The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (1562) Private James McIlwee, 19th 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 Charis May, the story for this day was on (1562) Private James McIlwee, 19th Battalion, AIF, First World War.

1562 Private James McIlwee, 19th Battalion, AIF
KIA 30 August 1918
No photograph in collection

Story delivered 29 April 2016

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private James McIlwee.

James McIlwee was born in 1888, the son of Michael and Sarah McIlwee of Lanarkshire, Scotland. He attended the St Augustine’s Roman Catholic School in Coatbridge and went on to become a coal miner. At 19 he came to Australia, and may have spent a period working in the mines in Western Australia before settling in Sydney.

McIlwee enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force in April 1915 and was posted to the 19th Battalion. After a period of training in Australia he left for Egypt in May. By the beginning of September 1915 he was at Anzac Cove. Within weeks he was seriously ill with dysentery and had to be evacuated back to Egypt. Further illness saw him remain in Egypt for some time.

After completing treatment, Private McIlwee was sent to France and joined his battalion on the Western Front. In December 1916 he was granted leave to England, and failed to return to duty. It seems the lure of Scotland was too strong because after more than eight months’ absence he was caught in Glasgow by the civil authorities. He served seven months’ detention at the AIF Detention Barracks in Lewes, England, and forfeited 821 days’ pay.

In late July McIlwee was discharged from the barracks to return to his battalion, and had the remaining portion of his sentence remitted. He finally rejoined his battalion in France on 10 August 1918.

Nearly three weeks later the 19th Battalion was on the banks of the Somme Canal with the intention of crossing it on the way to Péronne. Engineers had been working on bridges to cross the canal, but when the men of the battalion arrived these were incomplete. A noncommissioned officer, Corporal John Mooney, was reconnoitring the position when he was hit by a German shell and killed.

When the 19th Battalion had withdrawn to its original position, thoughts turned to retrieving Corporal Mooney’s body. Lance Corporal Charles Mackinnon volunteered to go with three other men and a stretcher to bring it back. James McIlwee, serving the 19th Battalion as a stretcherbearer, was one of the party. They collected Mooney’s body from the banks of the river without any problems, but were just short of safety when a stray shell dropped near the party. Private James McIlwee was killed outright, along with Mackinnon. The pair were buried together a short distance from where they fell, along with Corporal Mooney.

Private James McIlwee’s 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.

This is but one of the many stories of service and sacrifice told here at the Australian War Memorial. We now remember Private James McIlwee, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Dr Meleah Hampton
Historian, Military History Section