The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (NX52704) Gunner Richard Vernon Grimshaw, 17th Anti-Tank Battery. 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 (NX52704) Gunner Richard Vernon Grimshaw, 17th Anti-Tank Battery. Second World War.

NX52704 Gunner Richard Vernon Grimshaw, 17th Anti-Tank Battery
Died at sea (Montevideo Maru) 1 July 1942

Today we remember and pay tribute to Gunner Richard Vernon Grimshaw.

Richard Grimshaw was born on 21 April 1919 in the Sydney suburb of Kogarah, the son of Lawrence and Amy Grimshaw.

He grew up in the nearby suburb of Bexley with his mother, father and sister Pam. He enjoyed playing cricket and baseball, and was a member of the Brighton-Le Sands Surf Life Saving Club.

After attending Sydney Technical College, he found work as an electrical mechanic, and served in the Militia, parading part-time with the 60th Field Battery of the 18th Field Brigade.

Grimshaw enlisted for service during the Second World War on 19 June 1940, at the age of 21. He was posted to the 6th Battalion, and then transferred to the 22nd Anti-Tank Battery.

After a period of home leave in September 1940, and then pre-embarkation leave in December at Bathurst, Grimshaw suffered a bout of illness that plagued him through the first half of 1941. After being in and out of hospital for a number of months, with periods at Prince of Wales hospital and Lady Wakehurst Convalescent Home, he rejoined his unit in August.

Gunner Grimshaw embarked with his unit on the troopship Zealandia in early September 1941, landing at Rabaul late in the month as part of Lark Force.

Tasked with protecting the airfields at Lakunai and Vunakanau, and the seaplane base at Rabaul, Lark Force spent the following months constructing defences and training for operation in a tropical environment.

It was about this time that the Japanese bombing of New Britain began, increasing in intensity as the month continued. By 22 January 24 Squadron had been virtually destroyed and its three remaining aircraft were withdrawn. With no use for the airstrips, these were destroyed, and Lark Force withdrew from Rabaul, waiting on the western shores of Blanche Bay for the inevitable Japanese landings.

These began at 1 am on 23 January. Overwhelming Japanese strength, combined with Australian communication failures, quickly cracked the cohesion of the Australian defence. Realising the futility of the situation, Colonel John Scanlan ordered a withdrawal on the basis of “every man for himself”.

Over the following days, groups and individuals sought escape along New Britain’s north and south coasts. Some found small boats and got away on their own; others were picked up by larger vessels operating from New Guinea. Around 400 members of Lark Force managed to return to Australia.

A grisly fate awaited those who were captured. On 4 February, a group of 160 were massacred at the Tol Plantation shortly after their surrender.

Gunner Grimshaw was managed to avoid this fate, and was among the group of approximately 850 military prisoners and 200 civilian internees who were ordered to board the Montevideo Maru on the morning of 22 June.

Eight days into the voyage to Hainan, the Montevideo Maru was spotted by the American submarine USS Sturgeon, which manoeuvred into position to fire its stern torpedoes. Survivors from the Montevideo Maru’s Japanese crew reported two torpedoes striking the vessel, followed by an explosion in the oil tank in the aft hold.

The vessel sank in as little as 11 minutes. Of those aboard, barely 20 Japanese crew survived; over 1,000 others died. According to a surviving Japanese crewman, Australians in the water sang “Auld Lang Syne” to their trapped mates as the ship sank beneath the waves.

The sinking is considered the worst maritime disaster in Australia's history.

Unaware of the ship’s loss, the families of those on the Montevideo Maru continued to send letters in the belief that their loved ones were being held as prisoners of war.

Richard Grimshaw’s father died unexpectedly on 27 December 1943, still not aware if his son’s fate.

It was not until after the war that Grimshaw’s mother and sister learnt of the fate of those lost on the Montevideo Maru.

Richard Grimshaw was 23 years old.

His 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 Gunner Richard Vernon Grimshaw, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Duncan Beard
Editor, Military History Section