Arthur Blackburn's unit landed at Anzac Cove, Gallipoli, on April 25,1915, and he and another scout were credited with advancing the furthest inland on the day of the landing.
86 Facts About Arthur Blackburn
1.
2.
Arthur Blackburn was later commissioned and, along with his battalion, spent the rest of the Gallipoli campaign fighting Ottoman forces.
3.
Arthur Blackburn was the first member of his battalion to be awarded the VC during World War I, and the first South Australian to receive the VC.
4.
Arthur Blackburn led the Returned Sailors' and Soldiers' Imperial League of Australia in South Australia for several years, and was appointed the coroner for the city of Adelaide, South Australia.
5.
Captured, Arthur Blackburn spent the rest of the war as a prisoner-of-war.
6.
Arthur Blackburn died in 1960 and was buried with full military honours in the Australian Imperial Force section of the West Terrace Cemetery, Adelaide.
7.
Arthur Seaforth Blackburn was born on 25 November 1892 at Woodville, Colony of South Australia.
8.
Arthur Blackburn was the youngest child of Thomas Blackburn, an Anglican canon and entomologist, and his second wife, Margaret Harriette Stewart, Browne.
9.
Arthur Blackburn's mother died in 1904 at the age of 40.
10.
In 1911, compulsory military training had been introduced, and Arthur Blackburn had joined the South Australian Scottish Regiment of the Citizen Military Forces.
11.
Arthur Blackburn was called to the bar on 13 December 1913.
12.
At the outbreak of World War I, Arthur Blackburn was practising as a solicitor in Adelaide with the firm of Nesbit and Nesbit, and was still serving in the CMF.
13.
On 19 August 1914, aged 21, Arthur Blackburn enlisted as a private in the Australian Imperial Force and was assigned to the 10th Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 1st Division.
14.
Arthur Blackburn was one of the battalion scouts, and among the first ashore.
15.
Later in life, Arthur Blackburn was modest and retiring about his and Robin's achievement, stating that it was "an absolute mystery" how they had survived, given the range at which they were being shot at and the men who were shot around them.
16.
Arthur Blackburn was promoted to lance corporal, and was placed in charge of the unit post office for one month shortly after his promotion.
17.
The unit underwent re-organisation in Egypt, and on 20 February 1916, Arthur Blackburn was promoted to lieutenant.
18.
About 05:30, a detachment of 50 men based on 16 Platoon, D Company, 10th Battalion, was then sent forward under Arthur Blackburn to drive the Germans out of a section of trench.
19.
Arthur Blackburn, finding that A Company had suffered heavy casualties, immediately led his men in rushing a barricade across the trench.
20.
Arthur Blackburn went back to Robertson, who arranged support from trench mortars.
21.
Under the cover of this fire, Arthur Blackburn again went forward with some of his men, but another four were killed by machine gun fire.
22.
Arthur Blackburn then led his troops in the clearing of this trench, which was about 120 yards long.
23.
Sometime that night, Arthur Blackburn took over command of D Company, but was relieved the following morning.
24.
Arthur Blackburn relinquished his temporary rank upon evacuation, and was placed on the seconded list.
25.
Arthur Blackburn was directed with fifty men to drive the enemy from a strong point.
26.
Arthur Blackburn was the first member of the 10th Battalion and first South Australian to be awarded the VC, and his VC was earned in the costliest battle in Australian history.
27.
Arthur Blackburn married Rose Ada Kelly at the St Peter's College chapel on 22 March 1917; they had two sons and two daughters.
28.
Arthur Blackburn was discharged from the AIF on medical grounds on 10 April 1917, as he was classified as too ill to return to the fighting.
29.
Arthur Blackburn returned to legal practice in early 1917, becoming a principal lawyer for the firm of Fenn and Hardy.
30.
In May 1917, Arthur Blackburn was elected as one of five vice-presidents of the Returned Soldiers' Association in South Australia, which was led by the first commanding officer of the 10th Battalion, Weir.
