Charles Henry Wilfred Holland

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HOLLAND, Charles Henry Wilfred

Service no: 2599 [1]

Place of birth: Orange, 1893

Address: Greghamstown

Occupation: Farmer

Next of kin: John William Holland (father), Greghamstown

Date of enlistment: 11 June 1915

Place of enlistment: Brisbane, QLD

Age at enlistment: 21

Fate: Proceeded to Enoggera Training Camp 12 June 1915. Embarked HMAT A55 Kyarra, Brisbane 16 August 1915. Admitted to Military Hospital at Shubra suffering from parotitis, 28 September 1915. Discharged to duty 28 October 1915. Admitted to Field Ambulance suffering from diphtheria, 13 November 1915. Transferred to 16th Stationary Hospital, Lemnos, 14 November 1915. Admitted to 2nd Australian General Hospital, Ghezireh, suffering from phthisis, 27 December 1915. Transferred to Ras-el-Tin Convalescent Camp suffering from pneumonia 15 January 1916. Admitted to Montasah Convalescent Hospital suffering from diphtheria and bronchial pneumonia 9 February 1916. Discharged to duty, Ghezireh, 19 February 1916. Joined British Expeditionary Force, Marseilles, 3 April 1916. Reported missing in action, Pozieres, France, 23 July 1916. Declared to have been killed in action, Pozieres, France, 23 July 1916 following a Court of Enquiry held on 2 July 1917.

Date of death: 23 July 1916

Buried: No known grave


Charles Henry Wilfred Holland was born in Orange in 1893, the first child of John William and Lily Hannah Holland. A sister, Gertrude, followed in 1895.

The family lived at Greghamstown, where John was a farmer; he was also an active member of the Blayney branch of the Farmers and Settlers’ Association. He became secretary, and then President of the Association. Charles attended Blayney School, then joined his father on the family farm.

In June 1915 Charles volunteered for active service. He enlisted in Brisbane and attended Enoggera training camp. He embarked from Brisbane in August 1915, a Private in the 9th Australian Infantry Battalion, 8th Reinforcements. Charles served in Egypt and France.

Ill-health plagued Private Holland; he was hospitalised on several occasions, suffering from parotitis (inflamed salivary glands) in September 1915, diphtheria in November and phthisis (tuberculosis) in December. He spent early 1916 in Montasah Convalescent Hospital in Egypt recovering from bronchial pneumonia.

On 5 January 1916 Charles’ father received a telegram advising that Charles had been admitted to 2nd Australian General Hospital at Ghezireh in Egypt. The following week John wrote to the Army records office requesting further information and the address of the hospital, ending his letter: “kindly oblige anxious mother”.

Private Holland recovered; he joined the British Expeditionary Force in April 1916 and proceeded to France. In July he was reported missing in action. At a Court of Enquiry held at le Havre in July 1917 a fellow soldier claimed to have seen Private Holland lying dead in a trench, he appeared to have been hit in the head by a shell. The Court declared Charles to have been killed in action at Pozieres in France on 23 July 1916. He has no known grave.

Charles Holland is commemorated on the Greghamstown District and School Honour Roll, the Blayney Methodist Church Roll of Honor and the Blayney Honour Roll in the Soldiers Memorial Hall.

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