Henry Herbert Cecil Symes (1894 - 1942)

Born Aug 1894 in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England

Husband of Irene Clare (Cameron) Symes — married 17 Dec 1921 in Queensland, Australia

Died 1 Jul 1942 at age 47 in At sea aboard the SS Montevideo Maru

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Amanda Myers [send private message]

Biography

Driver Henry Symes served in the Australian Imperial Force in World War I
Service started: 21 Sep 1915
Unit(s): 13th Field Artillery Brigade
Service ended: 23 Jun 1919

Henry Symes was a Prisoner of War during World War II.

Henry Symes died as a prisoner of war on the Montevideo Maru during the Second World War.

Henry Herbert Cecil Symes was born in 1894 in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, the eldest son of Walter Symes and Eliza Tripp

1901 Census

First name(s): Henry H C
Last name: Symes
Relationship; Son
Sex: Male
Age: 6
Birth Year: 1895
Birth place: Southsea, Hampshire, England

1911 Census

First Name(s): Henry Herbert Cecil
Last Name: Symes
Relationship to head; Son
Marital Status: Single
Sex: Male
Age; 16
Birth Year: 1895
Occupation; Pupil teacher
Birth Place: Portsmouth Hants

Henry arrived at the Bulimba wharf, Brisbane aboard the ship 'Themistocles' on 26 Dec 1913 from London 5 Nov 1913.

Henry was in Queensland working as a station manager in the Dalby region^[1] when he enlisted in the AIF in Toowoomba, QLD on 21 Sep 1915. He had previously served 3 years in the Royal Horse Artillery in England (1st Wessex/3rd Hants). His next of kin was his father, who was living in Gosport, England. He was 5ft 8 in tall, with dark complexion, blue eyes and brown hair.

He was allocated to the 13th Reinforcements to 3rd Field Artillery Brigade as a Gunner (No. 9636). He embarked from Australia on HMAT A35 "Berrima" on 17 Dec 1915 and was taken on strength with Divisional Artillery Train in Cairo, Egypt on 02 Feb 1916. On 16 Apr 1916 he was taken on strength with 13th FAB and allocated to 30th Battery.

He was promoted Driver on 08 May 1916. In Jun 1916 he sailed from Alexandria for Marseilles, France, disembarking there on 23 Jun 1916.

He was transferred to 14th FAB on 24 Jan 1917 and allocated to 25th Brigade. Following time in hospital sick (shell shock) he was temporarily allocated to HQ AIF Depots in England on 18 May 1917. He remained in England for the duration of the War. He returned to Australia on the "Orita", embarking on 23 Jun 1919 and disembarking on 09 Aug 1919 and was discharged on 02 Oct 1919.

World War One Service

The AIF Project
Henry Herbert Cecil SYMES
Regimental number: 9636
Place of birth: Portsmouth England
Religion: Church of England
Occupation: Station manager
Address: Quinnelly, near Tipton, via Dalby, Queensland
Marital status: Single
Age at embarkation: 21
Next of kin: Father, W H Symes, Thirya Villa, Alver Road, Gosport, England
Enlistment date: 21 September 1915
Rank on enlistment: Gunner
Unit name: Field Artillery Brigade 3, Reinforcement 13
AWM Embarkation Roll number: 13/31/4
Embarkation details: Unit embarked from Sydney, New South Wales, on board HMAT A35 Berrima on 17 December 1915
Rank from Nominal Roll: Driver
Unit from Nominal Roll: 13th Field Artillery Brigade
Fate: Returned to Australia 23 June 1919
Miscellaneous details (Nominal Roll): *Given name Henry Herbert

Henry moved to the Solomon Island about 1921 and had lived there for 19 years where he was a plantation manager. In 1936 he was at the Mamara Plantations, Guadalcanal.

He married Gertrude Alice Norton in the Solomon Islands in about 1925. There was one child - Ivan Geoffrey Symes.

In 1934 he applied for an Australian Patent for a barrel cleaning cartridge for firearms.^[2]

He moved to the Territory of New Guinea in about 1938 where he was a plantation manager at the Marabaru plantation, near Kokopo.

When the Japanese invaded in Jan 1942 he was captured at Kokopo and interned as a civilian prisoner. He died on board the "Montevideo Maru" when it was torpedoed and sunk off the coast of the Philippines on 01 Jul 1942, en route from Rabaul to Hainan where he was destined for forced labour.

Sources

1. ↑ COUNTRY VOLUNTEERS. (1915, August 11). The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), p. 6. Retrieved May 29, 2019, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20045009 - http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20045009
2. ↑ Application for Patent - National Archives of Australia - Application for Letters Patent for an invention by Henry Herbert Cecil Symes titled - Barrel cleaning cartridge for firearms (physical document)

• Birth - UK GRO BDM Birth index - SYMES, HENRY HERBERT CECIL; TRIPP; GRO Reference: 1894 S Quarter in PORTSEA ISLAND Volume 02B Page 523
• Virtual War Memorial Australia; https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/265634
• National Archives of Australia: http://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/scripts/AutoSearch.asp?O=I&Number=8096852
• The AIF Project: https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=293961
• Death Form - National Archives of Australia - Defence - General - Information of deaths for persons lost on the MONTEVIDEO MARU - https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=102239&S=174
• Commonwealth War Graves Commission - https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/3173365/henry-herbert-cecil-symes/