The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (NX15456) Private Frank Richard Archibald, 2/2nd Australian Infantry Battalion, Second 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 Sharon Bown, the story for this day was on (NX15456) Private Frank Richard Archibald, 2/2nd Australian Infantry Battalion, Second World War.

NX15456 Private Frank Richard Archibald, 2/2nd Australian Infantry Battalion
KIA 24 November 1942

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private Frank Richard Archibald.

Frank Archibald was born on 17 February 1915 in Walcha, New South Wales, the son of Frank and Sarah Archibald.
Frank was the eldest son of 13 children. He was also the elected successor of the Gumbaynggirr peoples, whose lands stretch along the Pacific coast from the Nambucca River in the south, to around the Clarence River in the north, and the Great Dividing Range in the west.

Frank Archibald lived in the Armidale-Walcha area until 1935, when the family moved to Burnt Bridge Mission, near Kempsey. The family had reportedly moved to the Mission after authorities threatened to remove their children. Government authorities promised that their children would not be taken if the family moved to the Mission.

Frank Archibald enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force at Kempsey in May 1940 at the age of 25.

Frank was assigned to reinforcements to the 2/2nd Infantry Battalion, part of the 16th Brigade within the 6th Division. His younger brother, Ronald, and his uncle, Richard, enlisted around the same time.

After some training at Greta, a small town in the Hunter Region, in August Archibald was granted leave before embarking at Sydney for overseas service.

After they reached Palestine in September, training continued until the 2/2nd Battalion advanced from Egypt into eastern Libya in January and February 1941. Archibald and his comrades were then involved in the attacks to capture Bardia and Tobruk, and they remained as part of the Tobruk garrison as the advance continued.

The 2/2nd left Tobruk, arriving in Greece in late March. Deployed north to resist the anticipated German invasion, a succession of Allied withdrawals meant that the battalion did not meet the enemy in battle until the 18th of April. In a desperate fight, the 2/2nd blocked German movement to permit the safe withdrawal of Allied forces further south, holding its ground until overwhelmed by vastly superior German forces.

During the evacuation, Frank was reportedly in a group of 12 cut off by the German army. The group made their way to the coast where they obtained a fishing boat which took them to Crete.

In March 1942, Archibald and the men of his battalion began making their way home. Their voyage involved a detour via Ceylon. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill wanted the Australian 16th and 17th Brigades to bolster British defences in the area, but the Australian Government finally ordered the troops home to defend Australia: Japanese forces had landed at Gona on the northern coast of New Guinea and pushed south to the village of Kokoda.
Arriving in Melbourne on the 4th of August 1942, a few weeks later Frank Archibald – known by his mates as “Dickie”– was welcomed to Kempsey by his community at a public function.

After this brief trip home, Archibald arrived on the shores of Port Moresby on 21 September 1942. His battalion fought major engagements at Templeton’s Crossing, Oivi, and on the Sanananda Track, suffering heavy casualties in the process. Having started the campaign with almost 700 personnel, by the time the battalion fought its final actions in December 1942, it had an effective strength of below 100, with many men having been evacuated due to sickness.

Franks’s brother Ronald had become ill with malaria and been evacuated, but Frank continued, noting in his letters that he used his bush skills to help fellow soldiers collect drinking water.

On 24 November 1942, the battalion was in the process of securing Sanananda when they encountered a group of Japanese soldiers dug in along the track. Under intense fire, the commander made the decision to split the platoon, leaving one group to engage the enemy while the rest of the platoon moved forward. Frank was with the group engaging the enemy when he noticed a friend caught in a dangerous position; as he was trying to save his friend, he was shot and killed.

He was 27 years old.

Initially buried near where he fell, his remains were later reinterred in Port Moresby (Bomana) War Cemetery.
On Anzac Day 2012, members of the Archibald family gathered at the cemetery to call Frank’s spirit home in a traditional spiritual ceremony. Soil was also taken from his gravesite and reinterred with his family in Armidale Cemetery.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my left, among almost 40,000 Australians who died while serving in the Second World War.

This is but one of the many stories of service and sacrifice told here at the Australian War Memorial. We now remember Private Frank Richard Archibald, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Duncan Beard
Editor, Military History Section