The AIF Project

Richard James MATHIESON

Regimental number701
Place of birthPort Chalmers, New Zealand
SchoolState School
Age on arrival in Australia27
ReligionPresbyterian
OccupationLabourer
AddressAustralian Hotel, Ross Island, Townsville, Queensland
Marital statusSingle
Age at embarkation37
Height5' 9"
Weight160 lbs
Next of kinSister, Mrs Elizabeth Beitch, 117 Liddell Street, Invercargill, New Zealand
Previous military service1 year 72 days' Eastern Province Horse, South Africa; 1 year 3rd NSW Imperial Bushmen
Enlistment date31 August 1914
Place of enlistmentTownsville, Queensland
Rank on enlistmentPrivate
Unit name9th Battalion, F Company
AWM Embarkation Roll number23/26/1
Embarkation detailsUnit embarked from Brisbane, Queensland, on board Transport A5 Omrah on 24 September 1914
Rank from Nominal RollPrivate
Unit from Nominal Roll9th Battalion
Other details from Roll of Honour CircularMentioned twice in despatched for deeds of valour on the battle field in South Africa
FateKilled in Action 25 April 1915
Place of death or woundingGallipoli, Turkey
Age at death from cemetery records33
Place of burialNo known grave
Commemoration detailsThe Lone Pine Memorial (Panel 17), Gallipoli, Turkey

The Lone Pine Memorial, situated in the Lone Pine Cemetery at Anzac, is the main Australian Memorial on Gallipoli, and one of four memorials to men of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force. Designed by Sir John Burnet, the principal architect of the Gallipoli cemeteries, it is a thick tapering pylon 14.3 metres high on a square base 12.98 metres wide. It is constructed from limestone mined at Ilgardere in Turkey.

The Memorial commemorates the 3268 Australians and 456 New Zealanders who have no known grave and the 960 Australians and 252 New Zealanders who were buried at sea after evacuation through wounds or disease. The names of New Zealanders commemorated are inscribed on stone panels mounted on the south and north sides of the pylon, while those of the Australians are listed on a long wall of panels in front of the pylon and to either side. Names are arranged by unit and rank.

The Memorial stands over the centre of the Turkish trenches and tunnels which were the scene of heavy fighting during the August offensive. Most cemeteries on Gallipoli contain relatively few marked graves, and the majority of Australians killed on Gallipoli are commemorated here.

Panel number, Roll of Honour,
  Australian War Memorial
50
Miscellaneous information from
  cemetery records
Parents: Thomas and Sarah MATHIESON.
Other details

War service: Egypt, Gallipoli

Embarked Alexandria to join Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, Gallipoli, 2 March 1915.

Missing, 25 April 1915.

Court of Enquiry held in the field, France, 5 June 1916, declared killed in action, Gallipoli, 25 April 1915.

Medals: 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal
SourcesNAA: B2455, MATHIESON Richard James

Print format    


© The AIF Project 2024, UNSW Canberra. Not to be reproduced without permission.