The Australian War Memorial in Canberra will be commemorating the service and sacrifice of Geelong resident, Second Lieutenant Andrew Ernest Ralph Barnfather, at the Last Post Ceremony on Monday 4 November 2024.
"Andrew Barnfather was born on 6 August 1891 in Geelong, Victoria," Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said. "Known as 'Ralph', he was one of twelve children born to Andrew and Maria Barnfather and was educated at Geelong College.
"After his schooling, Ralph was a member of the Light Horse militia. He enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force shortly after war was declared in 1914 and was allocated to A Squadron of the 4th Light Horse Regiment.
"In late May 1915, Barnfather and his comrades were deployed to Gallipoli without their horses, to act as infantry. In March 1916, Barnfather was transferred to the ranks of the newly formed 58th Australian Infantry Battalion and was promoted to second lieutenant. He embarked for the Western Front in June 1916.
"On 19 July, Barnfather's unit was called into action near the French village of Fromelles in an attack which has been remembered as the worst 24 hours in Australia's entire military history. The 5th Division alone suffered more than 5,500 casualties; among them was Second Lieutenant Ralph Barnfather, killed by enemy machine-gun fire at Fromelles."
Second Lieutenant Ralph Barnfather was 26 years old.
The Last Post ceremony is held at 4.30 pm every day except Christmas Day in the Commemorative area of the Australian War Memorial.
Each ceremony shares the story behind one of 103,000 names on the Roll of Honour. To date, the Memorial has delivered more than 3,800 ceremonies, each featuring an individual story of service from colonial to recent conflicts. It would take more than 280 years to read the story behind each of the 103,000 names listed on the Roll of Honour.
"The Last Post Ceremony is our commitment to remembering and honouring the legacy of Australian service," Mr Anderson said.
"Through our daily Last Post Ceremony, we not only acknowledge where and how these men and women died. We also tell the stories of who they were when they were alive, and of the families who loved and, in so many cases, still mourn for them.
"The Last Post is now associated with remembrance, but originally it was a bugle call to sound the end of the day's activities in the military. It is a fitting way to end each day at the Memorial."
The Last Post Ceremony honouring the service of Second Lieutenant Andrew Ernest Ralph Barnfather will be live streamed to the Australian War Memorial's YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/c/awmlastpost.
The stories told at the Last Post Ceremony are researched and written by the Memorial's military historians, who begin the process by looking at nominal rolls, attestation papers and enlistment records before building profiles that include personal milestones and military experiences.
Handout image: www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1223326 Accession No: P07337.001
