The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of Lieutenant James Whamond Annat, 3rd Queensland Mounted Infantry, Boer 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 Charis May, the story for this day was on Lieutenant James Whamond Annat, 3rd Queensland Mounted Infantry, Boer War.

Lieutenant James Whamond Annat, 3rd Queensland Mounted Infantry
KIA 6 August 1900
No photograph in collection

Story delivered 25 May 2014

Today we remember and pay tribute to Lieutenant James Whamond Annat.

Jim Annat was born in 1864 at Lintrathen in Airlie, Scotland. Little is known of his early life, but after leaving school at the age of 16 he joined the Gordon Highlanders rather than be sent by his parents to the Dundee Grammar School for further education. Jim Annat was described by a friend as "one of those men who seemed specially destined by nature, physically and mentally, to play the soldier's part on the stage of life".

Annat's military career was by his own account a very active one. He went to South Africa while still a teenager and was wounded at the Battle of Majuba Hill. On his return to England he was transferred to the Argyle and Sutherland Highlanders and served with them in the Zulu War of 1883-84.

Annat later went to Canada, where he served with the army in the north-west provinces and told rollicking tales of his encounters with Indigenous Americans. After Canada, Annat came to Australia and worked in New South Wales as a military instructor before moving to Queensland. There he married Isabel Ferguson and they went on to have five children.

In Queensland Annat engaged in a number of mining pursuits near the New South Wales border. In 1899 the Warwick Company of the Queensland Rifles was founded, and its men voted unanimously for Annat to be their commanding officer. He was one of the first Queensland officers to volunteer for service in the Boer War, although he was not immediately accepted due to a preference for officers from the mounted infantry. He was sent overseas for service with the third Queensland contingent, which left for South Africa in March 1900.

In May 1900 Annat and the Queensland contingent participated in the relief of the besieged town of Mafeking. In August the Queenslanders were again called into action at Elands River when the garrison they shared with other Australian, Rhodesian, Canadian, and British soldiers was besieged and shelled by Boers.

Trooper Corfe of the Queenslanders wrote home to say that "ever since the commencement of the bombardment, Annat had been running from [position to position], cheering and encouraging us all, regardless of danger. None of us hesitate in saying he was the best and bravest officer at Elands River".

On 6 August 1900 Annat was struck over the right eye by a bullet. The wound was bandaged and he was making his way back for further care when he was hit by an artillery shell. Trooper Corfe, who was nearby, reported: "He laid for about a quarter of an hour [before dying], but never regained consciousness. He was my own officer, and was certainly a splendid soldier and a brave man." Lieutenant Annat had been killed just three months after the birth of his third son, Hector. He was 36 years old.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, along with 605 others from the Boer War. There is no photograph in the Memorial's collection to display beside the Pool of Reflection.

This is but one of the many stories of courage and sacrifice told here at the Australian War Memorial. We now remember Lieutenant James Whamond Annat, and all of those Australians who have given their lives in the service of our nation.