The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (1917) Lance Corporal Alfred John Everleigh Carmichael, 55th Battalion, AIF, First World 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 (1917) Lance Corporal Alfred John Everleigh Carmichael, 55th Battalion, AIF, First World War.

1917 Lance Corporal Alfred John Everleigh Carmichael, 55th Battalion, AIF
KIA 26 September 1917

Story delivered 25 October 2017

Today we remember and pay tribute to Lance Corporal Alfred John Everleigh Carmichael.

Known as “Jack”, Alfred Carmichael was born in 1895 in Young, New South Wales, to James and Rose Carmichael. He grew up in Young and attended the local public school. When he was about six or seven years old, his father deserted the family, leaving his mother to raise a large family alone. Jack Carmichael went on to become a compositor for a printing company, and the sole support of his mother. By the time war broke out in 1914 he had spent three years in the cadet forces and two years in the local militia.

Carmichael enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force in January 1915. He underwent a period of training in Australia before leaving for active service overseas with reinforcements to the 3rd Battalion in April. He was first sent to Egypt, and from there to Gallipoli, where he arrived in mid-June.

Private Carmichael was with the 3rd Battalion as they participated in the Battle of Lone Pine. During the operation he was wounded and shortly afterwards was evacuated from the peninsula. He spent weeks in hospital in Malta and later England recovering from his wounds before returning to Mudros in early December 1915. Weeks later the AIF was evacuated from Gallipoli and returned to Egypt, Carmichael among them.

In Egypt, the AIF underwent a period of expansion and reorganisation. As part of this process Private Carmichael was transferred to the 55th Battalion. Around this time he met his close mate, Lieutenant Harry Wilson, and the two became like brothers. After several weeks’ training in Egypt, Private Carmichael’s military discipline declined, and he was charged at least twice with breaking camp and improper conduct before his battalion left for Europe.

Private Carmichael arrived in France to fight on the Western Front in late June 1916, and shortly afterwards had a weeks’ leave. The day after he returned to his battalion, it took part in the disastrous operation at Fromelles, first in support, but later in the critical role of forming the rearguard for the 14th Brigade’s withdrawal. Private Carmichael came through unscathed, and the following month was promoted to lance corporal.

Private Carmichael spent Christmas 1916 in hospital with an infection from which it took more than a month to recover. In early 1917 the 55th Battalion followed up the German retreat to the Hindenburg line, and played a small part in the battles of Bullecourt. In the middle of the year Harry Wilson transferred back to the 3rd Battalion to be with his brother, and later recalled, “Jack did not seem contented after I left, and was going to try and get in with me here”. He was still with the 55th Battalion in September 1917 when it took part in its next major offensive: the Battle of Polygon Wood.

On 26 September 1917 the 55th Battalion advanced in misty conditions, capturing German positions and reaching their objectives despite heavy German artillery and machine-gun fire. At some point on this day, Lance Corporal Jack Carmichael was killed in action. His platoon sergeant, John Bye, later wrote to Jack’s parents, saying, “I was quite near your son when he was hit with a piece of shell, and he died at once without pain … he had been in my platoon for some time and as a soldier he proved himself one of the best – always brave and cheerful under circumstances of a straining nature. In the platoon he was very popular, and his death is much regretted.”

Harry Wilson, by this time a captain with the 3rd Battalion, also wrote to Carmichael’s parents to say, “he was a man of excellent character and was loved by all who knew him. He was an admirable soldier, and all the old hands of the 3rd and 55th Battalions respected him for his steadfast devotion to duty … I can’t write any more about it, as it makes me feel miserable when I think of the loss.”

Lance Corporal Carmichael was buried in the field of battle, and a short service was read over his grave. His battlefield resting place was later lost, and today he is commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing. He was 22 years old.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, among more than 60,000 Australians who died while serving in the First World War.

This is but one of the many stories of service and sacrifice told here at the Australian War Memorial. We now remember Lance Corporal Alfred John Everleigh Carmichael, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Meleah Hampton
Historian, Military History Section