The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (NX32289) Private Leslie Albert Ewin, 2/10 Ordnance Workshop, Australian Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, 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 Troy Clayton, the story for this day was on (NX32289) Private Leslie Albert Ewin, 2/10 Ordnance Workshop, Australian Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, Second World War.

NX32289 Private Leslie Albert Ewin, 2/10 Ordnance Workshop, Australian Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
Died at sea 12 September 1944

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private Leslie Albert Ewin.

Leslie Ewin was born on 13 June 1920 to the large family of Kenneth William and Elizabeth Martha Ewin, of the Sydney suburb of Lewisham.

Known as “Les”, when he was nine years old, he and a friend were involved in a billy-cart accident. After colliding with a car, both boys were thrown from the cart. Leslie suffered concussion and abrasions, and his friend was admitted to hospital with a fractured skull.

After Australia’s involvement in the Second World War was announced, Leslie was anxious to enlist, but as he wasn’t yet 21 he needed parental consent. He exhorted his mother, who was reluctant. He went so far as telling her that he would enlist under a false name if she did not agree. In June 1941 Ewin did enlist under his own name, but he lied about his age to do so, overstating it by two years.

Ewin was marched into General Details Depot in Tamworth and sent to an infantry training brigade before being transferred to a signals training depot. He later joined an armoured training regiment and then trained for work in an ordnance workshop.

On 10 January 1942 he embarked for Singapore via Batavia, arriving a few weeks later to join the 2/10 Ordnance Field Workshop. The large batch of reinforcements of which he formed a part had been hastily assembled and apparently included many incompletely-trained personnel. Leslie claimed that he had been on a six-month instrument mechanic course, but had only completed three months of training before he sailed.

After the surrender of Singapore to the Japanese on 15 February, Leslie spent some time in hospital. About three weeks later, he was sent to Changi prisoner of war camp, where he was reunited with his older brother, Russel, who was with the 8th Australian Division Signals.

When orders came from the Japanese to assemble a work party of 3,000 for an unknown overseas destination, the brothers decided that the chances of one surviving were greater if they remained separate. Leslie embarked with “A Force” on 14 May 1942.

Arriving in Burma around a fortnight later, the group was employed in airfield construction. After the airfields were completed, in September A Force went by ship to Thanbyuzayat to work on the Burma–Thailand Railway. Living and working conditions were horrific. The prisoners of war found themselves at the bottom of a social system that was harsh, punitive, fanatical, and often deadly; maltreatment, sickness, and starvation were rife.

After the railway was completed in October, Ewin and the other surviving members of A Force were to be sent to Japan. Their journey began in over-crowded rail trucks travelling through Bangkok to Phnom Penh, then by riverboat along the Mekong River to Saigon, and on to Cape Saint Jaques, where they boarded a transport ship. When the transport ship refused to take them for fear of being attacked, they were sent back to Phnom Penh, where they waited three days for a train before travelling to Singapore.

On 6 September 1944, Ewin and other survivors of the Burma–Thailand Railway left Singapore aboard two ships that were part of a convoy bound for Japan. The Kachidoki Maru was carrying 900 British prisoners of war. Ewin was on the Rakuyo Maru, which held about 1,300 Australian and British prisoners, crowded into one forward hold normally capable of accommodating 187 steerage passengers.

Neither ship was marked with a Red Cross or any indication that they were carrying prisoners. Early on 12 September 1944, the convoy was attacked by American submarines and the ships were sunk.

The Rakuyo Maru remained afloat for 12 hours, allowing the prisoners ample time to escape. The Japanese crew was picked up by Japanese destroyers, and the prisoners took over the abandoned life-boats and went among the rafts and wreckage, picking up their comrades. The life-boats separated: one group was later picked up by the Japanese destroyers, the other group was not seen again.

Leslie was not among the survivors.

He was 24 years old.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my left, among more than 40,000 Australians who died while serving in the Second 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 Leslie Albert Ewin, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Duncan Beard
Editor, Military History Section