FINLAY, Lieutenant William Dalziel Seymour

Lieutenant William Dalziel Seymour FINLAY

24^th Battalion AIF

By Ian Curtis

“How those howitzers did hum, they never left anything where they fell” ¹

William Dalziel Seymour Finlay was born on 12 April 1880 in Albert Park, Melbourne, Victoria to William Seymour Finlay and Margaret (née Hardie). The couple married in 1879 and they had four sons, William being the eldest. His brothers were Robert, Eric and George. Their father passed away on 27 February 1908 at his home, ‘Kildonan’, Oak Street, Lower Hawthorn at the age of sixty ². His mother died a year later at the age of fifty-seven, on 1 June 1909. They are both buried in the Booroondara Cemetery, Kew.³ They had only recently, in 1907, built their new home in the prestigious suburb of Hawthorn.

William was educated at Albert Park Grammar School. The School Chairman, Mr WJ Mountain, on the school’s Speech Day, impressed on the boys to, “ever bear in mind and carry out these three qualities, sobriety, truthfulness and obedience, if they wished to be honoured among men.” ⁴ William received the History and French prizes as well as being announced dux of the matriculating class of 1893. After leaving school he qualified as an accountant and worked in Melbourne. He was a member of the Melbourne Cricket Club which had 5,449 members at the commencement of the war.⁵

On 26 January 1915, William enlisted in the AIF and took the oath on 15 February at the age of thirty-five. He stood 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighed 11 stone and was of the Presbyterian faith. He named his brother, Eric Arthur Finlay, carpenter, as his next of kin. At the time of enlistment, the two brothers were living at 9 Cambridge Street, Auburn, Koorong.

William was identified as suitable for officer training and was sent to Broadmeadows to attend the 4^th Officer Training School.⁶ He was then appointed 2^nd Lieutenant on 16 May and Lieutenant on 1 June prior to joining the 2^nd Reinforcements, 24^th Battalion. William and 2^nd Lieutenant Frank Matthew Coffee,⁷ engineer and journalist, together were responsible for the reinforcements who departed aboard HMAT A64 Demosthenes from Port Melbourne on 16 July 1915. Also on the ship were the 2^nd Reinforcements for the 22^nd Battalion and the 7^th Reinforcements for the 5^th Battalion, which was led by his brother, 2^nd Lieutenant George Lush Finlay. William and George had enlisted and attended the Officer Training School together.

HMAT A64 Demosthenes departs Port Melbourne on 16 July 1915. AWM P80332

William reached Egypt on 19 August and joined the battalion, who were still completing their training before being sent to Gallipoli on 5 September as part of the 2^nd Division to reinforce troops who had already landed in April. On 12 September, the battalion took over responsibility at Lone Pine for the front line which was very close to the Turkish trenches and hotly contested, as the Turks were mining the area. The 24^th Battalion rotated with the 23^rd Battalion every 48 hours during their time at Gallipoli.

“On the morning of the 29^th [November],the 24^th Battalion was to relieve the 23^rd Battalion at 9 o’clock. While the relief was in progress the enemy commenced to shell the position, and the bombardment grew in intensity until 11am, during which time every conceivable form of explosive the Turks possessed was hurled at us, and it was not before the early afternoon that the strafing ceased. Armour-piercing naval shells, which plunged deep into the ground, and lifted large masses of earth into the air, were plentiful in the destructive deluge. The enemy’s artillery included 12 inch guns.

Communication trenches and tunnels were blown in and men and materials buried, and the whole sector plunged into chaos. D Coy, holding No1 section, and B Coy, holding No 3 section, suffered most severely, B Coy’s front line being in places entirely obliterated. Naturally, our casualties on this day were the heaviest so far experienced. Two officers (Lieutenants Andrew Christopher Fogarty ⁸ and William Seymour Finlay), 11 NCOs and 30 men were killed, while there was a long list of wounded.”⁹

William’s next of kin received advice by telegram that he had been killed in action. A further telegram dated 26 November 1919 advised the family he had been buried in Brown’s Dip South Cemetery, Gallipoli, 500 yards south of Anzac Cove.

Headstone of William Seymour Finlay

FORTIS IN ARDUIS – COURAGE IN ADVERSITY

Plot I, Row C, Grave 10, Lone Pine Cemetery¹⁰

The Lone Pine cemetery was constructed during the campaign and at the end, it held 46 graves. It was greatly enlarged after the Armistice by moving isolated graves into it and by consolidating other smaller cemeteries in the area, such as Brown’s Dip North and South Cemeteries.

William is also commemorated at the Australian War Memorial (Panel 101), the Melbourne Cricket Club Roll of Honour 1914-1918 and his name is inscribed on a chair in the Melbourne Legacy boardroom.

The table and chairs once belonged to the Officers’ Mess, 24th Battalion. From 1928 – 1936 the CO 24th Battalion was Lt Col S.G. Savige, DSO MC. It was during this time that the chairs were made and used for dining-in nights. During the ceremony of remembrance, each officer stood behind his chair and called the name on its back as a mark of respect for those killed in action during WW1.
At the inaugural meeting of the Club, from which arose Melbourne Legacy in September 1923, eight of the fourteen members had worn the colour patch of 24th Battalion.

The connection [is] to Savige and the fact that many of his officers from 24th Battalion became members of Melbourne Legacy.

