Australian Victoria Cross Winners WW1

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Temporary Corporal Lawrence Carthage Weathers

Unit: 43rd Battalion, 11th Brigade, 3rd Division
Action: 2 September 1918, north of Peronne, France

A stalemate formed when the 43rd Battalion pinned down more than 150 Germans in a fork of the trenches. Weathers, 28, broke the deadlock. The citation says: ``Weathers went forward alone, under heavy fire, and attacked the enemy with bombs. Then, returning to our lines for a further supply of bombs, he again went forward with three comrades, and attacked under very heavy fire. Regardless of personal danger, he mounted the enemy parapet and bombed the trench, and, with the support of his comrades, captured 180 prisoners and thee machine-guns. His valour and determination resulted in the successful capture of the final objective, and saved the lives of many of his comrades.''

Biography: Before the war, Weathers was living with his wife in Adelaide and working as an undertaker. He was born in Te Koparu, New Zealand on 14 May 1890 and migrated with his family aged seven. He enlisted on 3 February 1916 and, a few weeks later was hospitalised for a month for a medical condition. He was shot in the leg in June 1917 while fighting at Messines and did not rejoin his unit for six months. He was gassed in May 1918 and, less than a month after his VC action, killed on the Beaurevoir line by an artillery shell burst. He is buried at Unicorn Cemetery, Vendhuille, France, survived by his widow and son. His brother, Thomas, had enlisted in the Light Horse and died at Gallipoli.

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Sergeant John Woods Whittle

Unit: 12th Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 1st Division
Action: 8 April and 15 April 1917, west of Boursies and Lagnicourt, France
As Captain Newland led his troops towards Boursies, Whittle, 34, was in charge of the platoon on the left.
The citation says: ``When in command of a platoon, the enemy, under cover of an intense artillery barrage, attacked the small trench he was holding. Owing to weight of numbers the enemy succeeded in entering the trench, and it was owing to Sergeant Whittle personally collecting all available men and charging the enemy that the position was regained.
``On a second occasion when the enemy broke through the left of our line, Sergeant Whittle's own splendid example was the means of keeping the men well in hand. His platoon were suffering heavy casualties, and the enemy endeavoured to bring up a machine-gun to enfilade the position. Grasping the situation he rushed alone across the fire-swept ground and attacked the hostile gun crew with bombs before the gun could be got into action.
``He succeeded in killing the whole gun crew and in bringing back the machine-gun to our position.''
Biography: Whittle spent nearly 20 years of his life in service.
Born on Huon Island on 3 August 1882, he served in the Boer War with the Fourth Tasmanian Contingent.
Returning to Australia, he served in the Royal Navy as a stoker for five years before returning to the army. He enlisted in the AIF on 6 August 1915.
He was wounded twice during the war and awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal for his gallantry at Bark Trench, where Newland was wounded on 27 February 1917.
After the war, he moved to Sydney where he worked for an insurance company. He was awarded a bravery certificate from the Royal Life Saving Society for rescuing a three-year-old boy from drowning in 1934. He died on 2 March 1946 and is buried at the Catholic Cemetery, Rookwood, survived by his wife , a son and three daughters -- a second son was killed while serving in New Guinea in World War II.