Help: Court Martialled & Missing in UK, Capt: Albert Edward Harrison AIF

[Craven-Harrison]

And a third section


SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 25 MARCH, 1918. 3721
Capt. A. Harrison to be actg. Lt.-Col.
whilst comdg. Bn. from 19th Dec. to 24th
Jan. 1918

SUPPLEMENT TO THB LONDON GAZETTE, 6 APRIL, 1918 4257
Capt. A. Harrison to be 2nd in Command,
and to be actg. Maj. whilst so empld. 24th
Jan. 1918.

SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 27 MAY, 1918. 6193
Capt A. Harrison relinquishes the actg
rank of Maj. on ceasing to be empld as 2nd
in Command 10th Mar 1918

8298 SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 16 JULY, 1918.
Capt. A. Harrison (R. Scots, T.F.). 22
Apr. 1918.

SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 28 JULY, 1918. 8575
The undermentioned 2nd Lts. to be
Lts. : — Suff. E.—A. Harrison, M.C. 19th June 1918.

SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE.. 16 AUGUST, 1918. 9551
Temp. 2nd Lt. A. Harrison relinquishes
his commn. on account of ill-health, and is
granted the hon. rank of 2nd Lt. 5tlh July
1917. (Substituted for the notification in
the Gazette of 4th July 1917.)

SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 12 SEPTEMBER, 1918. 10735
Capt. (actg. Maj.) A. Harrison (R. Scots, T.F.).

11412 SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 26 SEPTEMBER, 1918..
The undermentioned temp. 2nd Lts. to
be temp. 2nd Lts. on appt. as probrs. to
Ind. Army:— A. Harrison, from Ches. R. (attd.) 14
Aug. 1918, with seniority 29 Aug. 1917.

SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 7 MAY, 1919. 5757
Capt. A. Harrison, Mi.C'., to be <a-ctg.
Miaj. whilst empld. as 2nd in Command. 25th Feb. 1919.
 
SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 17 MAY, 1919. 6215
The undermentioned 2nd Lts. to be
Lts. : — E. Kent R.—A. Harrison, inf.C. 28th Feb. 1919.

SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 6 AUGUST, 1919. 1C063
24:th B'n., London Regt.—Capt. (actg. Maj.)
A. Harrison, M.C., relinquishes the actg. rank of Maj. on ceasing to be empld. 17th July 1919.

THE LONDON GAZETTE, 30 SEPTEMBER, I919.
Second Lieutenants to be Lieutenants. A Harrison,

SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 15 OCTOBER, 1919. 12743
Bedf. & Herts. R. .51st Bn.—
Lt. A. E. Harrison (4th Bn., Norf. R-T.F.) to be actg. C'apt. while comndg. a Co. .12 May 1919.

13224 SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 29 OCTOBER, 1919
ROYAL FIELD ARTILLERY.
The under mentioned 2nd Lte. to be Lts.: — A. Harrison. 25th Aug. 1919

2332 SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 26 FEBRUARY, 1920
VOLTJNTEER FORCE.
2nd Vol. Bn., The Notts, de Derby. Regt.—
Temp. Capt. & 2nd in Command A. Harrison
Relinquishes  his: commission, 13th Nov.
1919,.and is granted the hon. rank of Ca.pt.

5346 SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 10 MAY, 1920.
INFANTRY.
Lt. A. Harrison, M.C., retires, receiving a gratuity, llth May 1920.

SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 20 JUNE, 1921. 4901
War Office,
20th Jtwe, 1921.
DEFENCE FORCE.
REGULAR FORCE.S.
INFANTRY.
R. Scots.
7th (D.F.) Bn.—
The undermemtioned relinquish their
commissions from the dates stated: —
Temp. Capt. A. Harrison. 22 Apr. 1921.


THE LONDON GAZETTE, 20 JUNE, 1924. 4809
INFANTRY.
1th Bn. Midd'x. R.—The surname of 2nd Lt.
A. E. Harrisson is as now described and not
as in Gaz. dated 3rd June 1924.

