John Angus Burton MC

Military
Cross
1914-15
Star
British War
Medal
Victory
Medal
Lt. John Angus Burton MC - 10
th
Field Artillery Brigade, 4
th
Division Artillery
Australian Imperial Force

Family Background
Solomon Burton (Jacks father) was working as a Mail Contractor at Swan Hill Victoria,
before he was married to Mary Madeline Genevieve Martin, 5
th
daughter of Bernard Martin
of Bourke. They were married at St. Ignatius Church Bourke by Reverend M. Macnamara,
on June 27
th
1882.
On Feb 20
th
1891, Solomon and his business partner of Booth-Burton and Co., bought
Coronga Peak Station, which is South-west of Byrock NSW. The station comprised 680
acres of freehold land; 88,760 sheep; 106 cattle and 56 horses. Bidding started at 40,000
and was purchased by Mr. Burton for 58,000. Solomon and Mary had 15 children of
which 9 survived Gwen, Eileen, Norman, Hilda, Kathleen, Jack, Beryl, Marie and Leslie
(A Sapper who died in WW1).
John Angus Burton was born at Coronga Peak Station Byrock in February 1894, where
his father, Solomon Burton, was the Owner/Manager. It is unclear how long the family lived
at Coronga Peak before moving to Swan Hill, Victoria, but it may be assumed that
because of a series of tragedies that befell them i.e. the main homestead was completely
destroyed by fire; a long and protracted drought (the so-called Federation Drought from
1895-1903) that hit Australia at that time, the deaths of children in this pioneering country
and also the need for the children to get adequate education, - the family moved.
John, (or Jack as he was known), attended school at Swan Hill Public School, Victoria,
and later, went to Sydney and found work as a Bank Clerk in the Commonwealth Bank of
Australia. This was Jacks occupation prior to enlisting in the AIF.

The address, stated on his AIF enlistment papers, was Robinson St Chatswood, and
Solomons address as Mt. Drysdale. Solomon Burton died 6
th
March 1921 at the residence
of his son Norman Burton at Kentucky NSW, aged 73 and Mary Burton died 3
rd
January
1943 at 1 Daisy St Chatswood.


Enlistment in the AIF
Jack Burton enlisted in the Army at Victoria Barracks, on 18
th
October 1915, aged 21 years
and 8 months and was appointed as a Gunner to No.3 Section, 13
th
Reinforcements of the
1
st
Artillery Brigade his service number was 9880. The term of his service was to be war
+ 4 months, however long the war was to last. Not many expected that the Imperial forces
would have a swift victory but no-one expected that the Great War would go for 4
arduous and bloody years.
Jack had already done some service with the Citizens Military Forces, had a good
knowledge of the military and only had to complete a 2 month initial training period.


Jack embarked to Cairo, Egypt on 17
th

Dec 1915, aboard the HMAS Berrima,
an armed merchant cruiser, which had
a top speed of 15 knots.
He was taken on strength by 10
th
Field
Artillery Brigade at Serapeum, Egypt on
24
th
January 1916 and then posted to
the 38
th
Battery on 25
th
March1916.
Here he served as part of the Egypt
defensive force guarding the Suez
Canal and was promoted to Bombardier
on the 20
th
May 1916.
On the 13
th
June1916, he embarked at
Alexandria Egypt bound for Marseilles France, via Southampton England, where he was to
serve King & Country for the next 2 years, mainly in the Somme sector.
Campaigns in which John A Burton was to serve.
Egypt: Defence of Egypt and the Suez Canal, Western Front: Pozieres, Retreat to the
Hindenburg Line, Bullecourt, Messines, Menin Road, Polygon Wood, Passchendaele,
Villers Bretonneux, Hamel, Amiens, Albert, Hindenburg Line


