| Places | |
|---|---|
| Accession Number | REL50185 |
| Collection type | Heraldry |
| Object type | Heraldry |
| Maker |
Unknown |
| Place made | United Kingdom |
| Date made | c 1920s |
| Conflict |
First World War, 1914-1918 |
| Source credit to | This item has been digitised with funding provided by Commonwealth Government. |
Next of kin plaque : Captain Alfred Charles Thompson, 6th Light Horse Regiment, AIF
Description
Bronze next of kin plaque, showing on the obverse, Britannia holding a laurel wreath, the British lion, dolphins, a spray of oak leaves and the words 'HE DIED FOR FREEDOM AND HONOUR' around the edge. Beneath the main figures, the British lion defeats the German eagle. The initials 'ECP', for the designer Edward Carter Preston appear above the lion's right forepaw. A raised rectangle above the lion's head bears the name 'ALFRED CHARLES THOMPSON'. Complete with original cardboard packaging.
History / Summary
Born in Queanbeyan, New South Wales on 5 May 1886, Alfred Charles Thompson later moved to Tarcutta with his family. He was a drill instructor on the instructional staff of the permanent military forces and had been attached to artillery and engineering units in the Citizen's Military Force, when he enlisted in the AIF on 5 October 1914. Thompson was appointed Regimental Quartermaster-Sergeant, service number 2, on the headquarters of 6th Light Horse Regiment. The unit sailed from Sydney on 21 December, aboard HMAT A29 Suevic.
After training in Egypt the regiment landed at Gallipoli, without its horses, on 15 May 1915. Thompson was promoted second lieutenant on 14 June, then lieutenant on 25 September. He survived the Gallipoli campaign and arrived back in Egypt on Christmas Day 1915.
Early in 1916 the regiment took part in the defence of the Suez Canal. On 18 April Thompson transferred to the headquarters of the Anzac Mounted Division. He rejoined his regiment on 6 June and was appointed adjutant on 24 June. Thompson was promoted captain on 2 August, two days before taking part in the battle of Romani and the following action at Katia.
In February 1917 he was posted a staff captain to the headquarters of the 4th Light Horse Brigade. A month later he was appointed Deputy Assistant Adjutant General and Quartermaster General to the Australian Mounted Division. He returned to the 6th Light Horse Regiment, at his own request, on 31 July. Thompson was killed on 2 November near Deir Saideh, by a bomb dropped from an enemy aircraft during the third battle of Gaza, and was buried near the Hebron Road. His body was exhumed and reinterred in the Beersheba War Cemetery after the war.
This commemorative plaque was sent to his widow, Alice Agnes Thompson, in February 1923.