31.
Arthur Blackburn was involved in the 1917 Australian conscription referendum campaign, advocating in favour of conscription.
32.
Arthur Blackburn led the fundraising for a soldiers' memorial to be built in Adelaide.
33.
Arthur Blackburn advocated several radical ideas in his time as a parliamentarian, including removing all single men from the state public service so they would be free to enlist.
34.
Arthur Blackburn was criticised in Parliament for not paying due attention to important legislation regarding ex-soldiers.
35.
Arthur Blackburn railed against delays in the deferred pay of dead soldiers being paid to their widows.
36.
In January 1920, Arthur Blackburn was re-elected as state president of the RSSILA, although this was the first time he was opposed for the post, and he only won narrowly.
37.
On 30 October 1925, Arthur Blackburn was transferred as a lieutenant from the Reserve of Officers List to the part-time 43rd Battalion of the CMF.
38.
On 21 February 1927, Arthur Blackburn was promoted to captain, still serving with the 43rd Battalion.
39.
In early 1928, Arthur Blackburn became a foundation member of the Legacy Club of Adelaide, established to assist the dependents of deceased ex-servicemen; he later became its second president.
40.
Arthur Blackburn was transferred from the 43rd Battalion to the 23rd Light Horse Regiment on 1 July 1928.
41.
In September and October 1928, Arthur Blackburn helped raise a volunteer force which was used to protect non-union labour in an industrial dispute on the wharves at Port Adelaide and Outer Harbor.
42.
In 1933, Arthur Blackburn became the coroner of the city of Adelaide, a position he held for fourteen years, with leave of absence during his World War II service.
43.
On 6 May 1935, Arthur Blackburn was awarded the King George V Silver Jubilee Medal.
44.
Arthur Blackburn was promoted to major on 15 January 1937, still with the same regiment, and in the same year was awarded the King George VI Coronation Medal.
45.
Arthur Blackburn was one of only three Australian World War I VC recipients to volunteer for overseas service in World War II.
46.
Arthur Blackburn then led A Company on another 19-mile drive before returning to check on the dispositions of his remaining troops at the bridge, near which he established his headquarters.
47.
Meanwhile, Arthur Blackburn was recalled to Rosh Pinna in Palestine to receive orders from the commander of the Damascus front, Major General John Fullerton Evetts of the British 6th Infantry Division, who directed him to assist the "weary and disheartened" Free French forward to Damascus.
48.
Arthur Blackburn again drove forward, but the Free French again refused to budge.
49.
Arthur Blackburn continued to visit his detachments, often displaying a disdainful attitude to incoming artillery fire which amazed his men.
50.
Arthur Blackburn became involved in trying to arbitrate in the fractious relationship between the captured Vichy French and the Free French who wanted to recruit them, but the Free French were largely unsuccessful in this endeavour, with only 5,700 of the remaining fit 28,000 Vichy soldiers joining their cause.
51.
Arthur Blackburn received orders to put 2,000 of his men ashore at Oosthaven on Sumatra in the Dutch East Indies to help defend an airfield near Palembang, about 190 miles north of the port.
52.
Arthur Blackburn sent a party of pioneers ashore to round them up.
53.
Arthur Blackburn gave them the choice of either joining his force or being charged with desertion.
54.
Arthur Blackburn was directed to use his force in offensive operations against the Japanese.
55.
Arthur Blackburn was then ordered by Schilling to move most of his force approximately 100 miles east to counter-attack against the regimental-sized force that had landed at Eretanwetan and was advancing south towards Bandung.
56.
Arthur Blackburn, realising that the Japanese would begin to probe his defences and try to outflank them, ordered his reserves to fan out to the north and south of the main blocking position at Leuwiliang.
57.
Arthur Blackburn ordered his men to break contact and withdraw closer to Buitenzorg.
58.
Arthur Blackburn conducted a fighting withdrawal through a series of fall-back positions to a point just southeast of Buitenzorg, then disengaged and moved back to Sukabumi, about 25 miles southeast of Buitenzorg.