At this time Jacks Artillery Brigade had on strength, 16 x 18 pounders, 4 x 41/2 inch
Howitzers and consisted of 37th, 38th, 39th, 40th Field Artillery Batteries.
In August 1916, the 4
th
Division, under the command of Major General E. G. Sinclair-
MacLagan, relieved the Second Division on the Pozieres Heights and repulsed a major
German counterattack. They then drove north to the outskirts of Mouquet Farm to settle
into a defensive position. A second tour of the Somme at Mouquet Farm followed in
September and a third at Flers in October.
In September the brigade was given some relief, as it moved to Flanders, Ypres.
On the 25
th
October 1916, Jack was detached to the 4
th
Division Medium Trench Mortar
Battery in Belgium, after he accidently injured his right hand whilst in the field but after 16
days recuperation, he returned to 10
th
Field Artillery Battalion in France. In November, the
4th returned to the Bapaume area in the Somme, ten kilometres north-east of Pozires. As
the harsh winter began to set in, the brigade experienced its first gas attacks. This was a 3
month period of stalemate battles and a time of solidifying defensive lines, where the Allies
and the Germans traded skirmishes with no real gain.
In March 1917 the Germans withdrew to the Hindenburg Line and the 4th moved forward
to Bullecourt.
On 11 April 1917 the Fourth Division assaulted the Hindenburg Line in the First Battle of
Bullecourt. The battle was a disaster and 1170 Australian prisoners were taken by the
Germans.
Battle of Messines, (7
th
- 14
th
June 1917). The target of the offensive was the
Wyteschaete Ridge, a natural stronghold southeast of Ypres. The attack was also a
precursor to the much larger Third Battle of Ypres, known as Passchendaele.
In preparing for the Messines battle, Command had authorised the laying of 22 mine
shafts underneath German lines all along the ridge, the plan being to fill them with TNT
and detonate all 22 at zero hour at 0310 on 7 June 1917, to be followed by infantry attacks
so as to secure the ridge from the presumably dazed German defenders, (comprised of
the infantry, heavily supported by the use of artillery bombardments, tanks and the use of
gas). Work on laying the mines began some 18 months before zero hour. Heavy
preliminary artillery bombardment of the German lines was begun on 21 May, involving
2,300 guns and 300 heavy mortars, ceasing at 0250 on the morning of 7 June. The
German troops, sensing imminent attack, rushed to their defensive positions, machine
guns ready, meanwhile sending up flares to detect British movement towards the ridge.
Silence prevailed for the following twenty minutes until, at 0310, the order was given
across the line to detonate the mines, which totalled 600 tons of explosive, of which only
19 detonated. The result was the biggest single explosion of WW1. In its wake, nine
divisions of infantry advanced under protection of a creeping artillery barrage, tanks and
gas attacks.
During Jacks service in France, he was promoted very quickly through the ranks from
Bombardier to Corporal (16/7/17) and then to temporary Sergeant (30/9/17), due to the
Batterys NCOs having been killed in action and also because of his leadership qualities
and seniority (in the field & to complete establishment).
Battle of Polygon Wood
The Battle of Polygon Wood, fought on 26 September 1917, was the second bite and
hold operation of the Third Battle of Ypres in which Australians participated. The area
captured on 20 September 1917 at the Battle of Menin Road had been churned up by the
shells of both sides and, before massed artillery and other supplies could be moved
forward, roads had to be built. Plank roads for heavy traffic, light railways, mule-tracks, and
even a short experimental length of monorail, were quickly constructed. Building supply
routes was essential work for the success of the bite and hold operations.
Australian forces involved in the Polygon Wood battle were the Fourth and Fifth Divisions,
which as well as the infantry included artillery, engineers, medical personnel and the
hundreds of men involved in supply and transport. All essential war material had to be
brought forward by wagons along roads and tracks exposed to heavy shelling. Horses and
drivers suffered greatly. While a cratered road was repaired, drivers had to sit and wait,
controlling their horses as the shells fell around them. Charles Bean, Australias official
historian, wrote of these men:
They belonged to the finest class their nation produced, unassuming, country-
bred men. They waited steadily until the break was repaired or some shattered
wagon or horses dragged from the road, and then continued their vital work. No
shell-fire could drive them from their horses. The unostentatious efficiency and
self-discipline of these steadfast men was as fine as any achievement of
Australians in the war.
Charles Bean, The AIF in France:1917, The Official History of Australia in the War of 19141918, Volume
4, Sydney, 1941, pp.794795
The name Polygon Wood derived from a plantation forest that lay along the axis of the
Australian advance on 26 September 1917. Shelling had reduced the wood to little more
than stumps and broken timber. The planned attack was almost derailed by a German
attack 24 hours earlier on British troops holding the line to the south of the Fifth Division.
Australians, scheduled to attack the next morning, helped to fend off the Germans, but
there was some concern about the possible weakness of this flank during the upcoming
operation.
The artillery barrage, which commenced at 5.50 on 26 September, just as the Polygon
plateau became visible, was described by Charles Bean as:
the most perfect that ever protected Australian troops. It seemed to break out
with a single crash. The ground was dry, and the shell-bursts raised a wall of
dust and smoke which appeared almost to be solid. So dense was the cloud
that individual bursts could not be distinguished. Roaring, deafening, it rolled
ahead of the troops like a Gippsland bushfire.
Charles Bean, The AIF in France:1917, The Official History of Australia in the War of 1914-1918, Volume
4, Sydney, 1941, p.813
Seven divisions, five British and two Australian, advanced behind the screen of shells
the creeping barrage as it was known and seized most of their objectives. In the south,
despite the previous days problems, the Australians reached not only their own objectives
but those allocated to neighbouring British units. The Germans launched several counter-
attacks but these were thwarted by the heavy defensive artillery barrages used to protect
the infantry consolidating their objectives. The Battle of Polygon Wood cost 5,770
Australian casualties.

