Claud Castleton

He returned through gunfire to bring wounded men back safely

Claud Charles Castleton was born on 12 April 1893 at Kirkley, near Lowestoft in Suffolk, England, the son of Thomas Charles Castleton and Edith Lucy Castleton. He was educated locally, won a scholarship to grammar school, and later worked as a pupil-teacher. Even before his military career began, he developed a strong interest in geography, travel, and the wider world, interests that eventually drew him far from England.

In 1912, at the age of nineteen, Castleton emigrated to Australia. He travelled extensively through Tasmania and the eastern Australian states, taking a variety of jobs before continuing north to New Guinea, where he worked as a prospector. When the First World War began in 1914, he was in Port Moresby. He immediately offered his services to the local administration and became involved in coastal defence and communications work before eventually returning to Australia to formally enlist.

On 10 March 1915, Castleton enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force at Liverpool, Sydney, receiving service number 1352. He was posted as a Private to D Company of the 18th Australian Infantry Battalion. On 25 June 1915 he embarked aboard HMAT Ceramic for overseas service, reaching Egypt the following month. His first major experience of war soon followed on the Gallipoli Peninsula.

The 18th Battalion reached Gallipoli in August 1915 and was quickly committed to the fighting around Hill 60. On 22 August, Castleton and his comrades advanced against Turkish positions in an extremely costly attack. The battalion suffered devastating casualties while attempting to seize and hold vital trenches. Castleton survived the fighting, but weeks later he became seriously ill with dysentery and was evacuated from Gallipoli for medical treatment.

Following the evacuation from Gallipoli, Castleton suffered another period of illness, this time from malaria. He recovered and continued his military career. In February 1916 he became a Temporary Sergeant, and on 8 March he transferred from the 18th Battalion to the 5th Australian Machine Gun Company. His promotion to Sergeant was confirmed on 16 March. Soon afterward he proceeded to France, where the Australian forces were entering the far more industrialized and destructive warfare of the Western Front.

On the night of 28-29 July 1916, near Pozières, an attack was driven back by machine-gun fire, leaving wounded men in no man's land. Castleton went out anyway. He crossed into no man's land under intense fire, found a wounded soldier, lifted the man onto his back, and carried him to safety. Having completed the rescue, he did not remain behind the protection of the Australian position. He went out a second time, again exposing himself to the enemy fire, and successfully brought another wounded man back.

Then he went out a third time.

Once again Castleton reached a wounded soldier and began carrying him toward the Australian lines. During that third rescue attempt, he was struck in the back by enemy fire and killed. He was only twenty-three years old. His final moments were spent attempting to save another man's life while deliberately exposing himself to the same fire that had already stopped an infantry assault.

After his death, Castleton was initially buried near the battlefield. His remains were later reinterred in Pozières British Cemetery at Ovillers-la-Boisselle, where he rests among many of the soldiers killed during the Somme fighting. His name was also placed on Australia's Roll of Honour, preserving his place among those who died while serving with Australian forces during the First World War.

Official Victoria Cross citation

For most conspicuous bravery. During an attack on the enemy’s trenches the infantry was temporarily driven back by the intense machine-gun fire opened by the enemy. Many wounded were left in “No Man’s Land” lying in shell-holes. Sjt. Castleton went out twice in face of this intense fire and each time brought in a wounded man on his back. He went out a third time and was bringing in another wounded man when he was himself hit in the back and killed instantly. He set a splendid example of courage and self-sacrifice.

Supplement to The London Gazette of 26 September 1916. 26 September 1916, Numb. 29765, p. 9418