The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (21751) Leading Stoker Campbell Bernard Hill, HMAS Nestor, Second 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 Gerard Pratt, the story for this day was on (21751) Leading Stoker Campbell Bernard Hill, HMAS Nestor, Second World War.

21751 Leading Stoker Campbell Bernard Hill, HMAS Nestor
KIA 15 June 1942
Photograph: P03066.004

Story delivered 16 June 2017

Today we remember and pay tribute to Leading Stoker Campbell Bernard Hill.

Known to friends and family as “Cam”, Campbell Hill was born on 11 November 1917 in Coolgardie, a small town in Western Australia about 560 kilometres east of Perth. In the 1890s, Coolgardie had been a thriving gold town. After the precious metal began to decrease, however, it became a ghost town. Campbell’s parents, Charles and Emily, moved to Perth, settling in the suburb of West Leederville, were Campbell attended the local school.

On 6 January 1938, a few months after his 21st birthday, Campbell Hill joined the Royal Australian Navy. He underwent initial training as a ship’s stoker at HMAS Cerberus, and in late May was posted to HMAS Albatross, which was in the process of being transferred to the Royal Navy. Hill was part of the crew that sailed Albatross to England in July.

Once in England, Hill formed part of the inaugural crew of HMAS Hobart when it was commissioned into the RAN in late September, sailing for Australia shortly after.

When the Second World War began, Hobart conducted patrols of Bass Strait before sailing to Singapore, where it spent the following months on patrols and convoy escort duties. In April 1940 Hobart became one of the core vessels in the Royal Navy’s Red Sea Force. The ship fired its first shots against an enemy on 12 June, when Italian aircraft attacked Aden, a port city in Yemen. After escorting a relief force to Berbera, Hobart acted as headquarters for the the evacuation of British Somaliland. Hobart and her crew then returned to Colombo for a refit before sailing for Australia. Hobart remained in Australian and New Zealand waters until June 1941, when the ship was transferred back to the Mediterranean.

From July until December, Hobart was part of the Royal Navy’s 7th Cruiser Squadron, taking part in shore bombardments at Bardia and Tobruk, and operations off Cyprus, Malta, and Syria. Despite being subjected to heavy air attacks, Hobart managed to avoid major damage.

Hill’s tenure with Hobart ended when he was transferred to HMAS Napier in December 1941, two days after being promoted to acting leading stoker. After a brief period of service on Napier, in February 1942 Hill was confirmed in the rank of leading stoker and transferred to Napier’s sister ship, HMAS Nestor.

In June, Nestor was part of a large escort for a convoy of 11 transport ships heading for Malta. Soon after leaving Alexandria, the convoy came under attack from German and Italian aircraft.

In the afternoon of 15 June, news was received that another transport convoy had reached Malta. Given the severity of the enemy air attacks and the presence of the Italian fleet, the decision was made to turn around and return to Alexandria.

The convoy was south-west of Crete when it came under air attack at around 6 pm. A stick of bombs from an Italian bomber straddled Nestor and the explosions severely damaged the ships’ boiler rooms, killing Campbell Hill, and three of his crewmates.

HMS Javelin took the stricken destroyer in tow, but with Nestor taking on water and going down at the bow it was decided to scuttle the ship. With the sea as their final resting place, Hill and his three crewmates are now commemorated on the Plymouth Naval Memorial in Devon, England.

During his service, Hill had become engaged to Miss Betty Waddington. A sorrowful entry in the paper recorded her love: “forever I’ll remember”.

Campbell Hill was 24 years old.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my left, among some 40,000 Australians who died while serving in the Second World War. His photo is displayed beside the Pool of Reflection. You can see him standing at the back on the right.

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

Michael Kelly
Historian, Military History Section