Three months later, on the 29
th
December1917, Jack was sent to RA Cadet School of St
Johns Wood, England for training. Corporal Jack Burton was then promoted to Sergeant
Cadet on the 26
th
January 1918 and returned to the 10
th
Field Artillery Brigade in France
as Sergeant Jack Burton.
March 21, 1918 - At dawn, the Germans unleash Operation Michael, an offensive with 3
German armies in the Arras - St-Quentin-La Fre sector of the Somme. The British troops
between Arras and St Quentin are smothered by storms of gas and artillery shells.
Almost immediately the British lost the gains from 1916 - 1918. The Germans capture
Pozires, Mouquet Farm, Thiepval and Albert.
23 March, 1918 - Australian 3rd and 4th Divisions are ordered to proceed to Amiens to
strengthen the retreating British 5th Army.
The Australian 4th Division is relieved by the Australian 2nd Division arriving from
Messines.


Villers - Bretonneux
By the 18th of April 1918 the signs of a coming attack were unmistakable. The Germans
attacked with mustard gas in the woods and gullies behind the town. Australian troops
were relieved by troops from the British 8th Division as previously arranged, from Villers-
Bretonneux to the flank of the French at Hangard in the south.
On April 21, German deserters revealed that German attack preparations were nearing
completion. They revealed that the attack would commence early on April 24, with the first
two to three hours consisting of gas shelling. British aerial observations revealed German
troops massing in trenches less than two kilometres south of Villers-Bretonneux in
Hangard Wood.
On the night of April 22-23, British and Australian artillery shelled German mustering
areas. At dawn the infantry was standing ready but no attack eventuated, most of the
activity on this day was in air, as planes from both sides criss-crossed the battlefield,
bombing, strafing and engaging in dogfights. It was during one of these dogfights that the
German "Red Baron" was shot down over Australian lines, north of Villers-Bretonneux at
Corbie. On the afternoon of April 23, heavy shelling, mainly mustard gas, fell on the area
just beyond Villers-Bretonneux, just as the German deserters had detailed earlier.
April 27, 1918 - Villers-Bretonneux was finally secured by Australian forces, never to be
lost to Germans again.
Sergeant Jack Burton was promoted to Second Lieutenant on 17
th
June 1918, whilst
in France.
July 4, 1918 - Battle of Le Hamel . The objective was to dislodge the Germans from a
position where they overlooked the British lines and to also secure a point from which the
Allies could take the initiative.