THE LONDON GAZETTE, 3 JUNE, 1924. 4439
INFANTRY.
1th Bn. Midd'x R.—Alfred Ernest Harrison.
4th June 1924.

[Craven-Harrison]

Barry,

I just recalled the information regarding the divorce you mentioned earlier from some time ago. the Wife Florence Gladys Harrison, Husband Albert Edward Harrison and co-respondent-Arthur Fielding,  I found my original info about these folk and decided at the time that it was unlikely that they would have married during the war 1917-19 and subsequently divorced in that same period. I will never the less follow this lead up again as it keeps cropping up. Unfortunately there are lots of Albert Edward's and Harrison's.

anything is possible, !!!!!

[Siamese Girl]

I've read his 86 sheets (well many are duplicated) of service record - I thought my grandfather had a lot with 60 odd!
How do you know he joined the British army? I might have missed it but I couldn't see anything sent to his wife saying this. The poor woman was obviously desperate to know where he was as she was in financial difficulties.

To be honest, he really didn't have a hard war. He was shaky and couldn't sleep after being at the front (who wouldn't be?) got influenza, bronchitis and a poisoned left knee (described as superficial) and ended up with what many would have called a cushy job in training camp. Then he went AWOL and also stole money - I'm not honestly surprised  he was court marshalled but he got off very lightly by being simply dismissed and forefitting 87 days pay. I don't see why having treated the A.I.F so badly he'd then have wanted to join the British Army? I could understand him adopting a false name and disappearing, but it was tougher in the British Army - less pay for a start.

I'm sorry if I sound a bit hard on him but my grandfather was quite badly wounded and worse happened to his friends and  I know he wouldn't have thought much of Albert Edward Harrisons actions 

Carole

[Craven-Harrison]

Dear Carol,  (part 1)

I have shared your sentiments regarding Albert's behaviour and often thought that he isn't worth the trouble. Then after reviewing the records and the family discussions I began to see the bigger picture.

At this point I should say that I no longer judge him and have undertaken this quest to settle the question of his fate for his surviving family and for the memory of his wife and four children since departed. This quest is for the sake of history and to hopefully establish that somehow he was able to reverse his circumstances and regain his pride and his self respect again.  I am well aware how all this looks, I am certain that if he had been guilty of these things in the British Military he would have been executed. I will speak more of this later.

The 60 pages that you have read is just a brief insight into Albert's Military history, there is so much more. Looking at his WW1 AIF Military history in isolation would not give a good impression of this man. The prosecution case against Albert is compelling but he offered NO defense at his Court Martial, so there appears to be no other conclusion than absolute guilt on all counts. Make no mistake, he was capable of defending himself and could have mounted a ripping defence. He did get a fair trial. Due to the serious nature of this trial the convening authority was Lieutenant General Sir Henry Sclator, Commander-in Chief Southern Command UK and Brigadier General John Antill AIF was president of the court and nine other AIF Officers.

Albert is not a Bank Clerk masquerading as an Army Officer,  promoted in the field because all his superiors were killed. As a lad in Australia whilst enjoying an academic scholarship at South Melbourne Colledge he quickly became the Colour Sergent in the senior Cadets. During the Boer War he served with the 5th Victorian Mounted Rifles as a Sergent and between the wars he served in the Militia as a senior NCO, He was Commissioned as an Officer on the 5th of May 1915, He served Gallantly in France an Belgium. During his trial Major General Holmes commended him in writing for his bravery and gallentry under fire. Albert was a professional Soldier and fine Military Horseman.

The question regarding Albert joining the British Army follows:

Under cover of an official AIF "form of Commission" an inter-communications card in his military records: " I forward herewith a form of commission covering the appointment of your husband Ex Captain AE Harrison 19th Battalion, as a Temporary 2nd Lieutenant in the Regular Forces of the British Army, for transmission to him. This refers to his first appointment to Commission and not to his subsequent rank"  Will you kindly let me know whether same comes safely to hand by signing and returning the attached receipt form" "Officer I/C base records". sent on Oct 10th 1919 and acknowledged by Nora Oct 24th 1919.

