The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (21317) Leading Steward Walter Edward Bettinson, HMAS Sydney (II), 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 Sharon Bown, the story for this day was on (21317) Leading Steward Walter Edward Bettinson, HMAS Sydney (II), Second World War.

21317 Leading Steward Walter Edward Bettinson, HMAS Sydney (II)
KIA: 20 November 1941

Today we remember and pay tribute to Leading Steward Walter Edward Bettinson.

Walter Bettinson was born on 8 March 1919 in the Sydney suburb of Marrickville, one of four children born to John and Charlotte Bettinson,. Known to his mates as “Wally”, Bettinson enlisted and began a professional career in the navy in November 1936, when he was 17 years old.

After a period of training at HMAS Cerberus on the Mornington Peninsula near Melbourne, and HMAS Penguin on Sydney Harbour, Bettinson served for seven months on the W Class Destroyer HMAS Waterhen, which at that time was used by the Royal Australian Navy as a reserve vessel.
In June 1938 he took a rating on the County class heavy cruiser HMAS Canberra, and was soon promoted to the rank of leading steward.

After a brief period of service based in Sydney 1939, Bettinson began service as a rating on board HMAS Sydney (II), a modified Leander Class Light Cruiser, where he continued to serve as leading steward.

From the beginning of the Second World War in September 1939, Sydney carried out patrol and escort duties across the Indian Ocean. In May 1940 it sailed from Australian waters to the Mediterranean, where it began serving as part of the Royal Navy 7th Cruiser Squadron. In this role Sydney took part in a number of engagements against enemy forces, including the bombardment of land forces at Bardia in June, and the significant sea battles of Calabria and Cape Spada in July. At Calabria and Cape Spada, HMAS Sydney came under heavy air attack and was involved with sizeable Italian naval forces, but emerged successful in each case, including the sinking of the cruiser Bartolomeo Colleonni. Sydney spent the rest of 1940 and early 1941 carrying out patrols and escorts in the Mediterranean theatre.

In February 1941 Bettinson and the crew of HMAS Sydney returned to Australia, where they were hailed as heroes in a parade through Sydney. While based in Sydney, Bettinson married his sweetheart, June Anges Shaw in Redfern.

From March 1941 Sydney returned to escort and patrol duties in the Indian Ocean and south-east Asia.

On 19 November 1941, Sydney was in the Indian Ocean returning from one of its troopship escorts when it came upon the German raider HSK Kormoran, which was disguised as a Dutch merchant ship. As Sydney approached, Kormoran opened fire.

In the ensuing fight Sydney was able to deliver significant blows to Kormoran that eventually destroyed the German ship, but the damage sustained in the initial surprise attack was so severe that Sydney did not survive the fight. Sydney was last seen by German sailors burning on the horizon as it limped away from battle.

All 645 crewmembers were lost, and have no known grave.
Bettinson went down with the ship. He was 22 years old, and had been married for less than a year.

Sydney’s final resting place – near the wreck of the Kormoran off the West Australian coast – was not discovered until 2008.

Walter Bettinson’s name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my left, among almost 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 Leading Steward Walter Edward Bettinson, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

David Sutton
Historian, Military History Section