Site Home
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site you agree to accept cookies.
If you enjoy this site please consider making a donation.
Great War Home
Search
Add Stories & Photos
Library
Help & FAQs
Features
Allied Army
Day by Day
RFC & RAF
Prisoners of War
War at Sea
Training for War
The Battles
Those Who Served
Hospitals
Civilian Service
Women at War
The War Effort
Central Powers Army
Central Powers Navy
Imperial Air Service
Library
World War Two
Submissions
Add Stories & Photos
Time Capsule
Information
Help & FAQs
Glossary
Our Facebook Page
Volunteering
News
Events
Contact us
Great War Books
About
217598Capt. Arthur Arundel Mackenzie MC.
Australian Imperial Force Imperial Camel Corps
from:Australia
Arthur Arundel Mackenzie was born at Greta, New South Wales, on 12th April 1891. Sadly, he lost his mother when he was about six years old. Before the First World War he spent several years in the senior cadets and when he enlisted was a member of the local rifle club at Guyra, New South Wales. The 24-year-old station manager enlisted with the Australian Imperial Force on 12thAugust 1915 and departed Sydney with reinforcements for the Imperial Camel Corps (ICC) aboard RMS Morea on 27th May 1916.
On arrival in Egypt, Mackenzie was assigned to the 4th Company of the 1st Australian Battalion of the ICC. Sadly, the start of his service also marked the end of his brother's service: Ronald Mackenzie was killed in action at Pozières. Shortly after the second battle of Gaza in April 1917 Mackenzie was wounded in action with a gunshot to his right leg. After recovering, he rejoined his unit as it advanced through Palestine and towards Gaza.
In April 1918, in one of the last actions of the ICC, Mackenzie fought to defend the hill at Mussallabeh. Some of the Australians ran out of hand grenades and resorted to heaving boulders down upon the attacking Turks. Mackenzie and his outnumbered group of men put up a vigorous and determined resistance and succeeded in forcing a retreat. For his actions at Mussallabeh Mackenzie was awarded the Military Cross. After battling several bouts of malaria, he was transferred to the 14th Light Horse Regiment and served with the unit until the end of the war. The Syria campaign had ended and from his letters home it is clear he was deeply affected by the hardships that the country's starving people had endured throughout the war.
Mackenzie returned to Australia as an honorary captain at the end of 1919, and his appointment with the AIF was terminated on 8th April 1920. He later served with the 3rd Volunteer Defence Corps during the Second World War. Arthur Mackenzie died at Guyra in 1970.
Related Content:
Can you help us to add to our records?
The names and stories on this website have been submitted by their relatives and friends. If your relations are not listed please add their names so that others can read about them
Did your relative live through the Great War? Do you have any photos, newspaper clippings, postcards or letters from that period? Have you researched the names on your local or war memorial?
If so please let us know.
Do you know the location of a Great War "Roll of Honour?"We are very keen to track down these often forgotten documents and obtain photographs and transcriptions of the names recorded so that they will be available for all to remember.
Help us to build a database of information on those who served both at home and abroad so that future generations may learn of their sacrifice.
Celebrate your own Family History
Celebrate by honouring members of your family who served in the Great War both in the forces and at home. We love to hear about the soldiers, but also remember the many who served in support roles, nurses, doctors, land army, muntions workers etc.
Please use our Family History resources to find out more about your relatives. Then please send in a short article, with a photo if possible, so that they can be remembered on these pages.
The free section of The Wartime Memories Project is run by volunteers.
This website is paid for out of our own pockets, library subscriptions and from donations made by visitors. The popularity of the site means that it is far exceeding available resources and we currently have a huge backlog of submissions.
If you are enjoying the site, please consider making a donation, however small to help with the costs of keeping the site running.
Hosted by:
Copyright MCMXCIX - MMXXIV
- All Rights Reserved -We do not permit the use of any content from this website for the training of LLMs or for use in Generative AI, it also may not be scraped for the purpose of creating other websites.