Albert was moved from Perham Downs to Army Headquarters London a few days after his trial, It appears not just cut loose as a Civilian. Almost a year later June 13th 1918 He applies to AIF Administrative Headquarters Westminster London for Discharge in England and he is instructed that his final discharge will be August 28th 1918 He was supposedly dismissed a year earlier to the day, his birthday??! he was also married on his birthday!

The Stolen money:

Albert had overdrawn his pay on two occasions amounting to 40 pounds, the Pay Master was aware of this action and there was written evidence of the withdrawals. The Pay Master and the company pays were under Albert's authority.

The AWOL issue:

Albert had requested to take urgent leave in London to attend to urgent, important and extremely private business, His superior a Major had denied this leave, Albert went above the Major and obtained verbal permission from the Major's superior. Albert took the leave under the impression that all was now OK, and it wasn't he didn't have the appropriate leave form 

The  Escaping from Custody:

Upon his return, Albert was placed under guard in barracks, while in detention he left the barracks and went to Andover apparently to make a phone call, this was officially regarded as escaping from custody. He was apprehended without any violence and at this point was heard to say, "I know what I'm doing, I am full up of this game, I'm going home" Albert was to be sent back to the front in the next few days, it was common for Officers and men to have some time off if required,  to finalise any personal outstanding personal affairs, debts etc, This wasn't an official arrangement but something that was just done. An Officers life was not a long one when leading men from the front,  so some leeway was given to these personal arrangements. Importantly illistrated here is Albert's interest to return back to Australia and his family. We believe that the stigma and circumstances of his Dismissal changed his interest to return home. There is no evedance of another woman just a suspicion.

[Craven-Harrison]

Dear Carole, (part 2)

Possible motive for putting his career on the line:

Albert's brother in law Private Sydney Blamey was in England and France at the same time as Albert. He had won a The Military Medal and then been broken from a Seargent to a private. His crime sheet is very lengthy. It has been considered that Albert took and advance on his wages to bail his brother in law out of trouble to avoid a scandal not realising that his own deeds would end up being bigger. Syd committed suicide some years later in Australia and it's thought that it could have been over his arrangements with Albert and Albert's subsequent Dismissal and the disaster for his sister and the children.  Syd's records have the entire details of Albert's Court Martial crimes included in his records for some reason, suggesting some connection.

The Trial and the Sentence:

Under the circumstances Albert got a fair trial and a reasonable outcome, and when you consider what he said in Andover he was over the war and wanted to go home  or get out, he got his wish. Its important at this point to say that nearly all Australians were Volunteers and not fighting for King and Country but rather to support their mates and their ancestral families in the UK, their Tommy Pals (your grandfather and his mates). The Australian Government had rejected the business of the firing squad for trivial offences after the shonkey business in the Boer War with Breaker Morant.  We now regard shell shock as a real and significant mental and physical complaint and thankfully the Australian Army didn't execute its suffers.

Albert didn't put up any defence and wasn't questioned regarding any of his alledged crimes, it's quite obvious that there is something occurring here that is outside our contemporary understanding. He didn't put any of his previous Military experience in his pre-trial prosecution notes nor any defence notes. He would not disclose the nature of his urgent business in London nor any of his reasons for the actions that he took.

Albert wasn't a shirker, yes I agree, that for a while he had a nice little number, a long way from the front, but that was at an end.

The Court asked for mercy in sentencing, given the solid nature of his previous service.   The sentence was confirmed by General Sclator who chose to show no mercy scrawling on the court documents "In view of the seriousness of the offence, and the prevalence of these offences among Australian Officers, I do not recommend that the recommendation for mercy be favourably considered, but that this sentence be confirmed."

There are some who believe that Sclators comments could be interpreted as bias against the Australians, perhaps a sign of frustration in dealing with the wild colonials who arrived in their thousands to the camps in his command causing him and his staff no end of trouble, his objective was plain, lets make an example of this Harrison chap "pour encourager les autres"

Summery:

I hope this puts some perspective into this issue, Albert made some big mistakes, potentially ending his military career. I do believe that he deserves a chance to be found, even if he was killed in action or some other permutation, he deserves some sort of hearing, he may have been promoted in the British Army and received a Knight hood or decorated for bravery. Yep! it could be under another name and this was very easy to do in those times. There were a thousand names available every new dawn in France. War isn't a nice thing, men do crazy things under crazy circumstances, while the men who initiate and control the wars sit in their hidey holes and issue insane rules.

