The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (6410) Private Augustus Peterson, 26th 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 Craig Berelle, the story for this day was on (6410) Private Augustus Peterson, 26th Battalion, AIF, First World War.

6410 Private Augustus Peterson, 26th Battalion, AIF
DOW 27 September 1918
No photograph in collection

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private Augustus Rosenius Peterson, who died while fighting in the First World War.

Augustus Peterson was born in 1888, one of seven children of Sven and Hannah Peterson. The Swedish–German family had immigrated to Australia from Keil in Germany before Augustus was born, starting a new life at Homley near Kingaroy in south-east Queensland. After attending Kingaroy State School, Augustus worked as a farmer, most likely producing the peanuts and wheat for which the area is known. He was actively involved in the Kingaroy Rifle Club and paraded part-time with the Queensland Mounted Infantry.

Peterson enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force at Maryborough in October 1916, and after a period of training sailed for England with a reinforcement group for the 26th Battalion. After months of further training in England he sailed for France and joined the 26th Battalion in camp near Bapaume in July 1917. When the battalion moved north into Belgium several weeks later, Peterson was sent to the 2nd Army Observation and Sniping School to hone his skills in scouting, observation, and marksmanship with telescopic sights. He returned to the battalion in September just before it moved up the line to take part in the Third Battle of Ypres.

The 26th Battalion was involved in a number of actions throughout the British offensive, including Menin Road in September and Broodseinde in October, and spent several weeks holding position in the area known as Tokyo Ridge. The battalion was relieved in early November 1917, moving to Walker’s Camp where German artillery bombarded them with Blue Cross gas. This permeated the men’s small-box respirators and caused uncontrollable sneezing and coughing; while it was not lethal, it was sufficient to make Peterson violently sick and resulted in his evacuation to England for treatment and recovery. He spent several months in hospital at the Military Hospital at Edmonton in Middlesex and did not return to France until March 1918.

Peterson returned to his battalion at one of the most critical periods of the war. Following the Russian withdrawal, the German army mobilised millions of troops to launch a massive offensive in France that intended to split the British and French armies along the Somme River. The 26th Battalion was rushed south to defend the strategically vital city of Amiens, after which it held positions near Villers-Bretonneux in preparation for the imminent Allied counter-offensive.

The 26th Battalion was holding positions near the village of Franvillers when it came under yet another German gas bombardment. A gas shell exploded among a work party of which Peterson was part, the steel fragmentation seriously wounding him in the stomach and lower hip, and he was again evacuated to England. A medical board deemed him medically unfit to return to the front and approved his return to Australia in August 1918.

Less than a month later Peterson was convalescing in London when he began suffering from vomiting and sharp abdominal pain in the area around his wound. The shell fragment had caused an obstruction which doctors corrected during an operation, but he never recovered. He died two days later. Aged 30 at the time of his death, Augustus Peterson was given a military funeral at Brookwood Military Cemetery.

Augustus Peterson is listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, among more than 60,000 Australians who died while serving in 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 Augustus Peterson, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Aaron Pegram
Historian, Military History Section