American Ambulance Corps hat badge : Lieutenant G Clune

Place	Europe: France
Accession Number	REL26631.001
Collection type	Heraldry
Object type	Badge
Maker	Unknown
Place made	United States of America
Date made	c 1916
Conflict	First World War, 1914-1918

Description

American Ambulance Corps brass hat badge. The badge is made up of a pair of outspread wings with a shield in between. In raised detail at the top of the badge is `AMERICAN AMBULANCE' and beneath this is the emblem of the Red Cross and then `FRANCE' also in raised detail. The reverse of the badge has a threaded post soldered to it for attaching to a cap. There are also two lugs, one at each wing tip that have been broken off.

History / Summary

Associated with the service of 585 Private George Clune who was born in Cumberland, Sydney, NSW in 1889. Clune enlisted on 12 August 1914 into the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force (ANMEF), bound for German New Guinea and the islands of the Bismarck Archipelago. He was posted to G Company of the 1st (Tropical) Battalion and was allocated the service number 585 and rank of private. Clune embarked with the ANMEF from Cockatoo Island aboard HMAT Berrima on 18 August. The force landed at Palm Island for a period of further training and preparations.

The ANMEF landed at New Britain in September - the initial force, mainly naval personnel, landing at Kabakaul at dawn on 11 September. Clune went ashore a day later with the main force at Herbertshohe. The German forces surrendered on 13 September and the Union Jack was raised over Rabaul the same day.

Clune returned to Australia with the first contingent in late February. He was discharged on 4 March 1915. He was rejected for service with the AIF and later, the Canadian Armed Forces. He volunteered to join the American Ambulance Corps in 1916 and was accepted. This unit was made up of approximately 600 volunteers who paid for their own passage to France and provided their own uniforms and equipment. The corps began its work under the joint auspices of the British Red Cross and St John Ambulance.

The corps operated four hundred cars from their two hospitals which were at Neuilly-sur-Seine and Juilly-sur-Marne. He was stationed at the Corps Headquarters in Paris and was promoted to lieutenant for his work in the field. He returned to Australia in early 1917. In 1942 he served with the Naval Auxiliary Patrol in Australia.