Hope all this doesn't offend

Ian

[Greensleeves]

I don't think we have any right to judge our ancestors, and neither should we be made to feel that we have to explain their behaviour.   I am sure we all have people in our family trees whose behaviour could be called into question; certainly, in some of the scavenger hunts on these boards we have come across numerous people whose actions have  been utterly disgraceful.  However, I have to grudgingly admit that it certainly makes for more interesting research and then, as now, it takes all sorts, etc. 

Whilst Albert's lifestyle and actions may have been questionable, it is easy for us to condemn him a century later.  However, we should never forget what these men suffered in the field, and who can say how it affected them?  Nowadays such post-traumatic stress is well-documented and treated, but in those days a man who had been under fire and who thereafter lost his nerve was treated as a coward.  Neither of course was there anything akin to debt- or relationship-counselling so anyone experiencing difficulties was left to sink or swim.  Harsh days indeed.

Whatever the truth of the matter, I do agree that Albert's history is worth discovering and recording if possible.  Sounds like the making for a future scavenger hunt, if nothing is found in the meatime!

Regards,
Greensleeves

[Finley 1]

That is 'hard' reading... and does make you realise that there is more to every tale that is told.. It is so easy to 'Judge'... even with the full facts.  The connotations as to what happened are many.  I feel that it is your right to 'feel as strongly' as you do regarding your relation.  I hope you find what you are looking for and can accept what you find -  'just cos its written don't mean its true' -- I had a friend at Uni tell me to 'move on', 'get over it' if I had a problem or moan... It is far from easy to do that  - as we can see by the research and the knowledge you have of all this -  I do sincerely hope you find a satisfactory 'personal' resolution.

Good luck

xin

[Plummiegirl]

You say part of his records have mysteriously disappeared.   I too have an ancestor whose records are very extensive (well over 100 pages, and still incomplete!!) but I have been told that in the 1960's many records were 'culled' and only the most interesting parts of these larger records kept.

There is also the possiblilty that some of his records were amongst the 'burnt' records which are around 70% of all WW1 records.

We  must never judge our ancestors actions by todays standards.  We have no idea what they were thinking or going through.  We can read many books, look at lots of documentaries but this all pales into insignificance with reality.

Your ancestor was very lucky he was not sentenced to death, many men were shot for far less.

[Siamese Girl]

Ian, I didn't mean to sound hard on Albert, but reading his record you do have to conclude he didn't have a really bad time in the war, so on the face of it his behaviour is a bit inexplicable. I've read a lot of Australian records and my first sympathy is with Nora, four children to look after, a husband who has been court marshalled  and who is supposed to be coming home but then never appears.

Sydney Blamey's record is very interesting - he had a hell of a war right from Gallipoli through Egypt to France and he wasn't discharged until June 1919. It's safe to say that he was probably suffering a good deal of stress (I noticed also that he was gassed) and his behaviour isn't that surprising. You can't blame him for answering back and saying something he shouldn't, he must have been right at the end of his tether a lot of the time. When Albert went AWOL in June 1917 was Sydney still in France? The dates on Sydney's record are a bit confusing - so Sydney was punished for 3 pretty minor misdemeanours by having his pay stopped  when he was back in England?

It is very odd that both their "crimes" are recorded on the same piece of paper - it wasn't as if they were brothers and had the same name - there's no obvious connection between them.

Something else might be a bit odd about Sydney's record. There are no medical notes. I suppose they may have been lost but most medical notes seem to have survived and are included in the records, and the poor chap was in and out of hospital often enough to have  collected one or two.

I can't help thinking that if Albert took on a new life in either the British Army or in England as a civilian he would have done it under an assumed name.

Carole