I Was Only Doing My Job By Ross Manuel: Recent Episodes
Ross Manuel
"I Was Only Doing My Job" is a fortnightly (Bi-weekly) Australian Military History podcast hosted by Ross Manuel. Instead of focusing on maps and dates, each episode is devoted to chronicling Australia's Military History through the individual stories of those who served; where they grew up, what they did, and invariably what happened to them.
30-AUGUST-1942. While serving as a soldier in the 2/14th Australian Imperial Force as part of the Second Australian Imperial Force, Private Claude Herbert Roberts served from the sands of Egypt and Palestine to the mountainous slopes of Kokoda.
This episode was requested by his great-niece Christine and was made possible thanks to recently discovered letters sent home during the war. If there is someone that you think needs to have their story told, drop the podcast an email at podcast@thedocnetwork.net
Thanks to Seth for purchasing the brand-new Armoured Emu Brigade Unit Patch.
Get yours now at Our Ko-Fi Shop---
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, MastodonYouTube
7-SEPTEMBER-1901. While serving with the Bushveldt Carbineers, a British Irregular Mounted Unit, during the Second Anglo-Boer War, Lt Harry Harbord Morant, better known as "Breaker Morant" allegedly ordered the execution of eight Boer Prisoners of War, along with several Dutch civilians, and a German Missionary. For this act, Breaker Morant is one of the first British Subjects, charged, tried and convicted for War Crimes. And while he claimed to be following orders, at what point does just doing your job constitute unlawful killings of non-combatants?
From Duty to Dishonour is a backer-exclusive podcast that tells the story of those service personnel who didn't live up to the societal expectations of what an Australian Service person represents, but their story still deserves to be told.
---Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast Join our Patreon https://www.patreon.com/IWODMJ ---
Linktree
https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net Access to the Discord Server https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9Fhsj Find the Podcast on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/IWODMJ Twitterhttps://twitter.com/iwodmj Instagram https://www.instagram.com/iwodmj Mastodon https://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/ YouTube https://youtube.com/@iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast
16-DECEMBER-1943. While serving as part of the 2nd Mountain Battery of the 2nd Australian Imperial Force, Lance Bombardier Leslie James Greenwood, a professional soldier within the Permanent Military Force, served from before the Second World War in Garrison Artillery postings before serving as part of Wren Force in Nauru. His first offensive deployment was part of a Specialised Mountainous Artillery Battery trained and equipped to bring fire support to Allied personnel high in the mountains of New Guinea.
Thanks to Karen, Linda, Mitch and Paul for purchasing the brand-new Armoured Emu Brigade Unit Patch. Get yours now at Our Ko-Fi Shop
---
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, MastodonYouTube
6-JUNE-1944. While serving as part of the Royal Australian Naval Volunteer Reserve assigned to the Royal Navy, Sub Lieutenant Richard "Dick" Michael Pirrie, gave up a promising VFL career with the Hawthorn VFL Team to serve in the Second World War attached to the Royal Navy. Initially serving on escort duty on Destroyers escorting convoys to Russia and Malta. Upon receiving his commission as a Sub-Lieutenant he transferred to landing craft and served as the commander of a Landing Craft Support (Medium) vessel which served as a floating observation platform for naval and army artillery spotters.
This episode was made possible due to support from History Guild. ' This Autumn I Was Only Doing My Job; An Australian Military History Podcast has Partnered with History Guild to bring you a series of episodes dedicated to telling the life service and legacy of five Australians, of the tens of thousands who served in the Mediterranean during the Second World War, playing a vital role in the theatre. History Guild has created this project so more people can discover the stories of service and sacrifice of the Australians who fought there, and Honor them by visiting these battlefields. The History Guild website, historyguild.org, has guides to help people visit and understand battlefields in Crete, Greece and Malta.'
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
15-JUNE-1942. While serving as a Fighter Pilot in 126 Squadron Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Pilot Officer Adrian Phillip Goldsmith received the Distinguished Flying Medal for shooting down six Axis planes over Malta, this was followed up with the Distinguished Flying Cross a month later and in doing so became the second highest fighter ace in the RAAF
This episode was made possible due to support from History Guild. ' This Autumn I Was Only Doing My Job; An Australian Military History Podcast has Partnered with History Guild to bring you a series of episodes dedicated to telling the life service and legacy of five Australians, of the tens of thousands who served in the Mediterranean during the Second World War, playing a vital role in the theatre. History Guild has created this project so more people can discover the stories of service and sacrifice of the Australians who fought there, and Honor them by visiting these battlefields. The History Guild website, historyguild.org, has guides to help people visit and understand battlefields in Crete, Greece and Malta.'
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
20-JUNE-1940. While serving as an Orderly in the 17th Australian Infantry Brigade during the Second World War. Sergeant Henry Armstrong Lacey Snr received the British Empire Medal for exemplary service and dedication to his duties, which is understandable, as he wasn't a 35-year-old fresh soldier, but a 53-year-old veteran of both the Second Anglo-Boer War and the First World War. in a military career that spanned three two continents and the length and breadth of Australia's involvement in the conflicts of the early 20th Century, in particular Gallipoli, the Western Front, North Africa and the disastrous campaign in Greece before becoming a Prisoner of War.
In this episode we show the experiences of enlisted soldiers in captivity, in particular those that had been captured during the failed rearguard operation in Greece.
This episode was made possible due to support from History Guild. ' This Autumn I Was Only Doing My Job; An Australian Military History Podcast has Partnered with History Guild to bring you a series of episodes dedicated to telling the life service and legacy of five Australians, of the tens of thousands who served in the Mediterranean during the Second World War, playing a vital role in the theatre. History Guild has created this project so more people can discover the stories of service and sacrifice of the Australians who fought there, and Honor them by visiting these battlefields. The History Guild website, historyguild.org, has guides to help people visit and understand battlefields in Crete, Greece and Malta.'
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
23-April-1941. While serving as Matron of the 2/5th Australian General Hospital during the Second World War. Matron Kathleen Annie Louise Best was the youngest Matron in the Australian Imperial Force during the Second World War including the disastrous campaign in Greece and her decision to stay behind when the chance of capture was great.
In this episode, we focus on the nursing involvement of the Australian Imperial Force during Operation Lusture, the Failed Rearguard Operation to Defend Greece from German Invasion.
