corporal

From Wikipedia: "A despatch rider is a military messenger, mounted on horse or motorcycle. "Despatch riders were used by armed forces to deliver urgent orders and messages between headquarters and military units. They had a vital role at a time when telecommunications were limited and insecure. In the British Army, motorcycle despatch riders were first used in the World War I by the Royal Engineers Signal Service. The riders were originally volunteers, some of whom supplied their own machines."

LOC -- Bain's caption has no comma.

Williams Australian Army papers can be seen here naa12.naa.gov.au/NameSearch/Interface/ItemDetail.aspx?Bar... He was born Fremantle and had been employed as a Clerk prior to enlisting. He gave his next of kin as his father, living at 29 Hampton Road, Fremantle.(Subsequent mails went to 9 Hampden Road, so may be an error) He is described as 5 feet 8 and a quarter inches tall, weighed 175 pounds with a fresh complexion, grey eyes and brown hair. His religion is given as Congregalionalist. It looks like he had to resign from some kind of militia unit in order to be able to enlist for service overseas. His military career seems to have followed a not untypical pattern for Australian soldiers, with several offences for being absent from parade and AWOL while stationed in England but rapidly promoted once in the field. Even whilst recovering he went AWOL from hospital for 3 days. As well as the Croix de Guerre, the note on his records read "Commendation of the Div.Commandant at Armentieres. 8.3.17 During a bombardment of the town by the enemy, Cpl Bawden by allaying(?) the alarm of the residents(?) + helping the wounded. A factory was being shelled causing casualties among the women workers. On hearing cries for assistance Cpl Bawden entered the building and ??? assisted in the removal of the wounded workers while the factory was still being shelled - before all were removed he himself was severely wounded. (??? = handwriting is indecipherable. The citation isn't typed out anywhere in his records)

It is tempting to assume that this picture was taken after his injuries had been managed, perhaps even after the war. His uniform is in particularly good condition for the time and the right side of his face, sympathetically in shadow, does appear to be disfigured.

Help piece together the Life Stories of more than 8 million men and women who made a contribution during the First World War at www.livesofthefirstworldwar.org/

Corporal Joseph Pierce served the Union Army during some of the most significant battles of the Civil War, including the Battle of Antietam and the Battle of Gettysburg. Pierce was promoted to Corporal following the Battle of Gettysburg, making him one of the highest ranked Chinese American soldiers in the Union Army. Pierce injured his back badly after falling over a fence during the Battle of Antietam and was hospitalized for over a month. Pierce’s injury plagued him for the rest of his life, resulting in muscle weakness and constant pain. Despite his disability, Pierce’s pension was not high enough to support his family and he worked until his death in 1916. Today, Pierce’s portrait hangs in the Gettysburg Museum, a tribute to the Asian and Pacific Islander soldiers who served during the Civil War.

Awww he looks so young.

Extremely cool history. Thank you

Heroic achievement and inevitable tragic life. Prayers and Thanks.