Le Hamel
General Monash believed that:
"...the role of the infantry was not to expend itself upon heroic physical
effort, not to wither away under merciless machine gun fire, not to
impale itself on hostile bayonets, but on the contrary, to advance
under the maximum array of mechanical resources in the form of
guns, machine guns, tanks, mortars and aeroplanes."
For the attack, Monash was given the British 5th Tank Brigade which comprised 60 brand
new Mark V tanks and 4 carrier tanks. Monash's plan included the use of these tanks in
close support of the infantry. His plans also called for something new - re-supply from the
air. Ten companies of American troops were attached by platoons to the Australian
battalions for experience. Monash could only allot 7,500 men to the capture of Hamel and
proposed to use 4 brigades, one from each of the Australian 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th
Divisions. The aim was to give all Australian divisions experience with tanks.
The attack commenced without the usual artillery bombardmentThe battle lasted about
93 minutes, Monash had planned on 90 minutes. Quickly, Vare Wood fell to the 4th
Brigade, and Le Hamel, to the 11th Brigade. The Australians and Americans lost about
900 men while the Germans lost about 1,800.
There had been no other Allied offensives since the previous autumn. The victory at le
Hamel provided a much needed spark to the Allies. When the French President of the
Allied War Committee, George Clemenceau visited the headquarters of the Australian 4th
Division near Corbie, he said:
"When the Australians came to France the
French people expected a great deal of you.
We knew that you would fight a real fight, but
we did not know from the beginning you
would astonish the whole continent. I shall go
back tomorrow and say to my countrymen, ' I
have seen the Australians. I have looked in
their faces. I know that these men will fight
alongside us again until the cause for which
we are all fighting is safe."
18 July,1918 - French Marshal Foch launches a stunning counter attack against the
Germans around Rhiems. The attack is made by 13 French and 4 US divisions and is
covered by 2,100 guns and follows 325 French tanks.
8 August, 1918 - Marshal Foch wanted a double thrust with the British along the line of the
Somme River for two main reasons, it was suitable for tanks and the Germans in the
vicinity had been considerably weakened by Australian "peaceful penetration". The attack
was to use 430 British tanks which would lead a three stage advance. To achieve
maximum surprise there was no preliminary bombardment.
The "Battle of Amiens" commenced at 4.20am. The Australian 2nd and 3rd Divisions had
a front of about 3,600 metres. The Australian 4th and 5th stood ready to leapfrog the
Australian 2nd and 3rd Divisions as the Battle commenced. In this battle, 2
nd
Lt. Jack
Burton was acting as the Forward Observation Officer for his Battery and the infantry
either side of his Battery, and by his actions on the day, was awarded the Military Cross.
With no prior bombardment, the Germans were taken totally by surprise. By 7.30am the
German lines were thoroughly broken and much of their field artillery had been overrun
and captured.
While the Australian 2nd and 3rd Divisions dug in to consolidate the ground they had won,
the Australian 4th and 5th Divisions leapfrogged them and at 8.20am began the second
phase of the attack.
In this new "open warfare" stage the Australians excelled, capturing Bayonvillers without
resistance, and by 11am the Australian 59th Battalion had captured Harbonnieres. By the
end of the day, the Allies had punched a hole, 20 kilometres wide and 11 kilometres deep,
in the German lines. The break-through had driven them eastwards towards Perrone and
Mont St. Quentin. The Allied victory described as a "Black Day" for the German forces by
German commanders. Between 7-14 August 1918, the 5 Australian Divisions suffered a
total of 6,491 casualties, which represented 20% of their strength upon entering the battle.
24 August, 1918 - Australian 4th Division is replaced in the Line by a French Division and
goes into reserve.
On the 29
th
September 1918, the strongly defended Hindenburg Line was attacked on a
six-kilometre wide land bridge between Bellicourt and Vendhuille where the St Quentin
Canal ran underground through a tunnel. After nearly two months of continuous action
Australian units were numerically weak with the average battalion having only 300 men
available for action. This was the arena where 2
nd
Lt Jack Burtons leadership and courage
against a strong defensive line was noted for an award and for which he was later
recommended for the Military Cross. The Australians were reinforced by keen but
inexperienced American troops whose unit strength was three times that of the exhausted
Australians. The 10th Artillery Brigade now had 18 x 18 pounders, 6 x 4 inch Howitzers
and consisted of 37
th
, 38
th
, and 39
th
field artillery Batteries.
In three days of hard fighting, with Lewis guns and grenades, the Australians captured the
first two German lines which had been the American objectives. On 3 October 1918,
Australian troops broke through the last defensive system of the Hindenburg Line, the third
(Beaurevoir) line. Two days later, Australians, in a costly action, captured Montbrehain
village.
These were the last infantry actions fought by Australian soldiers on the Western Front.
The five Australian divisions were now withdrawn for a rest and were heading up the line
into battle again on 11 November 1918, the day the Armistice was declared. The last
Australians in action on the Western Front were the men of the Australian Flying Corps
and some artillery units.
The Great War was over.
When the war ended, the AIF was demobilised and the Division was dissolved. Over the
course of the war, of the 4
th
Divisions 41,048 personnel, Australia lost 8,360 killed in
action; 2,613 died later from wounds; 872 other deaths; 2,076 were taken prisoner and
27,127 wounded. Remember, this was just one Division of the AIF.


