2nd Lt
Morris Hart

Information about birth

Date of birth:
06/10/1895
Place of birth:
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

General information

Last known residence:
"Marara" Bowen Bridge Road, Brisbane, Australia
Profession:
Clerk
Religion:
Church of England

Army information

Country:
Australia
Force:
Australian Imperial Force
Rank:
Second Lieutenant
Enlistment date:
01/07/1916
Enlistment place:
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Units:
 —  Australian Infantry, 42nd Bn.  (Last known unit)

Information about death

Date of death:
04/10/1917
Place of death:
Thames, Zonnebeke, Belgium
Cause of death:
Killed in action (K.I.A.)
Age:
21

Memorial

Distinctions and medals 2

Points of interest 4

#1 Place of birth
#2 Last known residence
#3 Enlistment place
#4 Place of death (approximate)

My story

Morris Hart, a former clerk, was born on 6 October 1895 in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. He was the son of Frederick MacDonnell and Isabella Hart and had a twin brother Byrne. Both Hart brothers enlisted on 1 July 1916 at Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Morris Hart entered the force as a private but rose through the ranks. On the 23rd of July 1917 he was promoted to second lieutenant. Morris Hart served in 'C' Company of the 42nd Bn. Australian Infantry, part of the 11th Australian Brigade, of the 3rd Australian Division.

On 4 October 1917 the 42nd Battalion took part in the attack on the Broodseinde Ridge. Their assembly point was located between Hill 40 and the Zonnebeke station on the Ypres-Roulers railroad. The attack began at 6 a.m. The 42nd Battalion advanced behind the 43rd Australian Infantry. Forty minutes later it leapfrogged through the 43rd and moved towards Thames. The Germans were caught off guard and the 42nd Battalion captured the fortified positions at Alma and Thames without much fighting. After the line at Thames had been consolidated, the 44th Battalion moved through, continuing the attack on the ridge. Though the men didn’t get much resistance along the way, the German artillery heavily shelled the advance. Most casualties were sustained due to shell fire. Casualties were especially high when a barrage caught the advance in Thames Wood.

Hart Morris, aged 21, was killed in action on October 4, 1917. Second Lieutenant Hart had reached the first objective near Thames and was consolidating the line with his men. While digging in a shell fragment struck him in the head. Second Lieutenant Morris was initially buried where he fell near Thames, Zonnebeke. A cross bearing his name was erected on the site. His remains were not recovered or identified after the war. Morris Hart has no known grave and is remembered on panel 27A of the Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial.

Sources 8

11th Infantry Brigade (Australian War Memorial, Campbell (AWM), AWM4 23/11/11).
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1343673
Sources used
42nd Infantry Battalion (Australian War Memorial, Campbell (AWM), AWM4 23/59/12).
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1343629
Sources used
Australian Red Cross Wounded and Missing Enquiry Bureau (Australian War Memorial, Campbell (AWM), RCDIG1064166).
https://www.naa.gov.au/
Sources used
Crompton, Richard. 1805 Info 8h: John Henry Crompton His death at Zonnebeke (3rd Ypres) - 4 October 1917
http://www.rgcrompton.info/crompton/1805info8h.html
Sources used
First Australian Imperial Force Personnel Dossiers, 1914-1920 (National Archives of Australia, Canberra (NAA), B2455).
https://www.naa.gov.au/
Sources used
Hart, Robin. Hart, Byrne (Lieutenant, 49 Battalion); Hart, Morris (Lieutenant, 42 Battalion, d. 1917). Australian War Memorial: MSS1674.
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/MSS1674
Sources used
Stephenson, Stuart. Annals of the Brisbane Grammar School 1869 – 1922 (Brisbane: Anthony James Cumming, 1923).
Sources used
Unit embarkation nominal rolls, 1914-18 War (Australian War Memorial, Campbell (AWM), AWM8).
https://www.naa.gov.au/
Sources used

More information 3