The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (998) Lieutenant Cleve James Scott MC, 10th Battalion, AIF, First World War

Place Europe: France, Nord Pas de Calais, Nord, Merris
Accession Number PAFU2014/202.01
Collection type Film
Object type Last Post film
Physical description 16:9
Maker Australian War Memorial
Place made Australia: Australian Capital Territory, Canberra, Campbell
Date made 19 June 2014
Access Open
Conflict First World War, 1914-1918
Copyright Item copyright: © Australian War Memorial
Creative Commons License This item is licensed under CC BY-NC
Copying Provisions Copyright restrictions apply. Only personal, non-commercial, research and study use permitted. Permission of copyright holder required for any commercial use and/or reproduction.
Description

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 (998) Lieutenant Cleve James Scott MC, 10th Battalion, AIF, First World War.

Film order form
Speech transcript

998 Lieutenant Cleve James Scott MC, 10th Battalion, AIF
KIA 22 July 1918
Photograph: A01783

Story delivered 19 June 2014

Today we remember and pay tribute to Lieutenant Cleve James Scott MC.

Cleve and his twin sister, Coral, were born at Port Broughton, South Australia, on 4 October 1896. Cleve was educated at Gawler Public School and served four years in the cadets, after which he was employed as a draper’s assistant with A. Sheard of Gawler. Scott continued to serve in the militia with the 80th (Gawler) Infantry Regiment.

Scott enlisted in Adelaide on 10 January 1916 and was posted as a corporal to the 43rd Battalion in March. By the time he embarked in June he had been promoted to lance sergeant. After arriving in England for further training he spent the majority of December 1916 in hospital with the mumps. After recovering, he applied for a transfer to the 10th Battalion to serve alongside his brother Frank. Scott reverted to the rank of private at his own request and joined the battalion in mid-January 1917.

He took part in his first major battle in early May at Bullecourt. Later that month Scott was sent to England to attend an officer cadet school. He qualified and was promoted to second lieutenant in September. He rejoined his battalion in October, by which time his brother Frank had been killed leading a raiding party.

Scott was given no time to mourn the death of his brother; he was sent straight to a school of instruction. He returned to the 10th Battalion in January 1918 and was promoted to lieutenant.

During the night of 1 March the battalion, which held a section of the front line at Hollebeke, was subjected to a trench raid by German infantry. Scott, in the post to the immediate right, ordered his men to open fire on the Germans, causing heavy casualties. He defended his own post and fired on German troops as they attempted to take Australian prisoners across no man’s land to enemy trenches. Scott was instrumental in re-establishing the raided post, then under heavy artillery and machine-gun fire went out into no man’s land to bring in Australian and German wounded. For his actions that night he was awarded the Military Cross.

Scott was badly wounded in the right thigh during an attack near Merris in May 1918. The attack was a success and Scott was noted for his good work by the battalion commander.

In the early hours of 22 July 1918 Scott was leading a patrol to silence enemy machine-gun posts when he was shot in the head and killed. His body was recovered and was buried at La Kreule Military Cemetery, Hazebrouck.

Following the war, his parents added his brother Frank’s name to this headstone.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, along with more than 60,000 others from the First World War, and his photograph is displayed today 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 Lieutenant Cleve James Scott MC, and all of those Australians who have given their lives in service of our nation.

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