The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (1197) Sergeant Thomas Leslie Barratt, 14th Battalion, 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 Richard Cruise, the story for this day was on (1197) Sergeant Thomas Leslie Barratt, 14th Battalion, First World War.

1197 Sergeant Thomas Leslie Barratt, 14th Battalion
KIA 1 May 1915

Today we remember and pay tribute to Sergeant Thomas Leslie Barratt.

Thomas Barratt was born in 1893, the second son of Alexander and Mary Grace Barratt of Bendigo, Victoria. He attended the local state school and went on to become a bootmaker, owning a shoe repair shop in Bendigo. Thomas Barratt’s great passion was the military, and he became the youngest colour sergeant in the Victorian militia. He was a keen shot, and won a number of prizes in local competitions. Barratt was also an active member of the local tent of the Independent Order of Rechabites, a temperance society.

Barratt enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force a few weeks after the outbreak of war in 1914. His service in the citizens’ forces saw him quickly promoted to sergeant. After a period of training in Australia he left for active service overseas with the first contingent shortly before Christmas 1914.

He continued training in Egypt, increasingly in preparation for an assault on Turkish forces on the Gallipoli peninsula.
The 14th Battalion sailed from Lemnos Harbour for Anzac Cove at around 9.30 am on 25 April 1915. They arrived offshore in the early evening, and almost immediately were met with lighters filled with wounded coming alongside. Wounded men were squeezed on board throughout the night, with many of 14th Battalion staying awake to help.

The battalion began the process of disembarkation at mid-morning of the day following the landing, landing under fire throughout the day. They bivouacked that night on the beach and the next day began establishing a position around Quinn’s and Steele’s Posts on the heights above the beach. They were under constant fire, and the position remained precarious for some days.

On 1 May 1915, Sergeant Barratt was killed in action. No record of the manner of his death, but he was buried near where he fell. Today he lies in Courtney’s and Steel’s Post Cemetery under the simple epitaph, “A kind and loving son.” Thomas Barratt was 21 years old.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, among almost 62,000 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 Sergeant Thomas Leslie Barratt, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Meleah Hampton
Historian, Military History Section