Richard Wong

Accession Number: P04314.001

The 17th Battalion, prior to embarkation from Sydney aboard HMAT Ascanius on 25 October 1916.

Richard Wong was born in Ringarooma, Tasmania, in 1888. He was the third son of Bartholomew Wong Poo and his wife, Emma Jane. Richard’s father was a missionary to the Chinese population in and around Ringarooma, and supported his family on a wage of voluntary contributions for his work. His father’s English was not strong, and although Richard’s mother was of European descent, his upbringing was centered in the Chinese community.

Like his father, Richard was a quiet man. The family eventually moved to Victoria, where his parents had married in 1877, and settled in Beechworth.Richard attended the local school and went on to become a blacksmith and a farrier. In 1912 his father died at the age of 83.

In February 1915 Richard’s younger brother William attempted to enlist for service in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), but was turned down as being “not substantially of European descent”. In January 1916 Richard tried to enlist again, and this time he was successful. He was posted to the 17th Battalion and after a period of training in Australia was sent to England. He arrived in France to fight on the Western Front in December 1916.

Richard spent the harsh winter of 1916–17 with his battalion, rotating in and out of the front line. He became ill in February and spent a short time in hospital recovering, before once again returning to the front line.

In early March 1917 a party from the 17th Battalion conducted a bombing attack on German positions near the French village of Warlencourt. As a result, the Germans sent over an artillery barrage on the Australian line. One of the artillery shells exploded close to Richard and he was killed instantly, aged 29. He had been on the Western Front less than four months.

Richard’s body was recovered by his mates, and he was buried nearby. Today he lies in the Warlencourt British Cemetery with more than 330 other identified Australian soldiers of the First World War.