Next of kin plaque: Second Lieutenant Ralph Irving Arnold, 15th Battalion, AIF

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 'RALPH IRVING ARNOLD'. A checker's mark, '60', is impressed between the lion's rear left paw and tail.

Born in North Sydney, New South Wales, Ralph Irving Arnold was employed as a station overseer on the Darling downs in Queensland when he enlisted in the AIF at Toowoomba on 15 December 1914. After basic training he was posted a private, service number 754, to the 3rd Reinforcements to 2nd Light Horse Regiment. The unit embarked for overseas service from Brisbane aboard HMAT A53 Itria, on 9 February 1915.

Arriving in Egypt Arnold undertook further training in Egypt before joining his regiment on Gallipoli on 9 July. He served with a detachment on Mudros from 14 November and returned to Alexandria from there on 27 December. In March 1916 Arnold transferred to the 15th Battalion, where he was promoted second lieutenant. The battalion arrived in France for service on the Western Front on 8 June.

Arnold was killed two months later on 8 August during an attack on an enemy trench system near Mouquet Farm. He had been badly wounded and left on the edge of a shell hole by his batman, who, although also wounded, went for assistance to have him carried back behind the lines. Arnold could not be located during the subsequent fighting and was later declared dead. He was 28. His remains were finally located north of Pozieres in easlry 1936. They were exhumed and reburied in the London Cemetery Extension, High Wood, Longueval in France. Arnold's identity disc, which had identified his body, was returned to his sister, as his parents were no longer alive.

This memorial plaque was sent to Arnold's father, Richard Aldous Arnold, in December 1922.