western Front, France, on 19 March 1917. Pte Bugden was killed in action at Polygon Wood, Belgium, on 28 September 1917. He was aged 20 years. Pte Bugden was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. His citation for this award reads as follows: "At Polygon Wood on 26 to 28 September 1917, Pte Bugden displayed conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. On two occasions the advance was temporarily held up by strongly defended 'pill boxes'. This man in the face of devastating fire from machine guns gallantly led small parties to attack these strong points and successfully silencing the machine guns with bombs, captured the garrison at the point of the bayonet. On another occasion when a Corporal had become detached from his Company, had been captured and was being taken to the rear by three Germans, Pte Bugden single handed rushed to his rescue, shot one German and bayoneted the remaining two, thus releasing the Corporal. On five occasions he rescued wounded men under intense shell and machine gun fire showing an utter contempt and disregard for danger. Always foremost in volunteering for any dangerous mission it was during the execution of one of these missions that he was killed."