German belt : Sergeant A E Green, 9 Battalion

Leather belt with brass belt buckle. The buckle has a crown in the centre and is surrounded by the words 'GOTT MIT UNS'. The inner side of the belt is stamped with a manufacturer's mark and the date '1915'.

This belt was collected on the Western Front by Sergeant Albert Edward Green. A 28 year old farmer from Lismore, NSW, he enlisted in the AIF on 22 July 1915. He was assigned to the 6th reinforcements of 25 Battalion, with the service number 2682, and after basic training sailed from Brisbane for service overseas aboard HMAT Seang Lee on 21 October 1915. Green continued his training in Egypt and transferred to 9 Battalion, AIF on 28 February 1916, changing his service number to 2682A, before the battalion sailed to France for service on the Western Front. He was awarded the Military Medal on 25 February 1917 during the fierce fighting which caused the German retreat from the Hindenberg Line. In September 1917 Green undertook specialist training in England and qualified as a bomb (grenade) instructor, and in marksmanship, and was attached to a training battalion as an instructor for a number of months before rejoining 9 Battalion. In July 1918 he suffered accidental gunshot wounds to both hands and subsequently had the tips of the middle and fourth fingers on his left hand amputated. He saw no further active service and was allowed extended leave in England. In November 1919 he married Margaret Annie Waterman before returning to Australia the following month.