This episode was made possible due to support from History Guild. 'This Autumn I Was Only Doing My Job; An Australian MilitaryHistory Podcast has Partnered with History Guild to bring you a series ofepisodes dedicated to telling the life service and legacy of four Australians, ofthe tens of thousands who served in the Mediterranean during the Second World War,playing a vital role in the theatre. History Guild has created this project somore people can discover the stories of service and sacrifice of theAustralians who fought there, and Honor them by visiting these battlefields.The History Guild website, historyguild.org, has guides to help people visitand understand battlefields in Crete, Greece and Malta.'
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
3-JANUARY-1941. While serving as a Platoon Lieutenant within the 2/1st Australian Infantry Battalion, Captain William Holmes Travers participated in the first major engagements of the Australian Imperial Force during the Second World War including the capture of Bardia, Tobruk and the disastrous campaign in Greece before becoming a Prisoner of War following the failure at Crete. In this episode, we focus on the first involvement of the Australian Imperial Force during the Second World War, the Capture of Bardia during Operation Compass and Operation Lusture, the Failed Rearguard Operation to Defend Greece from German Invasion.
This episode was made possible due to support from History Guild. 'This Autumn I Was Only Doing My Job; An Australian MilitaryHistory Podcast has Partnered with History Guild to bring you a series ofepisodes dedicated to telling the life service and legacy of four Australians, ofthe tens of thousands who served in the Mediterranean during the Second World War,playing a vital role in the theatre. History Guild has created this project somore people can discover the stories of service and sacrifice of theAustralians who fought there, and Honor them by visiting these battlefields.The History Guild website, historyguild.org, has guides to help people visitand understand battlefields in Crete, Greece and Malta.'
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
3-JANUARY-1941. While serving as a Platoon Lieutenant within the 2/1st Australian Infantry Battalion, Captain William Holmes Travers participated in the first major engagements of the Australian Imperial Force during the Second World War including the capture of Bardia, Tobruk and the disastrous campaign in Greece before becoming a Prisoner of War following the failure at Crete. In this episode, we focus on the first involvement of the Australian Imperial Force during the Second World War, the Capture of Bardia during Operation Compass and Operation Lusture, the Failed Rearguard Operation to Defend Greece from German Invasion.
This episode was made possible due to support from History Guild. 'This Autumn I Was Only Doing My Job; An Australian MilitaryHistory Podcast has Partnered with History Guild to bring you a series ofepisodes dedicated to telling the life service and legacy of four Australians, ofthe tens of thousands who served in the Mediterranean during the Second World War,playing a vital role in the theatre. History Guild has created this project somore people can discover the stories of service and sacrifice of theAustralians who fought there, and Honor them by visiting these battlefields.The History Guild website, historyguild.org, has guides to help people visitand understand battlefields in Crete, Greece and Malta.'
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
In this episode of "From Duty to Dishonour," we delve into the compelling story of Private Percy George Stafford, an Australian soldier who served in the First World War. As we explore Stafford's life, we confront the challenging question: what happens when someone falls short of society's expectations of a soldier? Join us as we look into the service of a man who allegedly spent no time in the front line, despite volunteering for service in 1916.
From Duty to Dishonour is a backer-exclusive podcast that tells the story of those service personnel who didn't live up to the societal expectations of what an Australian Service person represents, but their story still deserves to be told.
---Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast Join our Patreon https://www.patreon.com/IWODMJ ---
Linktree
https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net Access to the Discord Server https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9Fhsj Find the Podcast on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/IWODMJ Twitterhttps://twitter.com/iwodmj Instagram https://www.instagram.com/iwodmj Mastodon https://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/ YouTube https://youtube.com/@iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
4-AUGUST-1914/4-SEPTEMBER-1939. While serving as a Naval Reservist, Midshipman Richard Stanley Veale ordered the first shot fired by British Forces in the First World War. Twenty years later while in command of the same shore battery that fired the first shot in the First World War, Commander Richard Stanley Veale would order the first Australian shot fired in anger during the Second World War.
Explore the remarkable life and service of Commander Richard Stanley Veale. From his early days as a naval cadet to his significant contributions during the First World War and Second World War, Commander Veale's journey is one of dedication, resilience, and unwavering commitment to his country. Join us as we delve into the naval pioneer's story, from ordering the only two shots in Fort Nepean's history to his enduring civic contributions. A true all-rounder, Commander Veale's legacy is a testament to a life well-lived and dedicated to Australian society. Special thanks to Doug Veale for sharing this remarkable family history.
---Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast Join our Patreon https://www.patreon.com/IWODMJ ---
Linktree
https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net Access to the Discord Server https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9Fhsj Find the Podcast on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/IWODMJ Twitterhttps://twitter.com/iwodmj Instagram https://www.instagram.com/iwodmj Mastodon https://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/ YouTube https://youtube.com/@iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
19-MAY-1915. While serving as a soldier of the 2nd Australian Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force during the First World War, Sergeant William Charles Bullock Beech, horrified by the tragic loss of life of his comrades on Gallipoli, took a biscuit box, signal wire and a broken mirror to invent one of the most iconic weapons of trench warfare on Gallipoli, the Periscope Rifle.
---Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast Join our Patreon https://www.patreon.com/IWODMJ ---
Linktree
https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net Access to the Discord Server https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9Fhsj Find the Podcast on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/IWODMJ Twitterhttps://twitter.com/iwodmj Instagram https://www.instagram.com/iwodmj Mastodon https://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/ YouTube https://youtube.com/@iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
8-AUGUST-1918. While serving as Engineers of the 8th Field Company, Australian Imperial Force, Lieutenant George Burrows, Sapper John Henry Palmer and Leslie James Strahan were attached to the 31st Australian Infantry Battalion when the Australian Corps participated in the Battle of Amiens, the start of the 100 Days Offensive. As they were deconstructing German fortifications at the old Amiens Defensive Line, they were called forward to deal with an obstacle in No Mans Land, it was the Largest War Trophy Collected by Australian forces that was brought back to Australia.---Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast Join our Patreon https://www.patreon.com/IWODMJ ---
Linktree
https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net Access to the Discord Server https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9Fhsj Find the Podcast on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/IWODMJ Twitterhttps://twitter.com/iwodmj Instagram https://www.instagram.com/iwodmj Mastodon https://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/ YouTube https://youtube.com/@iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
27/28-JANUARY-1916, While serving as a soldier of the 5th Australian Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force, Private Edward Attfield did not let his diminutive stature prevent him from volunteering for overseas service. He landed at Gallipoli and despite wounds and illness served until the evacuation in December 1915. When he returned to Alexandria, he vanished, never to be seen again.
His story is a murder mystery that took 100 years to solve.
---Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast Join our Patreon https://www.patreon.com/IWODMJ ---
Linktree
https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net Access to the Discord Server https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9Fhsj Find the Podcast on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/IWODMJ Twitterhttps://twitter.com/iwodmj Instagram https://www.instagram.com/iwodmj Mastodon https://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/ YouTube https://youtube.com/@iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
11-NOVEMBER-1993. To mark the 75th anniversary of the end of the First World War, the unidentified remains of an unknown Australian soldier, exhumed from the Adelaide Cemetery in Villers Bretonneux in France was interred within the Hall of Memory of the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, Australia.
Today marks the 30th Anniversary of that interment.
Lest We Forget.
---Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast Join our Patreon https://www.patreon.com/IWODMJ ---
Linktree
https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net Access to the Discord Server https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9Fhsj Find the Podcast on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/IWODMJ Twitterhttps://twitter.com/iwodmj Instagram https://www.instagram.com/iwodmj Mastodon https://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/ YouTube https://youtube.com/@iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
In this episode, I sat down over two separate sessions with Melissa Ratliff of God's Favorites: A History Podcast and Ryan Day of the History Daddy YouTube channelI talk about the service and fate of Australia's first (and only) Battlecruiser HMAS Australia, Ryan talks about the feared German Battlecruiser Bismarck, and Melissa surprised everyone by not discussing the sinking of the Titanic, but of her sister ship the Oceanic.For Melissa Ratliff https://linktr.ee/MelissaFairLadyFor Ryan Day https://linktr.ee/HistoryDaddy---Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast Join our Patreon https://www.patreon.com/IWODMJ For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net Access to the Discord Server https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9Fhsj Find the Podcast on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/IWODMJ Twitterhttps://twitter.com/iwodmj Instagram https://www.instagram.com/iwodmj Mastodon https://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/ YouTube https://youtube.com/@iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
25-APRIL-1915, While serving as Commanding Officer of the Royal Australian Navy's second Submarine HMAS AE2, Royal Navy Officer Lieutenant Commander Henry Hugh Gordon Dacre Stoker was faced with the challenge, to traverse the Dardanelles when the last two submarines to do so were sunk.
The Stage is set, the curtain is drawn, allow I Was Only Doing My Job: An Australian Military History Podcast to introduce you to the Silent ANZAC
Join us for the conclusion to our involvement in Historytoks #ShipwreckSummer
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi
https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast
Join our Pateron
https://www.patreon.com/IWODMJ
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net
Access to the Discord Server
https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9Fhsj
Find the Podcast on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/IWODMJ
Twitter
https://twitter.com/iwodmj
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/iwodmj
Mastodon
https://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/
YouTube
https://youtube.com/@iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
14-SEPTEMBER-1914, While serving as Commanding Officer of the Royal Australian Navy's first Submarine HMAS AE1, Royal Navy officer Lieutenant Commander Thomas Fleming Besant was killed in action when AE1 disappeared during a patrol following the Australian Capture of German New Guinea. The mysterious disappearance of AE1 became a haunting chapter in naval history, that was quickly overshadowed by events in the Dardanelles eight months later to the point where the whole campaign is largely unknown. Join us for Part one of the conclusion to our involvement in Historytoks #ShipwreckSummer---Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast Join our Pateron https://www.patreon.com/IWODMJFor Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9FhsjFind the Podcast on Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/IWODMJTwitterhttps://twitter.com/iwodmjInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/iwodmjMastodonhttps://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/YouTubehttps://youtube.com/@iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
9-AUGUST-1942. While serving as a Surgical Officer aboard the Royal Australian Navy Heavy Cruiser HMAS Canberra, Surgeon Lieutenant Kenneth Newman Morris MID participated in the first American counter-attack during the Pacific Campaign, the Battle of Guadalcanal and the disastrous Battle of Savo Island.
In the Second World War chaos, one man apart out for his courage and resilience - Surgeon Lieutenant Kenneth Newman Morris. Morris exhibited unwavering dedication as he tended to wounded sailors amidst relentless enemy fire and blazing flames. As the ship's fate hung in the balance, Morris defied danger, his head torch illuminating the way as he saved lives and provided comfort. His actions in that fiery inferno earned him a mention in dispatches. After the battle, Morris continued to serve, training in cardiac and thoracic surgery. With his wife, Dr Fay Kinross, he pioneered advancements in heart surgery, impacting countless lives.
This Episode is part of #ShipwreckSummer
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net.
Access to the Discord Server
https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9Fhsj
Find the Podcast on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/IWODMJ
https://twitter.com/iwodmj
https://www.instagram.com/iwodmj
Mastodon
https://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/
YouTube
https://youtube.com/@iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast
Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
This Episode marks Two years since the launch of the podcast.
1-JULY-1942. While serving as Chief Yeoman of Signals as part of the Royal Australian Navy, Chief Yeoman of Signals Stephen Lamont was selected as part of the network of observers stationed across strategic locations in Northern Australia and neighbouring territories known as the Coastwatchers. Initially stationed on Anir Island off the coast of New Britain, Lamont was in Rabaul when it fell to the Japanese.
Lamont's selfless actions and dedication to his comrades stand out as he bravely chose to stay behind and care for two sick sailors, knowing the dangers that awaited him as he was captured by the Japanese and ended up being on board the MV Montevideo Maru that was sunk by the USS Sturgeon, claiming the lives of over 1000 allied Prisoners of War and civilians in what is still considered Australia's worst maritime disaster.
This episode is part of Historytoks #ShipwreckSummer!
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/iwasonlydoingmyjobpodcast Feedspots Top 50 Military History Podcast list
https://blog.feedspot.com/military_history_podcasts/ For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net.
Access to the Discord Server
https://discord.gg/v3Vpb9Fhsj
Find the Podcast on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/IWODMJ
https://twitter.com/iwodmj
https://www.instagram.com/iwodmj
Mastodon
https://mastodonbooks.net/@IWODMJ/
YouTube
10-December-1941. While serving as a midshipman aboard the Royal Navy Battlecruiser HMS Repulse, Midshipman Robert Ian Davies MID participated in the first major naval engagement of the Pacific Campaign.
We delve into the remarkable story of Midshipman Robert Ian Davies and his role in the sinking of the British battleships HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse during the Second World War. Despite limited firsthand accounts of Davies' actions, his bravery and leadership caught the attention of his superiors, leading to his nomination for higher recognition. We explore the Valour Inquiry and the challenges faced in honouring Davies' gallantry. While the Tribunal ruled against awarding him the Victoria Cross, the testimonies of respected naval officers shed light on his courageous actions. We also reflect on the fate of the sunken ships and the unfortunate illegal salvage activities that have disturbed their resting places. Join us as we uncover the life, service, and legacy of Midshipman Robert Ian Davies, a symbol of sacrifice and resilience during a tumultuous time in history.
