The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (877) Private Edwin Carlill Morrison, 29th Australian Infantry 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 Richard Cruise, the story for this day was on (877) Private Edwin Carlill Morrison, 29th Australian Infantry Battalion, AIF, First World War.

877 Private Edwin Carlill Morrison, 29th Australian Infantry Battalion, AIF
DOD 26 September 1917

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private Edwin Carlill Morrison.

Known to friends and family as “Ted”, Edwin Morrison was born in November 1894, the youngest son of the large family of Rosa and James Morrison of Glengarry, a small town in the Gippsland region of Victoria.

While some of his siblings attended the nearby Tyers State School, young Edwin was taught at home. He went on to work as a contractor, and was involved in farming in the region. He also served in a light horse militia unit for two years, and was an active member of the Glengarry Rifle Club, ranking well in competitions with neighbouring clubs.

In June 1915, Edwin Morrison was four months shy of his 21st birthday, and so brought a letter of consent from his parents with him to Melbourne in order to enlist in the Australian Imperial Force.

Edwin’s older brother, Walter, perhaps motivated by Edwin’s actions, enlisted the following month, eventually joining reinforcements to the 22nd Battalion.

Three of Edwin’s four brothers would come to enlist in the AIF, serving in different units.

Edwin, after some initial training, was allotted to C Company of the newly established 29th Battalion. He left Melbourne with his battalion in early November that year aboard the troopship Ascanius. In Egypt, the 29th Battalion joined the newly raised 5th Australian Division. Here they trained in the desert camps before leaving for France, destined for the Western Front, in June 1916.

On 16 July, Private Edwin Morrison was wounded in action at Fleurbaix, but remained on duty. Three days later the 29th Battalion fought its first major battle at Fromelles. One soldier of the battalion remarked about the battle, “the novelty of being a soldier wore off in about five seconds, it was like a bloody butcher's shop.” Although it still spent periods in the front line, the 29th Battalion’s men would have been thankful that they played no major offensive role during the rest of the year.

Edwin’s father had been ill for some time, and died just before Christmas of 1916. Edwin’s brother, Sergeant A.C. Morrison, returned home just before his father’s death, having been invalided home after serving on Gallipoli and in France. A local newspaper reported: “The sick father heard his son’s voice, and rose in his bed, but the effort was too much for him, and he never rallied.”

In early 1917, Edwin spent a few weeks of leave in England, but had the misfortune to contract an infection during his stay that led to an extended period in hospital. He was expected to return to his unit in early May, but was back in hospital with mumps shortly afterwards and was not able to rejoin his unit until the beginning of August 1917.

During Edwin’s stay in hospital, his brother Walter was killed in action at Bullecourt. While it was eventually found that Walter had died on 3 May, he was listed as missing until August.

Back with the 29th Battalion, Private Edwin Morrison took part in its major action of 1917, the battle of Polygon Wood, fought in the Ypres sector in Belgium.

The advance began on schedule at 5.50 am on 26 September, with the 5th Division taking the lead on the right part of the Australian sector. The infantry advanced behind a heavy artillery barrage – the noise of which was compared to a roaring bushfire – and secured most of their objectives.

But victory came at a cost. The 5th Division suffered over 5,500 casualties during the first three days of fighting. Private Edwin Morrison was killed on the first day of the battle.

He was 23 years old

Morrison was buried near Polygon Wood, but his grave was lost during later fighting. Today he is commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing, along with some 6,000 Australians with no known grave.

Learning of his death in Australia, the local newspaper reported that Edwin “was a fine, upstanding manly young man, one of Glengarry’s best.”

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, among more than 60,000 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 Edwin Carlill Morrison, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Duncan Beard
Editor, Military History Section