This table and its chairs were formally gifted to Melbourne Legacy on 9th May 1956 when the Club moved to Legacy House. They have been used since in the Club’s Board Room, now located on level 1, Legacy House, 293 Swanston Street, Melbourne.

Source: Melbourne Legacy Archives

William’s personal effects which included a locked trunk and a valise with a greatcoat, gumboots, cardigan jacket, muffler and pillow were returned by Thomas Cook & Son to his brother Eric in Australia, on 24 July 1916. William’s Commission Form, Memorial Scroll, Memorial Plaque and Victory Medal were all eventually sent to his brother Robert at Ned’s Corner Station, near Mildura after he had written a letter to Base Records advising them that he was now the next of kin, as their brother Eric had passed away.

Two of William’s brothers also enlisted. His brother George Lush Finlay,¹¹ like William, initially enlisted and was selected to undertake an Officer Training Course and was appointed 2^nd Lieutenant on 16 May 1915 and posted to the 5^th Battalion AIF.

Captain George Lush FINLAY MC (Imperial War Memorial, London Image HU 109495)

George joined the battalion at Gallipoli at the end of November. He suffered enteric fever, was hospitalised on 18 January 1916 and returned to Australia aboard HMHS A71 Nestor, for three months. He departed Australia again on 28 July 1916 aboard HMAT A32 Themistocles with 19^th Reinforcements, 5^th Battalion and re-joined his unit on the Somme during October 1916.

It was at this time that he was also promoted to lieutenant. He stayed with the unit when they moved to Ypres in 1917 and was awarded the Military Cross for his actions at Ypres on 3 June 1918. Between January and August 1918, George was attached for duty to the 1^st Division Headquarters and 2^nd Australian Infantry Brigade. He returned to the 5^th Battalion in October 1918 and was promoted to captain on 27 October 1918.

George became ill during January 1919 and was admitted on 4 February to the 20^th General Hospital with influenza. George Lush Finlay did not recover from his illness and died of pleurisy on 9 February 1919 at 20^th General Hospital in Camiers, France and is buried at Etaples Military Cemetery, France. George’s tombstone bears the same Latin phrase – Fortis in Arduis – as for his brother William. It is evident that the Finlay family valued highly their Scottish heritage and the motto of their clan.

William’s brother Robert Gordon Finlay¹² enlisted on 26 February 1916, joined the 8^th Field Artillery Brigade and embarked from Melbourne on HMAT A7 Medic on 20 May 1916. His records indicate that during his service he was at no time wounded or even sick. Robert was a sergeant when he returned, being discharged in August 1919. He returned to work at Ned’s Corner Station, near Mildura and in 1929 was successful in obtaining a soldier settlement block of 3,993 acres (1,600 hectares), for an annual lease of £50 ($100). In 1938 Robert had paid off the full lease amount of £998 ($1996). When Robert retired, he moved to Sydney and lived in the Mosman area. He passed away at the age of 85 years in the Royal North Shore Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales.

2^nd Lieutenant William Dalziel Seymour Finlay’s 1914-1915 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal along with the colour patch of the 24^th Battalion are proudly displayed at the Maryborough Military & Colonial Museum. The ‘A’ on the colour patch recognises that William served at Gallipoli.¹³

“Poor Seymour, never had much luck. He certainly never had mine.” ¹⁴

Lest We Forget

Of the 507 Australian & New Zealand officers who died as a result of service on Gallipoli, the museum has images of 504. William Dalziel Seymour Finlay is one of the three missing ones. If anybody can assist, please contact us.

References and Endnotes

Harvey W J, The red and white diamond: authorised history of the Twenty-Fourth Battalion AIF

NAA: 2455 Finlay, William Dalziel Seymour

NAA: 2455 Finlay, George Lush

NAA: 2455 Finlay, Robert Gordon

The Argus (Melbourne) The Age (Melbourne) Melbourne Legacy

www.awm.gov.au www.aif.adfa.edu.au www.findagrave.com www.wikipedia.org.au www.anzacs.org

1. Diary of Lance Corporal Thomas Reginald Part, 24^th Battalion.
2. The Argus, 28 February, 1908, page 1.
3. Grave site PRES B 0643.
4. The Age, 15 December 1893, page 7.
5. Lieutenant WDS Finlay is listed in the Melbourne Cricket Club 1914-1918 Roll of Honour along with 136 others who made the supreme sacrifice.
6. A 4-week course.
7. Lieutenant FM Coffee was killed in action on 18 November 1915.
8. Lieutenant AC Fogarty of Kew, Victoria, is buried in the grave next to William. Plot 1, Row C, Grave 9. Both soldiers were officers in B Company.
9. Harvey WJ, pages 38-39.
10. Website: findagrave.
11. George was educated at Hawthorn College and was an accountant age 23, working for Dalgety’s.
12. Robert was a station hand, age 32, when he enlisted.
13. In 1917, Gallipoli veterans were notified of entitlement to wear a brass letter ‘A’ for Anzac on their unit colour patch. AIF Order Number 937 (Nov 1917).
14. From the diary of Captain George Lush Finlay MC, held in the Australian War Memorial.

ANZAC Biographies

On our website you will find the biographical details of ANZAC (as well as British) servicemen & women whose medals or other memorabilia form part of the collection on display at the Maryborough Military & Colonial Museum, Maryborough, Queensland, Australia.