McLeod, Duncan Dan

No.945 Private Duncan Dan McLeod – 28^th Battalion AIF

Duncan Dan McLeod was born in Cawdor, Nairn Scotland in 1875 to James and Janet McLeod. He was educated in Nairn and after leaving school he went to work on the Railways. During this time Duncan also was a serving member of the Cameron Highlander Volunteers. Duncan later left Scotland and travelled to Western Australia where he took up residence in Swan Street North Fremantle. During his time in WA Duncan worked for the WA Government Railways as an Engine Driver/Engineer.

On the 3^rd May 1915 Duncan went to the Perth Drill Hall to enlist in the AIF and he was passed as fit for service.

The medical officer found him to be 5 feet 5 inches tall; weight of 153 lbs; chest measurement of 37-39 inches; dark complexion; brown eyes and black hair. He also had a tattoo of a horse shoe in the inside of his right arm. Duncan’s religious denomination was Presbyterian. He was initially assigned to the 7^th Reinforcements to the 11^th Battalion but was soon transferred to “C” Company of the 28^th Battalion which was forming at Blackboy Hill Camp. This move was certified by Colonel Collett of the 28^th Battalion on the 26^th May 1915.

Duncan trained with the 28^th Battalion in WA for the next month and on the 29^th June 1915 they embarked from Fremantle Harbour aboard the HMAT Ascanius. Just over three weeks later they arrived at Egypt and were sent into camp. Their time in Egypt was only of several weeks duration as on the 4^th September they embarked at Alexandria Harbour for Gallipoli. Duncan served through the final months of the Gallipoli campaign with the 28^th Battalion and left with them when they evacuated in late December 1915. By the 10^th January 1916 they had returned to Egypt and commenced training and they were also being utilised to hold sections of the Suez Canal Defence Line.

On the 15^th February 1916 Duncan got into trouble for being drunk and being absent from a battalion tattoo. As a punishment he was given 48 hours of Field Punishment No.2. The 28^th Battalion as part of the 2^nd Division were the first of the Australian infantry to be sent to France. They departed Egypt on the 16^th March 1916 and arrived five days later at Marseilles on the 21^st. The 28^th Battalion were disembarked and sent to the railway station where they boarded a train for the north of France, arriving in the vicinity of Armentieres.

The 28^th Battalion had their first taste of Western Front trench life at Bois Greiner and Fleurbaix and they would remain in this sector for their first few months in France. On the 21^st April 1916 Duncan was sent to the 7^th Field Ambulance with influenza though returned to his unit 6 days later. In May the 7^th Brigade planned a trench raid of the German trenches opposite. Men from the 26^th and 28^th Battalions were selected and were taken out of the line to train for the raid. Duncan was one of these men.

This action took place on June 6^th 1916 and was a highly successful raid with prisoners and identification of the Germans being secured. Casualties were inflicted on the Germans and the raiding party had left the German trenches without suffering a single casualty. However as a result of the raid the Germans launched a severe bombardment on the sector which caught part of the raiding party in No Man’s Land. Duncan was one of the men killed by this bombardment. His friends recovered his body and brought him back to the Australian lines. He was buried at Ration Farm Military Cemetery at La-Chapelle Armentieres France in plot I.H.12 in a service conducted by the Reverend W.C. Smith.