The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of Private Henry Walter Smallbone, 3rd Depot 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 , the story for this day was on Private Henry Walter Smallbone, 3rd Depot Battalion, AIF, First World War.

Private Henry Walter Smallbone, 3rd Depot Battalion, AIF
DOD 15 November 1915
Story delivered 24 December 2018

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private Henry Walter Smallbone.

On 19 September 1893, Henry Smallbone was born into the large family of Henry and Margaret Smallbone of Pine Lands in the Darling Downs region of Queensland.
Here he grew up, turning his hand to farming.

In late August 1915, at the age of 22, Smallbone enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force at nearby Toowoomba.

We do not know what motivated Smallbone to enlist, or what expectations he had about joining the war. Sadly, his period of service was to be cut short.
On 15 November, before he had been allotted to a unit, Henry Smallbone died of cerebro-spinal meningitis at hospital in Brisbane. The illness came suddenly, killing him within 12 hours.

His remains were buried at a crowded Crows Nest Cemetery, with one of the largest corteges seen in the district, headed by a company of recruits and rifle club members. In front of a pulpit draped in black and surmounted with the Union Jack, the Reverend Mills officiated, citing 2 Timothy: “I have fought a good fight. I have finished my course.”

Henry Smallbone’s 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 Henry Walter Smallbone, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Duncan Beard
Historian, Military History Section