This Episode is part of #ShipwreckSummer
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
Feedspots Top 50 Military History Podcast list
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
20-MAY-1941. While serving as a Company Commander within the 2/11th Australian Infantry Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Honner, participated in the first major engagements of the Australian Imperial Force during the Second World War including the capture of Bardia, Tobruk and the disastrous campaign in Greece before making a name of himself during the Kokoda Campaign. In this episode, we focus on the Australian operations around the Japanese strongholds of Buna, Gona and Sanananda
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
16-FEBRUARY-1942. Serving as a Staff Nurse in the 2/13th Australian General Hospital, Second Australian Imperial Force, Sister Florence Casson was one of the 21 nurses executed as part of the Bangka Island Massacre at the hands of the Imperial Japanese Army.
This Episode coincides with International Nurses Day 2023.To Donate to the Vivian Bullwinkel Project or the Bangka Island Scholarship Fund go here https://foundation.acn.edu.au/Foundation/Donate/The_Vivian_Bullwinkel_Project_2021.aspx
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram and Twitter at @IWODMJ and like us on Facebook at I Was Only Doing My Job and to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
20-MAY-1941. While serving as a Company Commander within the 2/11th Australian Infantry Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Honner, participated in the first major engagements of the Australian Imperial Force during the Second World War including the capture of Bardia, Tobruk and the disastrous campaign in Greece before making a name of himself during the Kokoda Campaign. In this episode, we focus on the Australian defensive operations along the Kokoda Trail in the Pacific.
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
20-MAY-1941. While serving as a Company Commander within the 2/11th Australian Infantry Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Honner, participated in the first major engagements of the Australian Imperial Force during the Second World War including the capture of Bardia, Tobruk and the disastrous campaign in Greece before making a name of himself during the Kokoda Campaign. In this episode, we focus on the disastrous defence of Crete and the prelude to the Kokoda Campaign in the Pacific.
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
3-JANUARY-1941. While serving as a Company Commander within the 2/11th Australian Infantry Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Honner, participated in the first major engagements of the Australian Imperial Force during the Second World War including the capture of Bardia, Tobruk and the disastrous campaign in Greece before making a name of himself during the Kokoda Campaign. In this episode, we focus on the rapid advance of the Australian Imperial Force across North Africa, and the disastrous Operation Lusture, or the Allied involvement in the Greece Campaign.
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
3-JANUARY-1941. While serving as a Company Commander within the 2/11th Australian Infantry Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Honner, participated in the first major engagements of the Australian Imperial Force during the Second World War including the capture of Bardia, Tobruk and the disastrous campaign in Greece before making a name of himself during the Kokoda Campaign. In this episode, we focus on the first involvement of the Australian Imperial Force during the Second World War, the Capture of Bardia during Operation Compass.
Buy the Podcast a Ko-Fi here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon YouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
Earlier this month I sat down with Melissa Ratliff from God's Favorites: A History Podcast to discuss her current project, saving the Sundowner a motor yacht formerly owned by Charles Lightoller, who was Second Officer aboard the RMS Titanic for her ill-fated maiden voyage in April, 1912. She participated in the Dunkirk evacuation as one of the Little ships of Dunkirk before falling on hard times more recently.
Link to the #SaveSundowner gofundme
To find Melissa on TikTok click here
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,MastodonYouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
9-JUNE-1928. While serving as a despatch rider as part of the 4th Division Signals Company during the First World War, Sergeant Charles Edward Kingsford Smith sought a greater adrenaline rush and joined the Australian Flying Corps. Later serving in the Royal Flying Corps; British Expeditionary Force, he shot down four German aircraft before he was shot down and grounded due to injury.
Not to be stopped, "Smithy" after the war became an aviation pioneer and held the record for having the most aviation records including being the only person at the time to cross the Pacific Ocean from the USA to Australia in both directions and the first person to complete a cross-equator circumnavigation of the globe.
IWODMJ Discord Server member AyoshiStar requested this episode and is guest director.
TwentyFiveFour Coffee website
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,MastodonYouTube
--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
31-JULY-1969. While serving as a Door Gunner on an American Crewed UH-1C Iroquois Helicopter Gunship as part of the Royal Australian Navy Helicopter Flight Vietnam, attached to the 135th Assault Helicopter Company, US Army, Leading Aircraftman Noel Ervin Shipp was killed in action while providing gunfire to support the evacuation of troops on the ground and was observed to be continuing to fire even as the helicopter he was in plummeted to the ground
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
My Silent Hero is a project to honour and preserve the memory of those who have served Australia during times of war. Each of these servicemen and women had lives before they enlisted and, if they survived, after the war. They were, or are, humble human beings who, for a great many current Australians, are family. Yet now for many, their memory is just a name on a plaque, an initial or two and a surname. My Silent Hero will help you remember them as people and as family.
For more information check out https://mysilenthero.blogspot.com
--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
8-February-1917. While serving as a Stretcher Bearer as part of 55th Australian Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force during the First World War. Corporal Ernest Albert "Ernie" Corey, was awarded an unprecdendent four Military Medals, the third highest award for gallantry in the British System of Awards for his tireless and continual devotion to rescuing wounded soldiers during the war on the Western Front. Despite the claim of being the Highest Decorated Australian Soldier, Corey was a timid man who took great pride in the knowledge that he received four Military Medals for saving people and never fired a shot in anger.
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
28-OCTOBER-1950, This is the conclusion of the life service and Legacy of Professional Soldier Lieutenant GeneralRobert Harold Nimmo, who served in both the First and Second World Wars in Brigade and General Staff Roles before his retirement in 1950. He would then go on to serve as the longest continuously serving Chief Military Observer in United Nations History when he took command of the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) becoming the first Australian to command a UN Peacekeeping Mission and at 15 years and 2 months the longest serving UN Commander
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
Podcast Recommendation Hardtack Podcast
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
29-SEPTEMBER-1946, This is part two of the life service and Legacy of Professional Soldier Major General Robert Harold Nimmo CBE, who at the commencement of the Second World War was a Staff Officer of the 1st Cavalry Division. An officer tasked with introducing armoured warfare into the Australian Army, Nimmo would continue to serve in staff positions at Brigade, Division, Corps and Army Levels to whom the end of the war in command of the first unit of the Australian Regular Army the 38th Infantry Brigade and command Australia's contingent to the British Commonwealth Occupation Force on a career that would span 52 years.
