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To Charles By Paul V.E. Halewijn
Corporal Charles Bourke No 699, 3rd Battalion First Infantry Brigade Australian Imperial Forces Killed in France Friday, 21st July, 1916 |
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Forward
Paul V.E. Halewijn - ehalewijn@adelphia.net Photo: First World War Memorial 1914-1918 Lithgow Park |
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References 1. The Official History of Australia in World War I, (C.E.W. Bean.,1925 MacDonald, Sydney 2. The History of the Third Battalion, (Erik Wren, 1935 MacDonald, Sydney) 3. Pozieres, (Graham Keech., 1998, Pen Swords Books Limited., by Redwood Books Limited., Barnsley, South Yorkshire,.) |
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They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them. |
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This work has been an incredible journey of research and discovery. I must give credit to the Australian National Archives for all their attention to preservation and detail. I must also thank the Fullerton Public Library, Interlibrary Loan Department for the help in getting the books I needed. Thanks Devon. I would like to thank my Parents for allowing me the free use of their Computer. I would also like to thank My Favorite Uncle, Dale Brown without whom I would be lost in a sea of over used commas. Most of all I would like to thank God for granting me spiritual freedom and sobriety, without which this story would have remained untold. This work is dedicated to Charles Bourke and the Family he left behind. May you all enjoy the history for what it is, the last two years of my Great Uncles life story, told almost 100 years after his death. Do not confuse this piece with Official Military History. It is a biography covering the final two years of my Great Uncle's life, his military years, the years of adventure, horror and finally death. The primary purpose of this work is to shed light on a life lived long ago. It is my hope that Great Uncle Charles will enjoy the recognition he deserves and that the generations indebted to him will give credit to the common man he was and to the hero he became. 
