| Accession Number | P03510.003 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Negative |
| Maker |
Unknown |
| Place made | Germany: Hammelburg |
| Date made | 1941-1943 |
| Conflict |
Second World War, 1939-1945 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Portrait of NX2466 Corporal (Cpl) Malcolm Stuart Don, 2/1st Battalion, interned as a Prisoner of ...
Description
Portrait of NX2466 Corporal (Cpl) Malcolm Stuart Don, 2/1st Battalion, interned as a Prisoner of War (no. 10237) at Stalag XIIIc in Hammelburg am Main, Germany. Cpl Don, of Willoughby, NSW, was captured in Crete whilst fighting against the German land and airborne invasion in 1941. A former North Sydney Rugby Union footballer, amateur boxer and wrestler, he conducted boxing and wrestling classes for fellow inmates at the camp. Cpl Don died of meningitis on 12 April 1943, aged 31. He was given a funeral with full military honours, attended by 4000 Allied troops interned in the camp. Following his death, Cpl Don's parents received letters of condolence from the Padre, Doctor, and Man-of-Confidence at the camp, and a note from a soldier friend who described his burial at Hohenfels Cemetery: 'Cpl Don, a sportsman and a gentleman, was buried beside a Welshman and another Australian. A cross of beechwood fashioned by Australians, stands at his head.'