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
Podcast Recommendation Australian Histories Podcast
Tanks in the PacificYouTube link
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
21-DECEMBER-1914, This is part one of the life service and Legacy of Professional Soldier Major Robert Harold Nimmo, who at the commencement of the First World War was an Officer Cadet at the Royal Military College Duntroon. Enlisting upon accelerated graduation he was posted to the 5th Australian Light Horse Regiment at the rank of Lieutenant and would sail to Egypt, eventually reaching Gallipoli on May 16. Possessing both front-line combat experience and administrative organisational skills, Nimmo would quickly progress through the ranks of the ANZAC Mounted Division, finishing the war as a Brigade Major in the 1st Australian Light Horse Brigade to whom the end of the war would only mean a continuation of a career that would span 52 years.
For Show Notes, transcripts and photos check out the I Was Only Doing My Job Website at www.thedocnetwork.net. Access to the Discord Server Visit here Find the Podcast on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
Podcast Recommendation Australian Military History Podcast
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
7-JANUARY-1945 While Serving with No 619 Squadron Royal Air Force, Flying Officer Colin Kelvin Flockhart, was the pilot of a four-engine Avro Lancaster Heavy Bomber tasked with a raid over Munich Germany when for unknown reasons his plane disintegrated over the French countryside during poor weather.
This episode is dedicated to Alison Aitken, the Queen of the Australian War Memorial, and Colin's sister, who passed away on 9-9-2022.
The I Was Only Doing My Job Podcast now has a Discord Server, the link to it is in the linktree.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
27-AUGUST-1942 While Serving with No. 3 (Army Cooperation) Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force, Flying Officer Peter St George Bruce Turnbull, in North Africa became one of the first Australian Fighter Aces of the Second World War, with downing eight enemy aircraft, an act that would award him the Distinguished Flying Cross.
He would go on to serve in No 76 Squadron RAAF in the Pacific, serving the defence of Milne Bay from Japanese invasion. While he would be killed in action, his devotion to his duty would be an inspiration to all he flew with.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
14-JULY-1918. The 30-ton German Heavy Tank was set to participate in the Second Battle of Villers-Bretonnaeux until it drove into a shell crater outside Monument Wood, becoming stranded, three months later it would be captured by the 26th Australian Infantry Battalion in the Allied counter-attack, in an action that has captured the imaginations of the Internet Age as one of those actions where the fiction is better known than the facts.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
19-OCTOBER-1917. While serving within the Australian Remount Depot, Australian Imperial Force as a Squadron Commander, Major Andrew Barton "The Banjo" Paterson served with distinction as part of the Desert Mounted Corps during the First World War. He is also widely known as the most famous Bush Balladist of the 20th Century, having penned the iconic Waltzing Matilda. Prior to his service in the First World War, he was an official Correspondent in the Second Anglo-Boer War, the Spanish-American War and the Boxer Rebellion. While he served the duration of the war, this is one aspect of the Banjo's life that is not known.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
My Silent Hero is a project to honour and preserve the memory of those who have served Australia during times of war. Each of these servicemen and women had lives before they enlisted and, if they survived, after the war. They were, or are, humble human beings who, for a great many current Australians, are family. Yet now for many, their memory is just a name on a plaque, an initial or two and a surname. My Silent Hero will help you remember them as people and as family.
For more information check out https://mysilenthero.blogspot.com
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
1-MARCH-1942. While serving within the Royal Australian Navy as a Signals Officer, Captain Hector Macdonald Laws Waller served with distinction aboard several warships of the Royal Australian Navy and Royal Navy during both the First World War and the Second World War. He was the commanding officer of two vessels during the Second World war, the Destroyer HMAS Stuart where he led the 'Scrap Iron Flotilla' and the Cruiser HMAS Perth. He would go down with the HMAS Perth when it was sunk during the one-sided Battle of Sunda Strait alongside 356 fellow personnel of the HMAS Perth .
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
gLceelOARTDZ0U9WY8Up
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
24-MAY-1966. While serving with B Company 5th Battalion Royal Australian Regiment, Australian Regular Army, National Serviceman Private Errol Wayne Noack served as a section machine gunner during the Vietnam War. He was killed during his first military operation two weeks after arriving in-country and would go into the history books as the first Australian National Serviceman killed in Vietnam.
His death would go to polarise Australian society about a war that was increasingly becoming unpopular, and his position as the first conscript killed in that war would serve as a rallying cry for those against mandatory military service.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
24-OCTOBER-1943 While Serving with M Special Unit, Special Operations Australia, 2 Australian Imperial Force, Sergeant Leonard George Siffleet was part of a multi-national team trekking through Japanese-occupied New Guinea to set up a Coastwatch position over the recently captured town of Hollandia when his team would be ambushed and captured by a party of Japanese troops and local New Guineans sympathetic to the Imperial Japanese Navy. After two weeks of interrogation, Lenoard would be executed at the hands of the Japanese in potentially the only execution of a western soldier at the hands of the Japanese to be photographed in the act. The subsequent war crimes investigations after the war would be all the surviving Japanese sailors involved to justice, though the man who delivered the killing stroke on Leonard would be killed during the closing stages of the New Guinea Campaign. Len's body would never be recovered. For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
1-JANUARY 1916 While Serving with 3 Australian General Hospital Squadron Principal Matron Grace Margaret Wilson in Lemnos, Greece would coordinate the nursing care of wounded Australian Soldiers from the Gallipoli Campaign and in doing so would also fight for recognition and proper treatment of the nurses under her charge. a Professional Nurse before the Great War, she would go on to be Matron-in-Chief of the Australian Imperial Force in both the First and Second World Wars, These acts would result in him being awarded the Royal Red Cross First class and the Nightingale Medal, four Mentions in Dispatches and her appointment to the Commander of the Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire.
