The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (1201) Private Alfred Noble, 9th Battalion, AIF, 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 Nicholas Schmidt, the story for this day was on (1201) Private Alfred Noble, 9th Battalion, AIF, First World War.

1201 Private Alfred Noble, 9th Battalion, AIF
DOW 2 August 1915
Photograph: H06050

Story delivered 28 May 2015

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private Alfred Noble.

Alfred Noble was born in 1892 in Goodna, Queensland. He was the eldest of three children born to Joseph and Augusta Noble. His father died when he was around seven years old, and his mother later remarried. Little is known of Noble’s early life, but as a young man he gained employment with the Diamond Drilling Company and moved to Borroloola in the Northern Territory.

In 1913 Noble was one of six men on a punt transporting machinery on the McArthur River. They were about 15 miles from Borroloola when the punt capsized and the six men were thrown into the river. Noble was one of three men to survive the accident.

The following year Noble returned to Queensland to enlist in the Australian Imperial Force. He was posted to the 9th Battalion and sent to Egypt. From there the battalion went to Gallipoli, and was among the first to land at Anzac Cove on 25 April 1915.

Alfred Noble survived the landing, although records do not show what he did or where he went in the days that followed. In June he was briefly evacuated to the island of Lemnos to be treated for an illness, returning to Anzac Cove at the end of the month. Just days later he was hit by a sniper. Suffering serious wounds to his back and spine, he was evacuated and sent to hospital in Alexandria. He survived for several weeks, but eventually succumbed to his wounds and died on 2 August 1915. He was 22 years old.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, along with more than 60,000 Australians who died during the First World War. His photograph is displayed today beside the Pool of Reflection.

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

Dr Meleah Hampton
Historian, Military History Section