The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (1431) Private Henry Dawson Tutt, 10th Battalion (Infantry), First World War

The Last Post Ceremony is presented in the Commemorative area of the Australian War Memorial each day. The ceremony commemorates more than 102,000 Australians who have given their lives in war and other operations and whose names are recorded on the Roll of Honour. At each ceremony the story behind one of the names on the Roll of Honour is told. Hosted by Richard Cruise, the story for this day was on (1431) Private Henry Dawson Tutt, 10th Battalion (Infantry), First World War.

1431 Private Henry Dawson Tutt, 10th Battalion
DOW 27 April 1915
No photograph in collection (image used from Adelaide Chronicle, 8 May 1915, p.40)

Story delivered 30 November 2013

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private Henry Dawson Tutt, whose photograph is displayed today beside the Pool of Reflection.

Henry Tutt was the second son of George and Annie Tutt of Mitcham in Adelaide. He attended St Michael's school and then the Mitcham public school. Henry left school at 16 to take up an apprenticeship with James Marshall and company's furniture factory, after which he remained with them as a machinist.

Henry was a popular figure in Mitcham. He was greatly involved in St Michael's Church, where he sometimes officiated as a sidesman for Archdeacon Clampett. He played football for the church and other sports with the Mitcham Boys' Club. He was a member of the Mitcham Oddfellows' Club and the Church of England Mens' Society.

Tutt enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 28 November 1914 and was posted to the 2nd reinforcements to the 10th Battalion. He underwent a period of training in Adelaide, and before leaving for overseas service he called on friends and neighbours "to say a cheerful word of farewell'. Those friends described him as "eager for service, and looking every inch a soldier". The furniture factory kept his place in the hope that he would "return safe and sound after the war". Henry left home in February 1915, bound for Egypt, where he joined the rest of the 10th Battalion for further training.

The 10th Battalion was one of the first Australian units ashore at Gallipoli in the early hours of 25 April 1915. Its war diary recorded:
Absolute silence was maintained by all in our boats and directly the boats were cast off by the steamers [and] we quietly rowed towards the shore - dawn was just breaking [at] 4:15 and no sound was heard except the splash of the oars. We thought that our landing was to be effected quite unopposed, but when our boats were within about 30 yards of the beach, a rifle was fired from the hill in front of us ... almost immediately heavy rifle and machine gun fire was opened on us.

The following days were mired in confusion as muddled Australian units tried to get away from the beach and establish a foothold in the heights above ANZAC Cove. Somewhere in this disorder, Private Tutt was wounded and evacuated from the beach to a waiting steamer. The nature of his wounds was not recorded, but he died of them on 27 April, just two days after arriving at ANZAC.

Henry Tutt was the second of George and Annie's sons to leave home in February and die in April, their eldest son having died in a bicycle accident in April 1907.

Their third son, Albert enlisted in 1915. He served for around 18 months with the 48th Battalion before being killed in action at Bullecourt - in April 1917.

The names of Henry Tutt and his brother Albert are listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, along with more than 60,000 others from the First World War.

This is but one of the many stories of courage and sacrifice told here at the Australian War Memorial. We now remember Private Henry Dawson Tutt, Private Albert Tutt, and all of those Australians who have given their lives in the service of our nation.