Thomas Leslie "Jack" Axford, (18 June 1894 – 11 October 1983) was an Australian recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy awarded to British and

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forces.

Early life

Thomas Axford was born on 18 June 1894 at

Carrieton Carrieton is a small town situated in the Flinders Ranges of South Australia. It is located between the towns of Orroroo, South Australia, Orroroo to the south and Cradock, South Australia, Cradock to the north. Originally opened in 1877 as Ya ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

. His father was an auctioneer, originally from Tasmania. When Axford was two years old, the family moved to

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, settling in Coolgardie. Educated at Coolgardie Primary School, he worked at the Boulder City Brewery after completing his schooling.Edgar, 2007, pp. 45–46 In 1912, he enlisted in the 84th Infantry (Goldfields Regiment) of the

Citizen Military Forces The Australian Army Reserve is a collective name given to the military reserve force, reserve units of the Australian Army. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, the reserve military force has been known by many names, including the Citize ...

.The AIF Project
www.aif.adfa.edu.au. Retrieved on 9 September 2009.

First World War

In July 1915, at the age of 21, Axford joined the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) for service in the First World War. He was assigned to the 11th Reinforcements of the

16th Battalion 16 (sixteen) is the natural number following 15 and preceding 17. It is the fourth power of two. In English speech, the numbers 16 and 60 are sometimes confused, as they sound similar. Mathematics 16 is the ninth composite number, and a sq ...

on 9 August 1915, which left Australia on HMAT ''Benalla'' that November. He arrived in the Middle East to join his unit in March 1916, missing the just completed Gallipoli Campaign. In June 1916, Axford's battalion went to France to fight on the Western Front. During the

Battle of Mouquet Farm The Fighting for Mouquet Farm, also known as the Battle of Mouquet Farm was part of the Battle of the Somme 1916 and began during the Battle of Pozières (23 July – 3 September 1916). The fighting began on 23 July with attacks by the British ...

on 11 August 1916, Axford was evacuated with shellshock. He returned to the battalion after two days. During most of 1917, the battalion was engaged in fighting in Belgium, attacking the

Hindenburg Line The Hindenburg Line (, Siegfried Position) was a German Defense line, defensive position built during the winter of 1916–1917 on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front in France during the First World War. The line ran from Arras to ...

. During the

Third Battle of Ypres The Third Battle of Ypres (; ; ), also known as the Battle of Passchendaele ( ), was a campaign of the First World War, fought by the Allies against the German Empire. The battle took place on the Western Front, from July to November 1917, f ...

, in fighting at Gapaard Farm, Axford was badly wounded in the knee by shrapnel. After medical treatment in England he rejoined the battalion in January 1918. The following month, he was promoted to

lance corporal Lance corporal is a military rank, used by many English-speaking armed forces worldwide, and also by some police forces and other uniformed organisations. It is below the rank of corporal. Etymology The presumed origin of the rank of lance corp ...

. During the

German spring offensive The German spring offensive, also known as ''Kaiserschlacht'' ("Kaiser's Battle") or the Ludendorff offensive, was a series of German Empire, German attacks along the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during the World War I, First Wor ...

, from March to April 1918, 16th Battalion was heavily engaged in fighting around Hébuterne. In May he was awarded the

Military Medal The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other arms of the British Armed Forces, armed forces, and to personnel of other Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, below commissioned o ...

(MM). It was during the

Battle of Hamel The Battle of Hamel was a successful attack by Australian Army and US Army infantry, supported by British tanks, against German positions in and around the town of Le Hamel, in northern France, during World War I. The attack was planned and co ...

, on 4 July 1918, that the events that led to Axford being awarded the

(VC) took place. His platoon was attacking towards Vaire Wood when a neighbouring platoon came under heavy fire. Axford took prompt action to remedy the situation. The citation for his VC read: In addition to being awarded the VC, Axford was promoted to

corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...

several days after the battle. Shortly before the end of the war, Axford returned to Australia on furlough. He was discharged from the AIF on 2 February 1919.

Later life

Axford returned to his old job at the Boulder Brewery, then went to learn a trade at Kalgoorlie Foundry, but was not eligible under the Australian Soldiers' Repatriation Act. He undertook various laboring jobs in the Eastern Goldfields. Later on he worked for a sewing machine company, and did casual work wherever he could get it until the early 1930s, when he worked initially as a

commissionaire In mainland Europe, a commissionaire is an attendant, messenger or subordinate employed in hotels, whose chief duty is to attend at railway stations, secure customers, take charge of their luggage, carry out the necessary formalities with respect ...

, then as a records clerk with the Western Australian Department of Mines in Perth. He had married Lily Maud Foster, a shop assistant, at St Mary's Cathedral, Perth, on 27 November 1926. They lived in the Perth suburb of

Mount Hawthorn Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

and were to have five children. In June 1941, during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he left his position at the Department of Mines to serve in the army's Western Australian Echelon and Records Office, in Perth, part of Headquarters Western Command. He was discharged with the rank of

sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

in April 1947, and returned to his position as a records clerk at the Department of Mines. He died on 11 October 1983 while aboard a flight returning to Australia following a Victoria Cross and George Cross Association reunion. Survived by his five children, he was cremated at the Karrakatta Crematorium in Perth. His wife predeceased him earlier in 1983.

Legacy

Axford's war medals, including his Victoria Cross, were donated to the

Australian War Memorial The Australian War Memorial (AWM) is a national war memorial, war museum, museum and archive dedicated to all Australians who died as a result of war, including peacekeeping duties. The AWM is located in Campbell, Australian Capital Territory, C ...

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

, where they are on display. Axford Park in Mount Hawthorn, and the Thomas Axford ward at the former

Repatriation General Hospital, Hollywood Hollywood Private Hospital (Hollywood) is an acute care hospital located in Nedlands, Western Australia. Hollywood is Western Australia's largest private hospital, with more than 900 licensed beds. The hospital is part of Ramsay Health Care Gro ...

, are named in his honour. On Anzac Day 2018, Axford and fellow VC recipient John Carroll, were honoured with a paver on the Walk of Fame in

Kalgoorlie Kalgoorlie-Boulder (or just Kalgoorlie) is a city in the Goldfields–Esperance region of Western Australia, located east-northeast of Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway. It is referred to as Kalgoorlie–Boulder as the surroundi ...

, Western Australia.

Notes

References

*Edgar, P. L. 2007
'Axford, Thomas Leslie (Jack) (1894–1983)'

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

, Volume 17. Melbourne University Press: Melbourne.

External links

*
Burial location of Thomas Axford
"Western Australia"

"Australian War Memorial" * {{DEFAULTSORT:Axford, Thomas Leslie 1894 births 1983 deaths Australian Army personnel of World War II Australian World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross People from Coolgardie, Western Australia Australian recipients of the Military Medal Australian military personnel of World War I Burials at Karrakatta Cemetery Military personnel from South Australia Australian Army soldiers