92 / 128
Carmichael actually joined the Battalion as a captain; hence the battalion
was called “Carmichael’s 1,000”.
Following a similar pattern to other Battalions, the 36
th
undertook a
lengthy period of training before entering the trenches for the first time in
4th December, 1916.
The very high casualty rates in all battalions, including the 36
th
, meant
that the 36
th
was disbanded in 30th April, 1918 to reinforce the other
Battalions in the Ninth Brigade. This is clear evidence of the great losses
suffered by the AIF in the war and the seriousness of the final battles,
particularly around Amiens.
Further Research
Analyse the breakdown by place of origin of the
soldiers of the battalions in which our local soldiers fought.
What effect on a soldier’s war effort and attitude do you think the idea of
regional battalions would have had?
REASONS FOR ENLISTMENT
Generally, many of the volunteers from the small village of Redhead
probably enlisted for different reasons than the earlier “rush” of
volunteers. The earlier volunteers were younger men who looked upon
enlistment more as an adventure to different parts of the world and a short
term engagement. They were unaware of the full consequences of this
new technological war.
Local volunteers were older, more likely to be married, probably more
responsible and were involved in more professional and “settled”
occupations.
Most locals enlisted after the Gallipoli disaster and therefore were more
likely to be aware of the consequences of their enlistment. In particular,
long casualties notices in the newspapers and the extended period of the
war would have indicated that the “1915 picnic before Christmas” was
never a possibility and had become a more “serious matter”.
Many of our local village volunteers were miners whose families had
come to Australia for work reasons but still had very close links to
Britain. Many of these men had been born in Britain and their family and
friends were still in the “mother country”. This background would have
encouraged volunteers like John Tudor Griffiths to join the AIF to help
90