Sergeant Samuel George Pearse

Service number	2870, 133002
Ranks Held	Private, Sergeant
Birth Date	1897-07-16
Birth Place	United Kingdom: Wales
Death Date	1919-08-29
Death Place	Russia: North Russia, Emtsa
Final Rank	Sergeant
Service	British Army
Units	45th Battalion Royal Fusiliers 45th Bn RF (1st MG Bn) 1st Australian Machine Gun Battalion 2nd Australian Machine Gun Company Royal Fusiliers
Places	Wales Penarth Emtsa
Conflicts/Operations	First World War, 1914-1918 North Russia, 1919
Gazettes	Biographical information They dared mightily. in 1963 Published in London Gazette in 1919-10-23 Published in London Gazette in 1917-12-12 Published in Commonwealth Gazette in 1918-05-02 Published in Commonwealth Gazette in 1920-02-12

Description

Sam Pearse (1897-1919) came to Victoria from Wales when only young. He enlisted in the AIF before he had turned 18. After brief service on Gallipoli with the 7th Battalion, he went to the Western Front, where he saw a lot of action and was awarded the Military Medal.

Once the war ended, Pearse married in Britain, but soon afterwards went to North Russia with the British relief force. In his heroic exploit there, he went through barbed-wire defences while under heavy machine-gun fire to attack a blockhouse. He single-handedly killed the occupants with bombs, but while fighting on he was killed. His widow and daughter later came to Australia

Collection items

Rolls

Honours and Awards (Recommendation):

Unit

2nd Australian Machine Gun Company

Conflict

First World War, 1914-1918

Rank

Private
Commemorative Roll:

Unit

45th Battalion Royal Fusiliers

Conflict

First World War, 1914-1918

Rank

Sergeant
Honours and Awards:

Unit

2nd Australian Machine Gun Company

Conflict

First World War, 1914-1918

Rank

Private

London Gazette

12 December 1917 on page 13026 at position 56

Commonwealth Gazette

02 May 1918 on page 1034 at position 58
Australian Red Cross Wounded and Missing Files:

Unit

Royal Fusiliers

Conflict

First World War, 1914-1918

Rank

Sergeant
First World War Embarkation Roll:

Conflict

First World War, 1914-1918

Rank

Private
First World War Nominal Roll:

Unit

1st Australian Machine Gun Battalion

Conflict

First World War, 1914-1918

Rank

Private
Honours and Awards:

Unit

45th Bn RF (1st MG Bn)

Conflict

First World War, 1914-1918

Rank

Sergeant

London Gazette

23 October 1919 on page 12979 at position 1

Commonwealth Gazette

12 February 1920 on page 142 at position 12

Timeline

Date of birth	16 July 1897
Date and unit at enlistment (ORs)	05 July 1915	1 Machine Gun Battalion.
Date of enlistment	05 July 1915
Date of embarkation	10 September 1915
Date of honour or award	28 September 1917	Awarded Military Medal for courage and resource on outpost duty, and services as a runner during fighting east of Ypres.
Date of recommendation honour or award	30 September 1917
Date and unit at enlistment (ORs)	1919	Enlisted in British Army, 45th Battalion, the Royal Fusiliers.
Date of discharge	18 July 1919
Date of death	29 August 1919
Date of honour or award	29 August 1919	Awarded Victoria Cross for action at North of Emtsa, North Russia whilst serving with 45 Battalion, Royal Fusiliers, Sadlier Jackson's Brigade as a Sergeant.