Arthur Alfred Ellem (1917 - 1995)

Born 10 Nov 1917 in Grafton, New South Wales, Australia

Ancestors

Husband of Wanda Ellen (Sunaklis) Ellem — married 1949 in Sydney, NSW

Died 24 Sep 1995 at age 77 in Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Rod Kennedy [send private message]

Biography

Arthur was born in 1917^[1]He married Wanda Sunaklis in 1949^[2] He served in WWII. He was a POW, captured in Athens, Greece. Service: Australian Army Service Number: NX8981 Date of Birth: 10 Nov 1917 Place of Birth: GRAFTON, NSW Date of Enlistment: 7 Dec 1939 Locality on Enlistment: WOOLGOOLGA, NSW Place of Enlistment: PADDINGTON, NSW Next of Kin: ALVERSON, F Date of Discharge: 13 Nov 1945 Rank: Private Posting at Discharge: 2/2 Battalion WW2 Honours and Gallantry: None for display Prisoner of War: Yes

From The Australian War Memorial website:

The 2/2nd Battalion was raised at Victoria Barracks, Sydney on 24 October 1939 as part of the 16th Brigade of the 6th Australian Division. It relocated to the newly-opened Ingleburn Camp on 2 November and, after conducting basic training there, sailed for overseas service on 10 January 1940. After disembarking in Egypt on 13 February 1940, the 2/2nd trained with the rest of the 16th Brigade in Palestine until the end of August. It then moved to Egypt to carry out its final preparations for operations with the 6th Division.

The 2/2nd Battalion’s first campaign of the Second World War was the advance from Egypt into eastern Libya in January and February 1941. It was involved in the attacks to capture Bardia (3-5 January) and Tobruk (21-22 January), and remained as part of the Tobruk garrison when the advance continued. The 2/2nd left Tobruk on 7 March, ultimately bound for Greece.

Arriving in Greece on 22 March, the 2/2nd was soon deployed north to resist the anticipated German invasion. It occupied positions at Veria on 7 April, but a succession of withdrawals by the Allies in Greece meant that the battalion did not meet the enemy in battle until 18 April - at Tempe (Pinios) Gorge. There, in a desperate fight, the 2/2nd blocked German movement through the gorge to permit the safe withdrawal of Allied forces further south. It held its ground until overwhelmed by vastly superior German forces. Some parties from the battalion later managed to rejoin the main withdrawal south, and were eventually evacuated by the Allied navies, while others made epic escapes through the Greek islands. A group of 189 members of the 2/2nd subsequently fought with the 16th Brigade Composite Battalion on Crete.

Sources

1. ↑ NSW Birth Registration 49419/1917
2. ↑ NSW Marriage Registration 542/1949

Arthur (my dad) was not captured in Athens he was captured in Crete and was a POW in Austria until the end of the war. The sender, John Ellem

• National Archives of Australia, WWII service record