Schultze, Leonard Oscar

6583 Private Leonard Oscar Schultze - 16th Battalion AIF

Leonard Oscar Schultze was born in Semaphore South Australia on the 21st August 1897 to Emil and Kate Schultze. He had five siblings, Percy (1889), Ida (1891), Elza (1893), Vida (1895) and Millie (1903).

The family came to Western Australia while Leonard was still young and took up residence at 212 South Terrace Fremantle. (later renumbered 180 South Tce) 212 South Terrace was next door to the Baptist Church, with Leo's parents the caretakers.

Leo completed his schooling in Fremantle during which time he also served in the 86A cadets of the Citizens Military Forces. After leaving school Leo took up employment as a mechanical dentist.

On the 28th February 1916 in Fremantle Leo enlisted into the Australian Imperial Force. He was found to be fit for enlistment and the medical examiner recorded his physical attributes as;

Height - 5 feet 4 inches tall;

Weight - 108lbs;

Chest Measurement - 31-34 inches;

Complexion - Fresh;

Eyes - Dark Brown;

Hair - Dark Brown.

Upon his successful enlistment Leo was sent to Blackboy Hill Camp where he was initially assigned to the Artillery reinforcements. He trained with them for around six weeks but on the 20th April 1916 was transferred into the Army Medical Corps reinforcements. On the 5th May 1916 he was put into the Dental Corps section on the Army Medical Corps.

Another ten weeks passed and Leo was transferred again, this time to the 21st Reinforcements to the 16th Battalion AIF. He had several more weeks of training with this group in WA.

On the 13th October 1916 Leo and his group entrained for Fremantle Harbour where they boarded the transport ship Port Macquarie and set sail for England, reaching Plymouth on the 12th December 1916.

The men were then disembarked and sent to the 4th Training Battalion at Codford on the Salisbury Plains. On the 24th December Leo came down ill with influenza and was sent to Sutton Veny Military Hospital. Fortunately, he soon recovered and was returned to the training battalion.

On the 9th February 1917 Leo was sent across to France and went into the 4th Australian Division Base Depot at Etaples. He had a few days in the base depot camp but was then sent to the 16th Battalion, being taken on strength on the 13th February 1917. The 16th Battalion were then situated on the Somme battlefield near Flers. 

Towards the end of the month the Germans began a withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line. Their withdrawal was pressed all the way by Australian and British troops but by early April they were behind the thick wire of the Hindenburg Line. An attack was planned to break through this position at Bullecourt. The 16^th Battalion, along with the 13^th Battalion would advance against this position and try to capture the Germans trench lines. A great advance was made against very heavy fire and the Australians made it into the trenches however with no artillery support the Germans were able to get superiority of fire and stop any reinforcements from coming across No Man’s Land. The Australian casualties were heavy and with no supplies coming in the men were soon out of ammunition. Those who could made their way back to the Australian lines but many of the 16^th Battalion had been surrounded and were taken Prisoner of War.

Leo was one of those soldiers who had been captured. Due to his Germanic sounding surname Leo may have been treated very harshly by his captors.

Leo was now a prisoner for the duration of the war. With the surrender of the Germans in November 1918, Leo made his way back through Germany and Holland, eventually reaching England in January 1919. He was then given a months furlough and then granted further extensions of leave while he waited to be assigned a berth on a troopship home.

On the 19th April 1919 Leo boarded the transport ship Marathon and set sail for home, disembarking in Fremantle on the 31st May 1919.

Leo was discharged from the AIF on the 9th July 1919.

After the war Leonard resumed his pre-war career of dentistry.

Leonard married Muriel Gertrude Crago in Perth in 1927 and a son Ross was born in 1933. The family resided in North Perth.

Leonard died on the 12th December 1948 aged 51 at St John of God's hospital Subiaco. He was cremated at Karrakatta Cemetery.