Pte
Simon Richard Francisco
Information about birth
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Year of birth: 1893 |
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Place of birth: Mount Cole, Victoria, Australia |
General information
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Last known residence: Boomi, New South Wales, Australia |
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Profession: Contractor |
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Religion: Roman Catholic |
Army information
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Country: Australia |
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Force: Australian Imperial Force |
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Rank: Private |
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Service number: 3042 |
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Enlistment date: 01/09/1916 |
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Enlistment place: Armidale, New South Wales, Australia |
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Units: — Australian Infantry, 34th Bn. (Last known unit) |
Information about death
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Date of death: 12/10/1917 |
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Place of death: Tyne Cottage, Passchendaele, Belgium |
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Cause of death: Killed in action (K.I.A.) |
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Age: 24 |
Cemetery
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Tyne Cot Cemetery Plot: XXXIX Row: E Grave: 20 |
Points of interest 4
| #1 | Place of birth | ||
| #2 | Last known residence | ||
| #3 | Enlistment place | ||
| #4 | Place of death (approximate) |
My story
Simon Richard Francisco was born in Mount Cole, Victoria, in 1893. He was the son of Domingos and Margaret Ann Francisco. His grandfather was a Portuguese immigrant.
When Simon enlisted in September 1916, he worked as a contractor and lived with his parents in Boomi, New South Wales. Simon enlisted in January 1917 and was mustered into the 34th Battalion of the Australian Infantry in September 1917. The 34th Battalion was part of the 9th Brigade of the 3rd Australian Division. In late September, the 34th Battalion was transferred to Belgium where they were to be involved in the Battle of Passchendaele. On 12 October 1917, the 3rd Australian Division made a disastrous attack on Passchendaele itself. The battalion's jump line was near what is now Tyne Cot Cemetery. The 34th Battalion was the first battalion of the 9th Brigade to advance, followed by the 35th and 36th Battalions.
At 5.25am the barrage fell. It was very weak and it was difficult to determine which was the own barrage and what was German shellfire. The advance was slow. A first obstacle was two concrete pillboxes. One to the north of Augustus Wood and one to the north-east of Heine House. German machine-gun fire from these positions caused several casualties and held up the middle of the advance. By the time the 34th had reached the second objective, it had suffered heavy losses from German machine gun and shell fire. At 3pm, the battalions received instructions to hold a new line at all costs, running from Defy Crossing on the Ypers-Roulers railway towards Waterfields. Only a few hundred metres of ground had been gained. While Passchendaele seemed more unreachable than ever.
Simon, 24, was killed on 12 October 1917, having only been with his unit for a month. Simon was buried in the field near Tyne Cot. His remains were reburied in Tyne Cot Cemetery in 1920, where the young man still rests today.
When Simon enlisted in September 1916, he worked as a contractor and lived with his parents in Boomi, New South Wales. Simon enlisted in January 1917 and was mustered into the 34th Battalion of the Australian Infantry in September 1917. The 34th Battalion was part of the 9th Brigade of the 3rd Australian Division. In late September, the 34th Battalion was transferred to Belgium where they were to be involved in the Battle of Passchendaele. On 12 October 1917, the 3rd Australian Division made a disastrous attack on Passchendaele itself. The battalion's jump line was near what is now Tyne Cot Cemetery. The 34th Battalion was the first battalion of the 9th Brigade to advance, followed by the 35th and 36th Battalions.
At 5.25am the barrage fell. It was very weak and it was difficult to determine which was the own barrage and what was German shellfire. The advance was slow. A first obstacle was two concrete pillboxes. One to the north of Augustus Wood and one to the north-east of Heine House. German machine-gun fire from these positions caused several casualties and held up the middle of the advance. By the time the 34th had reached the second objective, it had suffered heavy losses from German machine gun and shell fire. At 3pm, the battalions received instructions to hold a new line at all costs, running from Defy Crossing on the Ypers-Roulers railway towards Waterfields. Only a few hundred metres of ground had been gained. While Passchendaele seemed more unreachable than ever.
Simon, 24, was killed on 12 October 1917, having only been with his unit for a month. Simon was buried in the field near Tyne Cot. His remains were reburied in Tyne Cot Cemetery in 1920, where the young man still rests today.
Sources 4
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Beaver E. and Meldrum J.W.G, A Short History of the 34th Battalion, AIF (Carlton, Illawarra Press, 1957) 22-24. Sources used |
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First Australian Imperial Force Personnel Dossiers, 1914-1920 (National Archives of Australia, Canberra (NAA), B2455, FRANCISCO S R). https://www.awm.gov.au/ Sources used |
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McCarthy Chris, Passchendaele: The Day-By-Day Account (Londen, Arms & Armour, 2018), 128-130. Sources used |
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Unit embarkation nominal rolls, 1914-18 War (Australian War Memorial, Campbell (AWM), AWM8). https://www.awm.gov.au/ Sources used |
More information 3
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Commonwealth War Graves Commission Database https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/462799 |
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Namenlijst (In Flanders Fields Museum) https://namenlijst.org/publicsearch/#/person/_id=a5732931-2478-4e9d-b7c6-c65337f7b545 |
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The AIF Project (UNSW Canberra) https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=103209 |