She would go on to pioneer Nursing Education in civilian life, particularly around Victoria. For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
During the First World War, 27 men of the Australian Customs Service answered the call of King and Country. Since the early 2000s, I Was Only Doing My Job background researcher Laurie Favelle has been obsessed with finding and preserving the life service and legacies of each of these 27 men. They were, or are, humble human beings who, for a great many current Australians, are family. Yet now for many, their memory is just a name on a plaque, an initial or two and a surname. My SIlent Hero will run alongside standard I Was Only Doing My Job Podcast episodes. For more information about the My Silent Hero Project visit The Home of My Silent Hero
My SIlent Hero is copyright 2013-2022 by Laurie Favelle, Audio recording and distribution through The Docnetwork Productions. to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters. visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
16-OCTOBER-1942 While Serving with No. 452 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force, Squadron Leader Keith William "Bluey" Truscott in Europe would lead an attack on an evacuating Kreigsmarine Fleet and successfully damaged a German Destroyer. A famous athlete, before the war he played VFL for the Melbourne Demons, and deciding to forgo a successful sporting career decided to fly for King and Country, and in doing so became one of Australia's highest ranked Fighter Aces with 15/16 confirmed enemy aircraft shot down. These acts would result in him being awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross twice.
He would go on to serve in No 76 Squadron RAAF in the Pacific, serving the defence of Milne Bay from Japanese invasion, where he would replace Squadron Leader Peter Turnbull as Commanding Officer after his death. Peter Turnbull's life service and sacrifice was episode 12 of season one
Sadly like his predecessor he would also be killed in a flying accident while in training with the US Navy.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
23-OCTOBER-1915. While serving as a trooper in the 5th Australian Light Horse Regiment, Australian Imperial Force, Chinese-Australian Trooper William Edward "Billy" Sing DCM has been picked to take the solitary role as being a sniper on Gallipoli where he has a unique record of between 150 and 300 confirmed Ottoman kills during the eight-month campaign. Even with that legacy he also grew up in a time where his heritage was met with prejudice and racism.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
17-AUGUST-1917. While serving as one of the Australian Official War Photographers, Honorary Captain James Francis "Frank" Hurley OBE was an Australian photographer and adventurer. He participated in a number of expeditions to Antarctica, under Sir Douglas Mawson and Sir Ernest Shackleton and served as an official photographer with Australian forces during both world wars. His artistic style produced many memorable images, but his predilection to use composite imagery in a time before photoshop gained him a number of detractors, in particular Charles Bean, Australia's First World War Official Historian, and the Department of Information that he worked for in the Second World War. But even with that, he is still Australia's most famous photographer
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
I sat down with Preston Stewart and Seyer Payne of War Stories to talk about Australia's involvement in the Pacific Campaign of the Second World War. This was recorded over Zoom, and the video version of this episode is available on the I Was Only Doing My Job Youtube Channel.
The conversation starts with the Fall of Singapore and ends with the Japanese surrender and even the start of the Korean Campaign.
To find more content from Preston and Seyer click on the below links
Website War Stories on Spotify War Stories on Apple Podcasts TikTok Instagram Discord Server
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
7-MAY-1915. While serving as an engineer with the 3rd Field Company Engineers, Australian Imperial Force, Captain Edward Bage was instructed to map out new trench locations on Gallipoli, and as a result would be killed 14 days after landing on the Pennisula, but his legacy is not one of the battlefield, but of Antarctic Exploration, when he spent two years mapping Antarctica alongside Sir Douglas Mawson
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram and Twitter at @IWODMJ and like us on Facebook at I Was Only Doing My Job and to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
CW: Sexual Assault- This episode contains a discussion of the murder of women and allegations of sexual assault in war. The sexual assault is isolated to the end of the episode, with a warning just prior. the discussion of the Bangka Island Massacre will begin at 5:16 to 8:06
This is a Special reupload to mark the 80th Anniversary of the Bangka Island Massacre
16-FEBRUARY-1942. Serving as a Staff Nurse in the 2/13th Australian General Hospital, Second Australian Imperial Force, Sister Vivian Bullwinkel would be the sole survivor of the Bangka Island Massacre at the hands of the Imperial Japanese Army. She would go on to be a Prisoner of War for three and a half years, but would never abandon her courage or resolve. Her career didn't end in captivity, and she would go on to serve until 1947 when she would resume her nursing duties, up until the Vietnam War, when she would once again enter the battlespace to help the disadvantaged. She would receive honours and decorations for her service to the cause of nursing and would uphold those tenents until her death in 2000. She did more than just her job, and for that, we are immensely proud of her.
To Donate to the Vivian Bullwinkel Project or the Bangka Island Scholarship Fund go here https://foundation.acn.edu.au/Foundation/Donate/The_Vivian_Bullwinkel_Project_2021.aspx
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram and Twitter at @IWODMJ and like us on Facebook at I Was Only Doing My Job and to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
17-AUGUST-1915. While serving as a soldier with the 17th Australian Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force, Lieutenant Leslie George Fussell, unimpressed with the quality of the bomb-throwing of the men under his command, took a tin of Bully Beef and threw it into the Turkish Trenches. This act resulted in a temporary cease-fire on Gallipoli. He would go on to serve on the Western Front and serve again in the Second World War.
