The Twelfth Battalion

The nucleus of what would be the 12th Battalion was formed at the Pontville Concentration Camp soon after it opened on 15 August 1914.

Lieutenant Colonel Lancelot Fox Clarke D.S.O. V.D from Devonport was appointed as the Commanding Officer with Major Sidney Hawley from Evandale as second in command.

Over the next few weeks as recruits continued to arrive at Pontville, four companies were formed.

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Life at Claremont Army Camp in 1916 by Private Jack Arnold

“The camp is situated on the top of a gentle slope, is surrounded on three sides by the Derwent, and has a natural fall to the river. The only road approach is a narrow neck from the railway station, where the guard is stationed. There is not much trouble to get into the camp, but when going out you have to ‘run the gauntlet’ of the guard.

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Army Life

In the months between the formation of the Battalion and the departure of the original members and 1st reinforcements on the Berrima from Hobart on 1 July 1916, the men “prepared and trained in the art of war as well as could be learned in a training camp”. Continue reading “Army Life”