Framed portrait of Private George Siebert

Framed hand-coloured studio portrait of NX54373 Private (Pte) George Alexander "Mick/Alec/Geo" Guthrie Siebert. Written at the bottom of the frame: With best wishes To Vera + George From Dad 1940.

Pte Siebert was born in Newtown, New South Wales on 29 May 1906. Siebert enlisted in the AIF on 13 January 1940 in Paddington, NSW. After an initial period of training, Siebert was posted to 2/18 Battalion. He sailed from Sydney with his battalion on 4 February 1941 arriving in Singapore on 18 February 1941. Siebert moved with 2/18 Bn to Port Dickson in Malaya for a period of acclimatisation and jungle warfare training. After several changes of location, Siebert moved with his battalion to Mersing on the east coast of Malaya in September 1941. It was here that he helped prepare defensive positions for the expected Japanese invasion, but the positions were never tested as the battalion moved south to Jemaluang when Japanese advances in the west of Malaya threatened to cut them off. Siebert went into action on 27 January 1942 when the battalion ambushed a large party of Japanese at Nithsdale Estate inflicting heavy casualties. Siebert and 2/18 Bn were withdrawn and moved to Singapore. On 8 February 1942, the Japanese infiltrated between the widely dispersed posts of 2/18 Bn and over the next week, Siebert found himself involved in savage fighting as they withdrew towards Singapore City. On 15 February 1942, Siebert and the remainder of 2/18 Bn were captured. He spent the next three and a half years as a prisoner of the Japanese before finally being liberated in early September 1945. Siebert was returned to Australia aboard the Dutch ship Oranje on 15 September 1945, arriving on home soil on 28 September. After a long period in hospital recovering from the effects of his captivity, Siebert was discharged on 25 October 1946.