CONWAY, John

John Conway was born at Longford in Ireland on 9 April 1885, the son of James and Mary (nee Farrell) Conway. The 1901 census shows him as being eighteen years of age, a Labourer, not married, and could read and write. He was living with his parents. At age 19, he enlisted with the Royal Irish Fusiliers, and served in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Battalions. His attestation papers show his occupation as labourer. He was 5'6" tall, with brown hair, brown hair and a sallow complexion. His attestation papers show he enlisted on 1 May, 1901 at Armargh, was sent to Navan, Dublin and declared fit for army service on 10 May, 1901. He was awarded a 1st Class Certificate for Gymnastics and Swordsmanship on 8 March 1905 and for Physical Training at Dublin on 5 March 1909. 

He spent 12 years with the Royal Irish Fusiliers serving in Ireland from 1 May 1901 to 22 December 1902; in India from 22 December 1902 to 22 March 1908;  in Ireland, 23 March 1908-4 January 1911; again in India from 5 January 1911- 30 December 1913. In all, he served over twelve years. His brother Michael also served in the Royal Irish Fusiliers, 1st Battalion No. 10086

John Conway was arrested on 16 September 1912 for failing to attend roll call. He was tried on 1 October 1912 and reduced to the rank of Private, then discharged on 30 December, when his new address was in Australia.

He arrived in Australia sometime prior to 22  January, 1914, when he examined for the Australian Military Force, Permanent Forces. His enlistment date is shown as 13 February 1914 at the 3rd Military District, Melbourne, in the Instructional Staff Corps. he gave his birthdate as 10 April 1884. On 1 September, 1914, he was absent without leave, returning on 7 September, when he presented himself at the Victoria Barracks. He was discharged as 'Unfit for Corps', with his records showing he ahd served 207 days.

 The next record of his life is when he enlisted in the AIF on 8 September 1914. He was then 30 years old,  his religion Roman Catholic,  5'9'' tall and weighing 147 lbs. His occupation is listed as Labourer and strangely he enters "not married" and "no next of kin" on his enlistment paper. He was listed on the roll in D company as a Private on 5/- a day, and he gave his address as 'Railway Hotel, South Melbourne Vic'. This may indicate a problem:  he may have been running away from something and did not not want anyone to know his whereabouts or background. He married in 1914 and this must have happened prior to the embarkation with the 8th Battalion. His wife,  Lilian Maud Conway, recived a pension of 57/3 shillings a fortnight from the 23 November 1916 after his death in July 1916.

The 8th Battalion embarked from Melbourne on the HMAT Benalla [A24] on 19 November 1914, arrived in Eygpt early in 1915 and spent several months training prior to the attack on the Gallipoli Peninsula. On enlistment on 8 September 1914 John Conway had been attached as a private to the 8th Battalion D company. However, his military background was soon recognised and he was promoted to L/Corp on 17 September 1914, L/Sergeant 9 April 1915, and became a full Sergeant on 28 April 1915. This promotion was three days after the landing at Gallipoli and could have been due to the casualty rate during the first days of the landing or a indication of his strong leadership and military skills.

John Conway only lasted one day as a Sergeant. On the 29/30 April he suffered a gunshot wound to the head and was evacuated back through Eygpt to the UK. He is admitted to Grayling Well Military Hospital on 12 May 1915 and underwent six operations on his head wound over the next three months to remove bone fragments and to replace tissue. He spent time at the Australian Auxiliary Hospital at Harefield in Middlesex during September/October 1915 and was invalided out of the Army in November 1915 and placed on the supernumary list on 24 November 1915.

John Conway was returned to Australia from the UK on the SS Runic [A54] on 21 December 1915. Once home, he seems to have made a swift recovery. On 21 Febuary 1916 the Medical Board agreed that he was now fit for service and he returned to duty. On 7 March 1916, he re-embarked on the SS Wilshire [A18] for Eygpt and France. He was reallocated to the 60th Battalion in France and was promoted to Company Sergeant Major[W/O Class 2] on 29 May 1916.

On 17 July 1916 an attack on the enemy trenches at Fromelles by the 60th Battalion was planned,  but this was delayed due to bad weather and the attack was rescheduled for the night of 19th July. The unit moved to the forward trenches and after very heavy artillery shelling during the day from both the British and German the first wave moved off at 6.45pm.

Extract from the official War Diary 0f the 60th Battalion:

''Batt. scaled parapet and advanced in four waves, first wave leaving at 6.45pm, the last at 7.00pm. Each wave advanced under 'very heavy' artiliary, machine gun and rifle fire. Suffering very heavy casualties. Advance continued to within 90 yards of enemy trenches, the attack was held up although it is believed some few of the Batt entered enemy trenches. During the night 19/20 July a few stragglers wounded and unwounded returned to our trenches.''

The 60th Battalion was relieved the next day, 20 July, by the 57 Batt. At the  9.30am Roll Call on 20 July 1916 of the 60th Battalion, the fighting strength was 4 officers and 67 other ranks. The normal strength of a Battalion was between 600-800 which gives some indication of the carnage that happened on the night of 19 July 1916. John Conway was one of those who died in the  19 July attack.

He was listed as missing and formally confirmed killed in action at the Fromelles front on 26 September 1916. 

John Conway was buried by the Germans in a mass grave of 250 soldiers. His remains lie at VC Corner, Australian Cemetery and he is listed in the memorial at Fromelles. Of those buried, 166 sets of remains have been identified; John Conway is not one of them.

* It appears that John Conway may have married between enlisting and embarking. Records indicate he married Lilian Maud Pyers, who was born in Victoria, sometime in 1914. They must have had a short time together staying at 158 Powlett Street in East Melbourne before John embarked with the 8th Battalion.

His wife Lilian was granted a War Pension of 57/3 shilling per fortnight in November 1916. She appears to have never remarried and died in 1962 at the age of 80. As a young woman she had been a music teacher in Warrnambool while living there with her parents, and was a barmaid in Queenscliff in 1913, according to Electoral Roll records. In 1919 she was a nurse living at St Vincent's Hospital in Fitzroy, later resident at 17 Mackay St Prahran for about 20 years, and then at Cockatoo in the Dandenong Ranges, at all times giving her  occupation as nurse, even into her seventies.