Pentzin, Ernest

No.459 Corporal Ernest Pentzin – 10^th Light Horse Regiment

Ernest Pentzin was born in Germany on the 3^rd December 1866 to Sophie and Johann Pentzin. He had several siblings and Ernest came to Australia when he was 12 years old in 1878 and the family took up residence in Victoria.

He continued his education upon arrival and after leaving school took up an apprenticeship as a Farrier. By the 1890’s Ernie had arrived in Western Australia and was working as an Engine Driver in the Goldfields. Unfortunately during this time Ernie was involved in a mining accident which resulted in the death of a miner. The inquest is written up in the newspapers of the time. (http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/3245588)

By 1899 Ernie had moved to the Perth metropolitan area where he began work for the Fire Brigade. He continued this work until 1901, when as part of the Western Australian Mounted Infantry he travelled to South Africa to serve in the Boer War.

The next one and a half years was spent in South Africa with Ernie working as a Shoeing Smith. On return to Australia Ernie continued as a member of the WA Infantry Regiment for four years. During the next ten years Ernie worked as a Farrier, for a time in Geraldton but also in Fremantle, where he resided near his sister, A Mrs. Freda Lyons, who lived in Attfield Street.

In 1906 Ernie was involved in another incident at Mt Kokeby when a Grain shed burned down. (http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/148610608).

With the onset of the Great War, Ernie was 48 years old which was over the age of enlistment, but when he enlisted at Claremont Camp on the 24^th October 1914 he lowered his age to 39 years and 11 months old.

Despite his age Ernie was successfully enlisted into the AIF. The medical examiner found him to be 5 feet 8 & ½ inches tall; weight of 160lbs; chest measurement of 39-40 inches; fresh complexion; blue eyes and blackish grey hair. His religious denomination was Church of England. Due to the anti German backlash at the time Ernie had changed his place of birth to Horsham in Victoria rather than risking being rejected by mentioning his German birth.

Ernie was initially given the rank of trooper, but on the 4^th November 1914 he was promoted to Shoeing Smith of C Squadron. He trained with his Regiment in WA for the next few months but their embarkation orders soon came through. On the 17^th February 1915 Ernie and his squadron boarded the HMAT Surada and set sail for Egypt. Arriving there in mid March, the troopers were disembarked and sent to Mena Camp where they joined the remainder of the 3^rd Light Horse Brigade and commenced training in the desert.

The Light Horse would eventually be sent to reinforce the infantry at Gallipoli and the majority of the 10^th Light Horse left Egypt in mid May and they would not return to Egypt until early 1916. Given his role as a Shoeing Smith; Ernie had to remain in Egypt as one of the men detailed to look after the horses. He continued in this role at the 3^rd Light Horse Brigade Camp through 1915. Ernie joined back with the 10^th Light Horse when they returned to Egypt in early 1916. The Regiment that returned would have been bereft of familiar faces for Ernie as the 10^th were completely decimated as a result of attacks at the Nek and Hill 60 during August 1915.

Ernie served with the 10^th through the first half of 1916 when they were based at Serapeum and Heliopolis. During this time the 10^th were undertaking much patrol activity against the Turks and their Bedouin allies. On the 21^st August 1916 at Hod-el-Fatir Ernie was promoted to Shoeing Smith Corporal and served with the Regiment during the Romani action.

On the 17^th September 1916 the 10^th Light Horse at Hod Amara was bombed and machine gunned by the German air force. There was only one death by the machine gun fire and that was Ernie Pentzin. He was initially buried in Mazar Cemetery but after the war was moved to Kantara War Memorial Cemetery where he lies in plot F.43. Ernie was 50 years old at the time of his death.

His brother-in-law was Private Francis Lyon who served with the 11^th Battalion in France and died in June 1918.