Not Forgotten, 2891, Private Arthur Engle GREENHAM, 48 Battalion AIF, World War 1

The Dowerin War Memorial lists an S. Greenham, and Sydney Greenham, the brother of both Arthur and George Greenham did enlist in the 44th Battalion A.I.F. at Fremantle on 27 March 1917, giving his occupation as farmer and his age as 21, which was untrue. On 11 August 1917 Sydney Greenham was discharged from the army for being under age and his parents refusing their consent. I believe there was some confusion about the Greenham brothers when the memorial in Dowerin was organised. The family farmed at Badgerin, north-west of Koorda and the brothers may not have been well known in Dowerin.

Arthur Greenham was born in Dartmoor in Victoria, the son of Albert Greenham later of Badgerin near Koorda. The family farmed at Badgerin and Arthur’s occupation is listed as Teamster on one form and Farmer on another. Arthur had previously served in the 86th Battalion, Citizen Military Forces in Bunbury, then moved to an Exempt Area under the Compulsory Military Training Scheme. Arthur Greenham enlisted on 14 September 1914 at the Drill Hall in Perth at the age of 19 and was placed in the 11th Battalion, 1st Reinforcements.

There seems to have been some delay in Arthur Greenham’s progress to training as he did not embark from Fremantle, Western Australia, on board HMAT A20 Hororata until 5 October 1915, was taken on strength with the 16th Battalion at Ismailia in Egypt on 8 January 1916 and transferred to the 48th Battalion at Tel el Kebir in Egypt on 3 March 1916, on that day also promoted to temporary Lance Corporal. Ten days later he was admitted with influenza to the 12th Field Ambulance in the Canal Zone, transferred to No 2 Australian Stationary Hospital on 28 March 1916 with lumbago, then transferred by Hospital Train to the British Red Cross Convalescent Hospital at Montazah on 1 April 1916 with influenza and finally re-joined the 48th Battalion at Serapeum on 27 April 1916.

June 1916 saw Arthur Greenham join the British Expeditionary Force and arrive at Marseilles in the south of France on 9 June. The Battle of the Somme took place between 1 July and 18 November 1916. More than three million men fought in the battle, of whom more than one million were either wounded or killed, making it one of the deadliest battles in all of human history.6 Within a month of his arrival in France Arthur Greenham was killed in action, on 6 August 1916 and buried in Serre Road Cemetery in France. I don’t know exactly what happened to Arthur Greenham but the fighting moved up and down the line throughout the time of the battle. There were other men from the 48th Battalion killed around the same time as Arthur Greenham and many graves of unidentified men in Serre Road Cemetery.

Arthur Greenham was awarded the 1914-15 Star, the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.