The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (22) Private William Edward Bruderlin, 2nd 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 Sharon Bown, the story for this day was onn (22) Private William Edward Bruderlin, 2nd Battalion, AIF, First World War.

22 Private William Edward Bruderlin, 2nd Battalion, AIF
KIA 20th September 1917

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private William Edward Bruderlin.

William Bruderlin was born on 12 July 1896 in Aberdeen, New South Wales, one of seven children born to William and Louisa Bruderlin. He received his education at Aberdeen Public School and was heavily involved in the local Methodist church. On completion of his schooling, Bruderlin gained employment at Singleton railway yards where he worked as a railway cleaner. Before the outbreak of war, Bruderlin had served in the Senior Cadets and the Citizens Forces.

Bruderlin did not delay his enlistment, signing up for active service at the outbreak of the war in August 1914, aged just 19. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion and embarked from Sydney on 18 October aboard the troopship Suffolk, bound for Egypt.

The 2nd Battalion reached Egypt in December 1914. Bruderlin and his comrades participated in the landing at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915. He became ill and was sent to Cairo to recover before re-joining his unit at Gallipoli in June. In August, Bruderlin survived the infamous charge at Lone Pine, in which Australians suffered more than 2,000 casualties. After the allied evacuation of Gallipoli at the end of the year, he and his comrades headed to France to fight on the Western Front.

Bruderlin’s first major action in France took place at the battle of Pozieres in July 1916. The German forces had a distinct advantage around Pozieres, holding the high ground from which they launched devastating attacks.

The offensive at Pozieres took place over 42 days where Australians made as many as 19 separate attacks against German positions. During the attack, Bruderlin was badly wounded, receiving gunshot wounds to his arms and abdomen. Australian divisions succeeded in capturing Pozieres on 5 August but without tremendous cost. By the end of the battle, allied casualties totalled a staggering 23,000 men captured, wounded or killed.

After the battle, Bruderlin was sent to England to recover from his injuries. He spent several months in England before re-joining his battalion in France in January 1917. The 2nd Battalion was involved in the heavy fighting on the Ypres Salient for much of 1917. By September, plans were well underway to attack the German’s defensive position at Polygon Wood.

Polygon Wood was a significant landmark on the Ypres Salient and an essential part of allied attempts to take Passchendaele Ridge. By 1917 the wood had been reduced to burnt stumps. German forces had fortified the area with concrete blockhouses, barbed wire and an observation post on the high ground, making Polygon Wood a treacherous target for the advancing troops.

On 20 September the 2nd Battalion was moved to the front line and given its objectives for the impending attack. Bruderlin was assigned to work in the lines as a stretcher bearer. Despite heavy enemy resistance, Australian soldiers secured the observation post and took Polygon Wood by the end of the day. The enemy launched numerous unsuccessful counter-attacks which caused the fighting to continue until early October. More than 20,000 allied casualties were sustained during that battle alone. Among the dead was William Bruderlin.

While helping carry a wounded comrade in the support trenches, Bruderlin was hit by a shell and badly wounded. Comrades attempted to move him to the relative safety of an aid post when he was hit again by shrapnel, mortally wounding him. Private Walker described Bruderlin’s condition, saying, “He was very badly wounded in the head and side and his two legs were off. By the time I found him he was already dead.”

Private William Bruderlin was 22 years old. His friend Private Morgan wrote to his bereft parents to console them in their grief, writing:

It is with a sad heart that I, a total stranger, sit down to write these lines concerning the death of your dear son and my dearest friend and true comrade Will, who paid the supreme sacrifice. He fell in the execution of his duty as a stretcher bearer- that nobly self-sacrificing task, which as you know, he followed ever since leaving Australia. The poor boy passed away at our regimental aid post, unconscious of all pain, into the arms of the Father. His name is revered throughout the regiment as one who lived up to the true ideals of a soldier- fearless, brave and never a thought of personal danger when he knew his comrades were in distress and needed assistance. He went and did his duty nobly and well, until in the end the great Father called him home to that land where war and pain are known not … A cross was erected above his grave by his comrades who mourn the loss of one who can never be replaced in our hearts.

Private William Bruderlin was buried near where he fell. His final resting place was lost during subsequent fighting and his remains were never recovered. Today, he is commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing in Ypres.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, among almost 62,000 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 William Edward Bruderlin, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Meghan Adams
Researcher, Australian War Memorial
968 words