The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (2222) Private Evan Seddon, 20th 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 (2222) Private Evan Seddon, 20th Battalion, AIF, First World War.

2222 Private Evan Seddon, 20th Battalion, AIF KIA 3 May 1917
Story delivered 18 November 2017

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private Evan Seddon.

Evan Seddon was born around 1880 near Manchester in England. He came to Australia, where he worked as a carpenter, and in 1910 married Lena Wood in Sydney.

In July 1915 he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force.

He left Australia in the following September with the 20th Battalion and served briefly on Gallipoli as a sniper. According to one of his mates, Seddon was “a good rifle shot”.

In March 1916 Seddon was transferred to the 5th Infantry Brigade’s machine-gun company and moved to the Western Front. This arrangement was short lived however, and six months later he returned to the 20th Battalion.

Seddon spent much of the winter of 1916 and 1917 in hospital, avoiding having to spend one of the coldest European winters in living memory in the trenches. He returned to the battalion in early 1917. Shortly afterwards, the 20th Battalion was involved in the follow-up of German forces after their retreat to the Hindenburg Line. It was then one of four battalions to defeat a counter-attack by a German force almost five times as strong, at Lagnicourt.

On 1 May the 20th Battalion moved into a position in close support of the front line near Bullecourt in preparation for a major operation against the Hindenburg Line.

In the early hours of the morning, as the attack began, a heavy German barrage fell on the Australian infantry. Seddon was carrying mortar bombs to resupply others in the battalion when he was hit by a shell
splinter and killed instantly. “The barrage was so heavy that anyone not in a shell hole was doomed,” Sergeant Boyd later reported.
Evan Seddon was 37 years of age.

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 Private Evan Seddon who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Emma Campbell Researcher, Military History Section