The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (50029) Private Leslie Norman Cunningham, 22nd 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 Joanne Smedley, the story for this day was on (50029) Private Leslie Norman Cunningham, 22nd Australian Infantry Battalion, AIF, First World War.

50029 Private Leslie Norman Cunningham, 22nd Australian Infantry Battalion, AIF

KIA 2 September 1918

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private Leslie Norman Cunningham.

Leslie Cunningham was born in South Melbourne on 20 July 1899, one of 12 children born to George and Jessie Cunningham. Known by the nicknames “Cunn” and “Les”, he grew up in Albert Park, and worked as a packer and storeman.

Leslie Cunningham was too young to enlist when the war began, but prepared for military service by spending four years training with the local cadets at Albert Park. He was eager to follow his two older brothers, William and Charlie, who had already enlisted and departed for the war. Soon after his eighteenth birthday, Cunningham’s parents gave their consent for him to be sent overseas into active service, and he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force as part of the Sportsmen’s 1,000 recruiting campaign. This recruiting campaign sought to encourage young sportsmen to “join together, train together, and fight together”.

After training at Broadmeadows, Les embarked from Sydney on the troopship Persic in March 1918, arriving in England in May. After three months of training in England, he joined the 22nd Battalion and sailed for the war on the Western Front in France. By the time of his arrival in mid-August 1918, his battalion was serving in the Somme, taking part in the major British and Commonwealth offensive on German lines that would prove to be decisive.
On the day of his arrival at the front, his battalion took part in fighting to take the town of Herleville, an important objective to the south–west to the strategically important town of Peronne. In this battle, Australian troops climbed out into no-man’s-land after a brief artillery barrage and charged German machine-gun positions.

Following this engagement, Cunningham and the 22nd Battalion moved north–east towards Peronne. In the hot summer conditions, the fatigued troops found some relief swimming in local streams and took part in a cricket match against representatives of the 21st Battalion. It is likely that Cunningham, having joined as part of the Sportsmen’s 1000, took a keen interest in the game.

The brief respite offered by these activities came to an end on 31 August, when the 2nd Australian Division, of which the 22nd Battalion was part, began its attack on the hilltop village of Mont St Quentin. It was vital that the Australians take the town, as the high ground gave the Germans an excellent artillery observation post from which they could direct bombardments across the surrounding area.

The attack began at 5 am, with Australian troops assaulting and successfully taking the crest of the hill. However, a German counteroffensive soon pushed Australian forces back from their objective. Cunningham and his battalion entered the battle the following day in a renewed and ultimately successful attempt to retake the summit. Australian forces held Mont St Quentin and in the following days consolidated their position and pushed the Germans further back. This was an enormously successful operation, in which the Australians took 2,600 German prisoners. Charles Bean, Australia’s official historian of the First World War, reported that the action was regarded by many soldiers as ‘the most brilliant achievement of the AIF.’

Cunningham served as a Lewis gunner in this action. His job was to man the important light machine-gun and provide support to attacking Australian troops. This was a dangerous role, and Lewis gunners often attracted significant enemy fire.

On the final day of the fighting, 2 September 1918, Cunningham and two of his comrades were resting behind the front line when a German high explosive shell landed amongst them. A shell fragment struck Cunningham in the head, mortally wounding him.

He was 19 years old, and had been at the front for just over a fortnight. At the time of his death, his two brothers were just a few kilometres away, taking part in the same action.

Leslie Cunningham was buried where he fell on the battlefield, and now rests in the Peronne Communal Cemetery Extension in France, along with 1,500 Commonwealth soldiers killed in the First World War.

Private Leslie Norman Cunningham 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 Leslie Norman Cunningham, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Thomas Rogers
Historian, Military History Section