The 2/29th Battalion AIF Association Battle of Muar Commemoration Service was held at the Shrine on Sunday 14 January 2024.
The address given by Andrew Coffey is as follows:
We gather here today to commemorate the date in January 1941 when the 2/29th Battalion went into battle at Muar in Malaya.
We have heard the stories of the battle.
But who were these men?
Were they an Army unit that had been active and trained for years that they sent overseas to fight and defend our country?
No, they were mainly volunteers.
Victorian Men mostly, but also from Tasmania, Queensland and New South Wales.
Men who stood tall to defend our shores, men who walked away from families , loved ones, jobs, wives and children, to protect our country.
Most of them had only limited education, some left school at 14 or younger .
Yes they were given training. But they were famers, butchers, clerks, labourers
In October 2018 my wife Leigh and I travelled to the Kanji War Cemetery which sits on a hill overlooking the city of Singapore.
I wanted to take some photos of any 2/29th headstones we may have found
We had taken a handful of poppies on our trip to place on any 2/29th Battalion graves we may have found on our travels.
There were more than 72 headstones of men of the 2/29th that I photographed. Many that we didn't see.
We ran out of poppies.
There were rows and rows of headstones from all services and countries, men that fought and died, making the ultimate sacrifice
It was the varied ages of these men that hit home to us.
Some of them were too young to have ever experienced marriage or children. Some older men who had wives and families back home
But still they all went, they went to help and make a difference.
Pte Alexander, George Arthur, 38 years old
Cpl Willeman, Ernest James, 25
Pte Boyd, Cleave George, 35
Pte Bernard, Horace, 24
Pte Marcroft, Raymond Herbert, 22
Pte Skene, Edward Alexander, 27
Pte Catchpole, Jack Leonard, 18
Pte Francis, Oswald Chales, 23
Pte Ward, Lindsay Francis, 21
And what about the men who survived and came home.
Why did they join?
For many it was the first constant employment that they had.
Some joined up for a better life
Many lied about their ages,
If you were under 21 you required your parents permission.
Many had never been out of their home States prior to enlisting.
Men that returned were interviewed years later after the War
John Roxburgh enlisted because
Had a sense of “responsibility”
Slim Nelson left school at 13. worked harvesting peas, digging potatoes, trapping rabbits.
Jack Barclay left school when he was 11, trapped rabbits Jack “Really liked the Army life”, he was a great believer in discipline and “as long as you did what you were told you didn't get into any trouble”.
The Battalion was formed at Bonegilla in Victoria in October 1940. trained there and Bathurst until July sailed to Singapore arriving on 15 August 1941.
In the second week of September the 2/29th travelled to Segament in Malaya, where it continued its training.
The battalion would soon put what it had learnt into practice going into battle January 17th 1942.
By 15 February 1942 the men that survived the battle had become POWs.
The Battalion eventually consisted of 1,602 men
By Wars end
93 Killed In Action
160 Presumed Killed In Action
Died of wounds 7
Died of injuries 19
Executed 4
Died POW 360
Presumed drowned 29
Total that died 673
929 survived
Those that managed to come home were described as “Thin & Haunted”, many yellow with jaundice and suffering from illnesses which lasted for years after the War had ended.
Many had to sleep on the floor when they went home for months as they could not adjust to a soft bed.
Most had nightmares.
Some shared their stories of captivity, some never spoke about it all.
But they did come back, they went back to their families, back into jobs, back into the workforce, some struggled, but most, once again became active members of the community, again working, supporting families and making a difference.
After the War, In the growing suburbs of Melbourne many men of the 2/29th built houses, my father built in East Bentleigh, others in close by suburbs, Huntingdale, South Oakleigh, Moorabbin, Malvern.
The men continued to remain close, supporting each other as they had done while Prisoners, our families and children all grew up together. They continued to support each other. The mateship continued.
In 1999 John Lack, an historian and Son of a 2/29th member, suggested to his history students that they interview 2/29th Battalion members about their experiences.
For this we are extremely grateful to John and his students, the men shared their stories, many of us discovered information which we would never have learnt.
Now the Men have all gone, and we only have their stories.
We have the ones that managed to return and those who didn’t, to thank for all of us being here today.
Our lives were shaped by them
Those that returned, and those that made the ultimate sacrifice.
At the going down of the sun
And in the morning
We Will Remember Them.