The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (145) Sergeant Thomas William Mountain, 1st Australian Light Horse Regiment, 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 Troy Clayton, the story for this day was on (145) Sergeant Thomas William Mountain, 1st Australian Light Horse Regiment, First World War.

145 Sergeant Thomas William Mountain, 1st Australian Light Horse Regiment
KIA 3 November 1917

Story delivered 3 November 2017

Today we remember and pay tribute to Sergeant Thomas William Mountain.

Thomas Mountain was born in 1890, the eldest of eight children of Tom and Amy Mountain of Glen Innes, New South Wales. Known as “Tom”, he grew up on the family property, “Mountain View”, and was educated at the local public school.

Mountain was a keen horseman and served with the 5th Light Horse Regiment in the pre-war Militia. When war was declared, the young farmer quickly joined the Australian Imperial Force, enlisting on 22 August 1914. He was a natural fit for the AIF’s mounted formations and was accepted into the 1st Light Horse Regiment which, together with the second and third regiments, formed the 1st Light Horse Brigade.

A few months after enlisting, Mountain sailed with his regiment from Sydney, disembarking in Egypt in early December 1914. While initially considered unsuitable for the Gallipoli operation, the light horse was deployed without their horses to reinforce the infantry a few weeks after the landing. Mountain’s 1st Light Horse Regiment arrived at Gallipoli on 12 May 1915, and was attached to the New Zealand and Australian Division.

In July, Mountain became ill with influenza and had a ten-day stint on the island of Mudros to recuperate. He returned to Gallipoli in time to join the attack on the Turkish position known as “the Chessboard”, as part of the August Offensive. Although coordinated with attacks at the nearby feature known as the Nek, and Quinn’s Post, the assault was disastrous. The Turks had seen troops getting into position and were waiting for their advance. A few men made it to the enemy’s trenches, but as the attacks around them failed they withdrew two hours later. Of the 200 men involved, 154 were killed or wounded.

Mountain was wounded slightly during the attack, and was sent to the 1st Australian General Hospital at Heliopolis in Cairo. He returned to his regiment on Gallipoli in late September, and stayed until the evacuation in late December 1915.
Back in Egypt, the 1st Light Horse Regiment joined the ANZAC Mounted Division. Mountain was promoted to sergeant in early 1916. Between January and May, his regiment was deployed to protect the Nile valley from bands of pro-Turkish Senussi Arabs.

In mid-May, the 1st Light Horse Brigade joined forces defending the Suez Canal. It then played a significant role in turning back the Turkish advance on the canal at the battle of Romani in early August. Later in the month, Mountain became ill with tonsillitis. After a stint in hospital, he returned to his unit in October.

The 1st Light Horse Regiment rejoined the Allied advance across the Sinai in November 1916, and was involved in fighting to secure the Turkish outposts on the Palestine frontier: first at Maghdaba, in late December 1916, and Rafa, in early January 1917.

The regiment’s next major engagement was the abortive second battle of Gaza in April. The regiment then played a part in the third battle of Gaza, which began as a feint to divert enemy forces to Gaza while a charge was made at Beersheba, on 31 October 1917.

Mountain’s regiment did not play a part in that charge, but three days later, on 3 November, it was ordered to attack at nearby Tel Khuweilfeh. The enemy was holding the position in strength, the attackers were met by heavy machine-gun and rifle fire, and the unit could not reach its objectives.

Mountain was killed during the fighting. He was buried at the Beersheba War Cemetery.

A few months after his death, a letter to Mountain’s father written by Captain Wright of the 1st Light Horse Regiment, was published in the Glen Innes Examiner. It read, in part:
We were in a very warm corner that day, and of course Tom was right up in the front when he was hit … I can safely say that there was not a better mate, a braver or more conscientious soldier, or a more honourable man than your late son. His many good qualities endeared him to all who knew him, and his soldierly achievements will make his place as a sergeant in A Squadron an exceedingly hard one to fill.

Thomas Mountain was 27 years old.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, among almost 62,000 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 Sergeant Thomas Mountain, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Emma Campbell Researcher, Military History Section