Profile

WOODHEAD, George
(Service number 6/575)

Aliases
First Rank Private Last Rank

Birth

Date Unknown Place of Birth

Enlistment Information

Date Age
Address at Enlistment Care of J. Brown, Temuka, New Zealand
Occupation
Previous Military Experience
Marital Status Single
Next of Kin M.J. Woodhead, Temuka, New Zealand
Religion
Medical Information

Military Service

Served with NZ Armed Forces Served in
Military District

Embarkation Information

Body on Embarkation Main Body
Unit, Squadron, or Ship Canterbury Infantry Battalion
Date 16 October 1914
Transport Tahiti or Athenic
Embarked From Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand Destination Suez, Egypt
Other Units Served With
Last Unit Served With New Zealand Machine Gun Corps

Military Awards

Campaigns
Service Medals
Military Awards Military Medal (MM)

Award Circumstances and Date

London Gazette, 9 December 1916, p12059, Rec No 121: "Action: Flers Trench, Flers Support and Goose Alley: West of Flers, 21st September 1916. When the 2nd Canterbury Battalion were counter attacked on the afternoon of the 21st, Lance Corporal Woodhead was in command of a Machine Gun detachment in Flers Support Trench. When he saw that his right flank was in danger of being driven back, and that the position covered by his gun was not being attacked, he quickly (and without orders from a superior authority) shifted his gun to the parapet, at great his to his own personal safety from enemy snipers, and enfiladed the trench along which the enemy was working. He inflicted heavy loss on the enemy and held them back while the bombers reorganised and obtained further supplies. His quick action stopped the advancing enemy and was the turning point in the situation on the right."

Prisoner of War Information

Date of Capture
Where Captured and by Whom
Actions Prior to Capture
PoW Serial Number
PoW Camps
Days Interned
Liberation Date

Discharge

Date Reason

Hospitals, Wounds, Diseases and Illnesses

Post-war Occupations

Death

Date 9 December 1917 Age 25
Place of Death Belgium
Cause Died of wounds
Notices
Memorial or Cemetery Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery, Poperinge, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium
Memorial Reference XXVII D 8
New Zealand Memorials On Memorial wall, Timaru; Milford War Memorial; Temuka RSA Roll of Honour; Temuka War Memorial

Biographical Notes

Son of John Woodhead of Middle Swamp Road, Temuka, New Zealand Also served in Gallipoli and Egypt

Sources

Cenotaph (26 August 2013)

External Links

Related Documents

No documents available.

Researched and Written by

Tony Rippin (South Canterbury Museum)

Currently Assigned to

Not assigned.

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