59.
Arthur Blackburn was then given orders to deploy Blackforce into the Bandung perimeter as a mobile reserve.
60.
Arthur Blackburn wrote a letter, signed by other Allied commanders, protesting this order.
61.
Sitwell and other more senior officers were sequestered in a fenced-off part of the camp, so Arthur Blackburn became the senior officer, with an American colonel, Albert Searle, as his deputy.
62.
The food rations at the Bicycle Camp were poor, and because Japan was not a party to the Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War and did not follow its stipulations, it was difficult to maintain discipline as all but Arthur Blackburn had to work regardless of rank.
63.
Arthur Blackburn arranged activities to alleviate the boredom and consistently stood up to the Japanese.
64.
Arthur Blackburn was interrogated and was struck by a guard on at least one occasion, but was spared any torture.
65.
Arthur Blackburn only signed after appending "except where contrary to my oath of allegiance to His Majesty the King".
66.
Privileges were withdrawn, dozens of officers and men were beaten, and Arthur Blackburn was placed in solitary confinement.
67.
Arthur Blackburn was promoted to substantive colonel on 1 September 1942, but retained his temporary rank of brigadier whilst in captivity.
68.
Arthur Blackburn said that he would only sign under protest and duress, and asked what the penalty was for not signing.
69.
Arthur Blackburn was beaten and placed in solitary confinement, and the Japanese subjected him to sleep deprivation.
70.
Arthur Blackburn was beaten several times while held at Karenko Camp, as were other senior officers, often for the most minor of supposed infractions.
71.
Arthur Blackburn found some of his fellow POWs difficult to get on with, particularly the Australian Brigadiers Harold Burfield Taylor and Duncan Maxwell.
72.
Arthur Blackburn's health was poor, with multiple ailments and severe headaches.
73.
Arthur Blackburn stopped keeping a diary soon after arrival, as he had run out of ledger paper and was in deep depression.
74.
Arthur Blackburn considered this camp the best of all those he had been held in during the war, with showers and hot baths, although the latrines were always overflowing and the food was poor.
75.
Arthur Blackburn had received no letters since arriving in Manchuria, and this contributed to his depression.
76.
Arthur Blackburn first flew to Sian then Kunming in China, where he spent 36 hours in hospital.
77.
Arthur Blackburn's family travelled by train to Melbourne to meet him.
78.
On 11 October 1946, Arthur Blackburn was again appointed to active duty from the Reserve of Officers List, and was again temporarily promoted to brigadier while he was attached to 2nd Australian War Crimes Section as a witness before the International Military Tribunal for the Far East in Tokyo, Japan.
79.
On 11 January 1947, Arthur Blackburn was transferred back to the Reserve of Officers List, retaining the honorary rank of brigadier.
80.
Arthur Blackburn was unable to return to private legal practice due to his health, relinquished his role as city coroner in 1947, and was appointed as one of the fifteen inaugural conciliation commissioners of the Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration, a position he held until 1955.
81.
Arthur Blackburn was chairman of trustees for the Services Canteen Trust Fund from 1947 until his death.
82.
On 8 June 1949, Arthur Blackburn was appointed as the honorary colonel of the Adelaide University Regiment, and he was transferred to the Retired List in January 1950 with the honorary rank of brigadier.
83.
Arthur Blackburn relinquished his honorary colonel role with AUR in January 1955.
84.
Arthur Blackburn served on the Television Broadcaster's Board, overseeing the introduction of that medium into South Australia, and was a trustee of the Civilian Internees Trust Fund and Prisoners of War Trust Fund.
85.
Arthur Blackburn died on 24 November 1960 at Crafers, South Australia, aged 67, from a ruptured aneurism of the common iliac artery, and was buried with full military honours in the AIF section of Adelaide's West Terrace Cemetery.
86.
Arthur Blackburn's medal set, including his VC, was passed to his son Richard, then to his grandson Tom.