The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (3302) Private Horace James Dann, 45th Infantry Battalion, AIF, Second 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 Chris Widenbar, the story for this day was on (3302) Private Horace James Dann, 45th Infantry Battalion, AIF, Second World War.

3302 Private Horace James Dann, 45th Infantry Battalio, AIF
KIA 13 October 1917

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private Horace James Dann.

Horace Dann was born in Muswellbrook, New South Wales, in 1882, the son of Edwin and Alice Dann. He worked as a labourer in the Hunter Valley region and was described as a quiet but popular man.
In July 1915, Horace and his brother Edwin travelled to Liverpool where they both enlisted into the Australian Imperial Force. They were to spend their entire service time together in the 45th Battalion. After three months training in Australia, the pair embarked from Sydney aboard the Port Lincoln, bound for Egypt. The Gallipoli campaign had finished by the time they arrived in the Middle East, and instead they were among the thousands of Australians in Egypt who were involved in the doubling of the Australian Imperial Force. Gallipoli veterans joined units newly arrived from Australia to give the force a vital mixture of experience and new enthusiasm. After training in Egypt and a brief stint in hospital with the mumps, Horace left for the Western Front with his brother, arriving in France in June 1916.

The Australian 4th Division, of which the Dann’s were part, saw its first major engagement in the battle of Pozieres in the Somme valley of northern France. The town of Pozieres was captured by Australian forces in late July 1916, and was desperately defended from heavy German counter attacks and almost continuous artillery fire. The Dann’s took part in the defence of the town in early August 1916 as the 4th Division endured extremely heavy bombardment in the final German attempt to recapture the key objective. Australian forces successfully repulsed the attack and the Germans never again made a serious attempt on the town.
Between August 1916 and March 1917, the 45th Battalion spent time alternating between front line duties and training, moving first to the Ypres region of Belgium and then again to the Somme region of northern France. The 45th Battalion was placed in reserve for the first battle of Bullecourt in April 1917, a bloody engagement that cost over 3,300 Australian casualties in a single day.

The focus of British operations then shifted north into the Ypres region of Belgium, where the 45th Battalion fought at the battle of Messines. While the operation was successful for the Australians, the 45th Battalion suffered extremely heavy casualties, losing around half of its total strength.

On the 12th of October, Dann and the 45th Battalion took part in what would become known as the first battle of Passchendaele, an unsuccessful attempt to seize a ridge occupied by German forces. The battle took place in autumn, and the heavy rain and constant shelling turned the ground into a treacherous quagmire. The three Australian Divisions involved lost around 7,000 casualties.

On 13 October 1917, one day into the battle, Horace and his brother Edwin were sitting in a shell crater at Westhoek Ridge near Ypres when a German high explosive artillery shell exploded nearby. A piece of shrapnel from the shell struck Horace in the back and he was killed instantly. His brother was unharmed. Horace was buried in a makeshift grave metres from where he fell, but the site of his grave was lost. His name is now engraved on the Menin Gate Memorial in Ypres, along with those of over 54,000 other Australian and Allied soldiers with no known grave.

In a letter to Dann’s grieving mother, Dann’s captain wrote, “He was a fine man, liked by his officers and men. His cheery nature in the hours of hardships and danger has left a memory that can never fade. I cannot express how much his absence is felt in my company, and believe me your loss is equally felt by me. He has done his duty nobly and well and gave that which is dearest of all to his country. Allow me to offer my sincere sympathy in your sad bereavement”.

Private Horace James Dann 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 Horace James Dann, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

David Sutton
Historian, Military History Section