The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (1301) Sergeant David John Reginald Davis, 3 Battalion, 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 Andrew Smith, the story for this day was on (1301) Sergeant David John Reginald Davis, 3 Battalion, First World War.

1301 Sergeant David John Reginald Davis, 3rd Battalion
DOW 10 August 1915
No photograph in collection

Story delivered 27 December 2013

Today we remember and pay tribute to Sergeant David John Reginald Davis.

David Davis was born in the town of Cilfynydd near Pontypridd in south Wales. After his education at University College Wales, where he also had two years' experience in the Officers' Training Corps, he immigrated to Australia. Davis was working as a school teacher in New South Wales on the outbreak of the First World War, and within weeks of the declaration of war he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force.

Joining as a private, he was quickly promoted to sergeant as a result of his previous military experience in Wales. He was then sent overseas with the 2nd reinforcements to the 3rd Battalion.

On 7 May 1915 Davis joined the 3rd Battalion on the Gallipoli peninsula, arriving just under two weeks after the dawn landing. Within a month he was suffering from dysentery, as many at ANZAC Cove did, and had to be evacuated to Limnos to recover. He returned a week later.

In August the allied forces made what would be the last major push to break the stalemate on the peninsula. As a part of this operation the Australians made diversionary attacks at Lone Pine and the Nek.

At 5.30 pm on 6 August 1915, after resting all night and most of the day, the 3rd Battalion moved into position to attack the trenches at Lone Pine. The battalion's war diary records that "as soon as we appeared on the parapet the enemy artillery opened fire with shrapnel and high explosive but the men rushed straight on into the enemy's trenches". They hung on to the captured trenches under "vigorous counter attacks and heavy bombing" over the following days despite sustaining heavy casualties.

One of those casualties was David Davis. The exact date of his wounding is not recorded, but by 10 August he was on board the SS Dunluce Castle, being evacuated to hospital with a serious gunshot wound to his leg and upper thigh. Unfortunately, he was too badly wounded to survive, and he died en route to Egypt. David Davis was buried at sea, and is now commemorated on the Lone Pine Memorial on the Gallipoli peninsula. He was 25 years old.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, along with more than 60,000 others from the First World War. There is no photograph in the Memorial's collection to display beside the Pool of Reflection.

This is but one of the many stories of courage and sacrifice told here at the Australian War Memorial. We now remember Sergeant David John Reginald Davis, and all of those Australians who have given their lives in the service of our nation.