Episodes that discussed the Battle of Pozieres Episode 2: Private John Hines, Episode 4: Captain David Twining, Forged in Combat: American and Australian Troops at the Battle of Hamel. Episode 14 Reverend Walter Ernest Dexter
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram and Twitter at @IWODMJ and like us on Facebook at I Was Only Doing My Job and to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
2-NOVEMBER-1932. While serving as a professional soldier in the post-war Permanent Military Force of the Commonwealth Military Forces Honourary Brigadier General Gwynydd Purves Wynne-Aubrey Meredith served for 47 years continuously, and in doing so served in the Permanent Military Force, the First World War, the Second War and the Korean War, but he is most known as Major G P W Meredith, the Officer Commanding of the 7th Heavy Artillery Battery who oversaw an ill-advised nuisance wildlife management military operation that has become more a meme than a historical event, known comically as the Great Emu War
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram and Twitter at @IWODMJ and like us on Facebook at I Was Only Doing My Job and to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
2-NOVEMBER-1932. While serving as a professional soldier in the post-war Permanent Military Force of the Commonwealth Military Forces Honourary Brigadier General Gwynydd Purves Wynne-Aubrey Meredith served for 47 years continuously, and in doing so served in the Permanent Military Force, the First World War, the Second War and the Korean War, but he is most known as Major G P W Meredith, the Officer Commanding of the 7th Heavy Artillery Battery who oversaw an ill-advised nuisance wildlife management military operation that has become more a meme than a historical event, known comically as the Great Emu War
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram and Twitter at @IWODMJ and like us on Facebook at I Was Only Doing My Job and to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
2-NOVEMBER-1932. While serving as a professional soldier in the post-war Permanent Military Force of the Commonwealth Military Forces Honourary Brigadier General Gwynydd Purves Wynne-Aubrey Meredith served for 47 years continuously, and in doing so served in the Permanent Military Force, the First World War, the Second War and the Korean War, but he is most known as Major G P W Meredith, the Officer Commanding of the 7th Heavy Artillery Battery who oversaw an ill-advised nuisance wildlife management military operation that has become more a meme than a historical event, known comically as the Great Emu War
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram and Twitter at @IWODMJ and like us on Facebook at I Was Only Doing My Job and to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
19-NOVEMBER-1941, While serving in the Royal Australian Navy as a submarine detector, Able Seamen Thomas Welsby Clark served aboard the Light Cruiser HMAS Sydney II in the Second World War, when the Sydney was sunk by the German commerce raider HSK Kormoran with the loss of all hands. three months later, the unidentified remains of an Australian sailor in a Carley Float would wash ashore on Christmas Island and would be buried with full honours. it would take 80 years for those remains to be identified.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram and Twitter at @IWODMJ and like us on Facebook at I Was Only Doing My Job and to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
18-AUGUST-1917. While serving in the Serbian Army as an Ambulance Driver, Sgt Olive May Kelso King, regularly exposed herself to danger and enemy fire while carrying out her duties to help deliver supplies and retrieve wounded in the dangerous Salonika Front in an ambulance nicknamed Ella, that she purchased herself for the cause.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram and Twitter at @IWODMJ and like us on Facebook at I Was Only Doing My Job and to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
8-JANUARY-1952. While serving in the Royal Australian Navy as a gunnery officer, Commander Warwick Seymour Bracegirdle served with distinction aboard several warships of the Royal Australian Navy and Royal Navy, in both the Second World War and the Korean War, being one of only a handful of officers to receive the prestigious Distinguished Service Cross a total of three times.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram @IWODMJ to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
17-AUGUST-1915, while serving as a signaller with the 16th Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force, Signaller Ellis Luciano Silas worked diligently at his telegraph set, until he fell ill with what we would now call PTSD. but what he is more famously known for is the detailed and elaborate sketches and artworks he created of the troops on Gallipoli and becoming an unofficial Australian War Artist.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram @IWODMJ to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
11-NOVEMBER-1993 to mark the 75th Anniversary of the end of the First World War, Australia would go on to entomb an Unknown Soldier from the battlefield of France in the Hall of Memory of the Australian War Memorial.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram @IWODMJ to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
8-March-1918, While serving as a Chaplain with the 1 Australian Headquarters, Australian Imperial Force, Reverent Senio Chaplain Walter Ernest Dexter, was one of the original 12 chaplains assigned to the Australian Imperial Force and served with distinction throughout Australia's involvement on Gallipoli and the Western Front, going down in history as the most decorated Chaplain in the Australian Imperial Force. He would serve throughout the war. For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram @IWODMJ to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
8-AUGUST-1918. On the 8th August 1918, the British Fourth Army under General Rawlinson launched a major attack with French and American units in support agaisnt German positions to the east of the strategic Railway junction of Amiens in the Picardie region of Northern France in an attack known as the Third Battle of Picardy. It was the opening phase of what would become the Allied Hundred Days Offensive that would bring on the end of the First World War.
It would be supported by over 2000 guns and more than a thousand British and French Aircraft and would be the largest tank assault of the war with over 500 British Tanks being committed to the battle across 16 kilometres.
And in the midst of this display of the industrialisation of war, a platoon of B Company, 29th Australian Infantry Battalion, moved into positions near the recently captured village of Warfusee-Abancourt, ready to participate in the second stage of the advance
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram @IWODMJ
to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
This Episode was Re-recorded 25-08-2022
10-OCTOBER-1941. While Serving with No. 3 (Army Cooperation) Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force, Flying Officer Peter St George Bruce Turnbull, in North Africa became one of the first Australian Fighter Aces of the Second World War, with downing eight enemy aircraft, an act that would award him the Distinguished Flying Cross.
He would go on to serve in No 76 Squadron RAAF in the Pacific, serving the defence of Milne Bay from Japanese invasion. While he would be killed in action, his devotion to his duty would be an inspiration to all he flew with.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram @IWODMJ
to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
20-DECEMBER-1915. While serving with the 7th Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force, Private William Charles Scurry, landed at Gallipoli and immediately set out to address a glaring issue with the rumours of the evacuation of ANZAC forces, just how was the 60,000 Australian and New Zealand troops going to get off the beaches without being massacred?
His solution was the invention of a quirky but extremely simple piece of tech that will go down in history as the Drip RIfle.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram @IWODMJ
to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
7-SEPTEMBER-1901. While serving with the Bushveldt Carbineers, a British Irregular Mounted Unit, during the Second Anglo-Boer War, Lt Harry Harbord Morant, better known as "Breaker Morant" allegedly ordered the execution of eight Boer Prisoners of War, along with a number of Dutch civilians, and a German Missionary. For this act, Breaker Morant, is one of the first British Subjects, charged, tried and convicted of a War Crime. And while he claimed to be following orders, at what point does just doing your job constitute unlawful killings of non-combatants? This week we go into his Trial, sentence, his place in Australian Military History and his portrayal in Popular Culture
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
7-SEPTEMBER-1901. While serving with the Bushveldt Carbineers, a British Irregular Mounted Unit, during the Second Anglo-Boer War, Lt Harry Harbord Morant, better known as "Breaker Morant" allegedly ordered the execution of eight Boer Prisoners of War, along with a number of Dutch civilians, and a German Missionary. For this act, Breaker Morant, is one of the first British Subjects, charged, tried and convicted for War Crimes. And while he claimed to be following orders, at what point does just doing your job constitute unlawful killings of non-combatants?