Could our youth of today survive what these men endured for years on the battlefield
and for years after the War
-Lest We Forget-

(Tongue in cheek description - The kitchen can be clearly seen in the upper right corner,
with the lounge/living area and bathroom & swimming pool in the foreground)
2
nd
Lt. Jack Burton was awarded the Military Cross for conspicuous gallantry on 21
st

November 1918.
For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty during
the attack on the Hindenberg Line south of Vendhuille
on the 29
th
September, 1918. Acting as forward
observation Officer to his battery which was
supporting the 2
nd
American Battalion, he maintained
throughout the day the closest touch with the infantry,
his Battery and Group Headquarters.
When the left flank was driven in, he rendered
excellent and most timely service in reorganising the
line and straightening out the mixed units, and again
rendered great assistance to the Battalion when the
CO and many Officers were wounded. During the
subsequent obscure and critical situation, Second
Lieutenant Burton made a personal reconnaissance
under heavy machine gun fire, established touch with
the Northumberland Fusiliers on the Left and sent
back an accurate definition of our line and the general
situation.
His work throughout the operation was of a very high
order and his timely and accurate information of
greatest value to his Group and these Headquarters.
Major General Sinclair-Maclagan
Commander Australian 4
th
Division.
This award was recommended on 2
nd
Oct 1918 and was awarded just 12 days before the
Armistice on the 11.11.1918, which marked the end of 4 years of bloody warfare in
Europe.
On 14
th
December 1918, Jack went on 2 weeks leave to the UK and when he returned to
France on the 28
th
Dec 1918, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant.

On the 4
th
April 1919 he was listed to be promoted to the rank of Adjutant, but after much
thought (1 mth), he elected discharge from the AIF and to be returned to Australia. On the
20
th
May 1919, he left France for England and left for Australia on HMAS City of Exeter
on 12
th
July 1919 from Southampton. After disembarking at Sydney on Tuesday 26
th

August 1919, he had served for another 6 months since electing discharge.

Finally in October 1919, Lieutenant John (Jack) Angus Burton MC went on repatriation
leave whilst his discharge was pending.
On the 6
th
Feb 1920 he was formally discharged from the Army and retired to a soldiers
settlement lot at Kentucky South NSW. He cleared the 100 acre lot by hand and became
an orchardist - planting stone fruit (mainly cherries), pears and apples.
He named the property Coronga after the name of his fathers property near Byrock
NSW, where he was born. Jack married Jacobena McNamara and they had two sons,
Edward Lyons (Ted) and Colin John (Tony). Both boys went on to be soldiers in the Army
and served Australia in WW2. Tony took over the running of the family property Coronga
at Kentucky and Ted joined up with Davis Gelatine in Sydney.

Awards & Campaign Medals
Military Cross British War Medal 1914-1915 Star Victory Medal









Sgt JA Burton
Western Front
(Belgium),
Passchendaele
Area,
Zonnebeke
An 18 pounder gun of the 38th Battery of 10
th
Australian Field Artillery dug in among the ruins of
an old factory near Zonnebeke, in the Ypres Sector. Abraham Heights are seen on the sky line.
Identified, left to right: 9880 Sergeant (Sgt) J A Burton; 346 Sgt E T Cornish; 3867 Bombardier
(Bdr) W. H. Neil; 1388 Bdr R L Corbett (partially obscured); 34831 Gunner E G Stevenson. Note
the shells in the foreground.
24 October 1917


Expended shell casings Menin Rd, 27
th
Sep 1917. The shells were used
by Australian Artillery on 20
th
Sep 1917 during the Battle of Menin Road
3
rd
battle of Ypres Artillery crew moving a bogged 18 pounder



Hellfire Corner, Menin Road, 27 September 1917. [AWM E01889] Note
the hessian blinds to hide troop movements from the enemy.
The dead, Battle of the Menin Road, 20 September 1917. [AWM E00766]




Five Australians, members of a field artillery brigade, passing along a duckboard track over mud and water among gaunt
bare tree trunks in the devastated Chateau Wood, a portion of one of the battlegrounds in the Ypres salient. All the
identified men in this group served in 4th Division artillery units.
Munitions dump Menin Rd, 17
th
October 1917.




Loading an 18 pounder Western Front (Belgium), Menin Road Area, Bellewaarde
A view of the road running up to Idiot Corner, on the Westhoek Ridge.







Captured German pillbox Battle of Polygon Wood 26 Sep 1917
An Artillery Battery of the Australian 4
th
Division



Soldiers Graves Polygon Wood


Vaulx-Vraucourt artillery




Conditions on the front during the Third Battle of Ypres, November 1917
The mud of Ypres October 1917, over which, Australians advanced during the Battle of Menin Road in Sep 1917. AWM






(All preceding photographs are held at
the Australian War Memorial, Canberra.)


Jacking up a field gun at Passchendale in an attempt to move it forward. AWM