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
I sit down with Preston Stewart of War Stories and we talk about the joint Australian/American Battle of Hamel during the First World War and talk about the life and service of the 1000th Recipient of the Victoria Cross Pte Henry Dalziel, and Cpl Thomas A Pope US Army, a man who until 2015 was the first US Army infantryman to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor in the First World War. 4/5-JULY-1918. While serving in the 15th Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force, Gunner Henry Dalziel, a 'second' to a Lewis Gun Team, upon seeing the Australian/American Advance slowed by intense German Machine gun fire, singlehandedly charged the guns, and with two revolvers, "Two-Gun Harry" would become the 1000th recipient to the Victoria Cross. While Dalziel would serve the length of Australia's involvement in the First World War, by comparison. Cpl Thomas A Pope, while serving in E Company 131 Infantry Battalion 33rd Infantry Division, American Expeditionary Force, on temporary assignment with Australian Forces for training would participate in the Allied counterattack immediately following the German response to the Battle of Hamel, and rushed a German Machine Gun nest single-handed, bayoneted several of the crew and kept the remainder of the German detachment at bay until reinforcements arrived.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
25-OCTOBER-1915. While serving with the 21st Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force, Private James Charles "Jimmy" Martin, landed on the Gallipoli peninsula and would stay until October, when he would die of heart failure at the age of 14 years and 9 months, making him the youngest Australian serviceperson to die in war.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
29-JULY-1918. While serving with the 29th Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force, Private George Giles, participated in the attack on German positions at Morlancourt. After which, he was instructed to proceed to the headquarters of the 8th Brigade, and surrender his uniform and equipment to the Australian War Records Section. Photographs were taken, and he was issued new equipment. The intent being to 'show how our men came out of the trenches' to the public. Who was the man behind the most famous uniform in the collection of the Australian War Memorial?
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
25-MAY-1940. While only serving in the 2/17th Infantry Battalion Second Australian Imperial Force for a little over a month, Pte Evelyn Ernest Owen would contribute to the Australian War effort in the Second World War by inventing one of the weirdest, but most reliable machine carbines built during the Second World War, a weapon that would serve as part of the arsenal of the Australian Army for over twenty years, it would sadly outlive its creator, but cement itself in the pantheon of Australian small arms.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
7-AUGUST-1916. Serving in the 48th Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force, Sgt David Twining would participate in the Battle of Pozieres; during the second phase of the First Battle of the Somme. Following horrific German counterattacks, a wounded man would enter the 48th Battalion Headquarters with a simple message: "I'm the only one left, do you still want me to hold this position?" That message came from David Twining, and would start a monumental military career that would span Australia's involvement in the Great War on the Western Front, but would sadly end with Captain David Twining taking his own life in 1931. His most known act, the defence of the Windmill at Pozieres was immortalised in the Pozieres Diorama at the Australian War Memorial. Sadly, the diorama has become more well known than the man depicted in it. If you or anyone you know needs help:
Lifeline on 13 11 14 Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800 MensLine Australia on 1300 789 978 Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467 Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636 Headspace on 1800 650 890 ReachOut at au.reachout.com Care Leavers Australasia Network (CLAN) on 1800 008 774 Suicide Call Back Service – 1300 659 467 Open Arms (current and ex-serving ADF personnel and their families can seek this free and confidential support) – 1800 011 046 ADF Mental Health All-hours Support Line (for current serving ADF personnel and their families) – 1800 628 036. Safe Zone Support (for current and ex-serving ADF personnel and their families) – 1800 142 072.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
CW: Sexual Assault- This episode contains a discussion of the murder of women and allegations of sexual assault in war. The sexual assault is isolated to the end of the episode, with a warning just prior. the discussion of the Bangka Island Massacre will begin at 5:16 to 8:06
Audio Re-recorded and uploaded 14/12/2021
16-FEBRUARY-1942. Serving as a Staff Nurse in the 2/13th Australian General Hospital, Second Australian Imperial Force, Sister Vivian Bullwinkel would be the sole survivor of the Bangka Island Massacre at the hands of the Imperial Japanese Army. She would go on to be a Prisoner of War for three and a half years, but would never abandon her courage or resolve. Her career didn't end in captivity, and she would go on to serve until 1947 when she would resume her nursing duties, up until the Vietnam War, when she would once again enter the battlespace to help the disadvantaged. She would receive honours and decorations for her service to the cause of nursing and would uphold those tenents until her death in 2000. She did more than just her job, and for that, we are immensely proud of her. To Donate to the Vivian Bullwinkel Project go here https://foundation.acn.edu.au/Foundation/Donate/The_Vivian_Bullwinkel_Project_2021.aspx
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram and Twitter at @IWODMJ and like us on Facebook at I Was Only Doing My Job and to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
This episode was re-recorded and re-uploaded on 7-10-2021
27-SEPTEMBER-1917. Serving in the 45th Infantry Battalion, Australian Imperial Force, The Souvenir King of the AIF. Pte John Hines, would participate in the Battle of Polygon Wood; during the second phase of the Third Battle of Ypres. it was during this battle where Frank Hurley, Australian War Photographer snapped arguably his most photo. He had a ferocity to him and a preference for using Mills Bombs over rifle and bayonet, but his number one hobby was the collection of German equipment off German soldiers, either dead, wounded or prisoners of war. This ferocity was mirrored by truly abhorrent behaviour which cost him over a hundred days in pay, weeks in detention and any chance of him receiving any awards or decorations. After the war, he faded to obscurity, his photo survived to the point where more people knew his face than his name.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram @IWODMJ
to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on tiktok/instagram/twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
This episode was re-recorded and re-uploaded on 29-9-2021
30-JULY-1943 Serving as a Stretcher Bearer in the 2/5th Infantry Battalion Second Australian Imperial Force, Cpl Leslie "Bull" Allen would participate in the Battle of Mount Tambu, and assist forces of the 1st Battalion, 162nd Infantry Regiment, US Army. with casualties rising, and both US medics killed, Bull Allen would voluntarily walk into the battlespace and recover between ten and seventeen wounded American soldiers.
He would carry them one after another on his back, only stopping when he physically couldn't continue, and for his actions, he would receive the United States Silver Star, the third-highest medal of Bravery, and the highest that could be awarded to a non-US citizen.
When asked of his gallant deeds during the Second World War, this Gentle Giant would simply say. "I was only doing my job."
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and follow the show on Instagram @IWODMJ
to follow me for more history hijinks you can follow me on tiktok/instagram/twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
Welcome to I Was Only Doing My Job, the new podcast from Ross Manuel. Each week, I talk about Australian Military History by looking into the life, service, and historical impact of individual Australian soldiers, sailors, airmen and nurses, not all of who recieved the proper recognition. Find more stories from Ross @docwinters on TikTok and on Instagram
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message
"I Was Only Doing My Job" is a fortnightly (Bi-weekly) Australian Military History podcast hosted by Ross Manuel. Instead of focusing on maps and dates, each episode is devoted to chronicling Australia's Military History through the individual stories of those who served; where they grew up, what they did, and invariably what happened to them.
For show notes, photos and transcripts visit www.thedocnetwork.net and visit our linktree for our socials https://linktr.ee/iwodmj
to follow me for more Australian Military History Content you can follow me on TikTok/Instagram/Twitter @docwinters.
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/iwasonlydoingmyjob/message