Family History - Remembering the New Zealand Expeditionary Force 1914-1918

THREE LADS FROM OTAGO

We have just come back from spending the Xmas-New Year break in Invercargill with the rellies. And I had great honour of being awarded an unusual keepsake by my wife’s parents – a collection of post cards and loose family photographs that date from the 1880-1920 era.

Some of the most interesting items relate to the participation of the family’s young men in the ‘Great War’ of 1914-1918. I have posted portraits of the soldiers above. From left: William Nils Peter [‘Bill’] Kloogh (1897-1979), George Frederick Oscar Kloogh (1885-1917), and John Edward [‘Jack’] Bodkin (1881-1952).

Brothers Bill and George Kloogh were the sons of Nils Peter Kloogh and his wife Tamar [nee Kitto]. Nils settled in New Zealand from Sweden, marrying into a Cornish family that shared a preoccupation with gold-mining along Central Otago’s Clutha River.  Nils started his family at Miller’s Flat, later moving upstream to Lowburn Ferry as he continued to operate gold dredges on the river. Both Bill and George were described as ‘Dredgemen’ when they joined the NZ Expeditionary Force.  

Bill survived being severely wounded in France and farmed a succession of orchards and dairy units across Otago. Reputedly fearsomely strong, even in old age, he lived to be 84 years old.

Jack Bodkin was the eldest son of James Bodkin and his wife Ellen [nee Black]. The Bodkins were Irish Protestants from ‘Dennygard’, Desertmartin, County Derry. James was a watch-maker and jeweller who found a natural vocation on the goldfields of Central Otago. Like Bill Kloogh, Jack was invalided out of the NZEF frontline, probably as a result of illness. But, following a spell at a military hospital in Torquay, England, he may have been called back to serve in Germany during the immediate post-war period.

We have a postcard from Jack to his mother after his recruitment which notes that he has been billeted in the ‘newest and best hut’ at Trentham. He served with the 23^rd Rifle Brigade.

We also have a couple of ‘humorous’ post cards sent on the 3^rd February 1918 from ‘Hill House’, Lyndhurst in Hampshire. These may have originated from either Bill Kloogh or Jack Bodkin but Bill seems the most likely candidate, writing to his sister Louisa. The text asks ‘Loy’ for her support in kidding Dad to buy him a motor cycle and side car ‘when I come home some of these years’ and mentions that a concert arranged by a deputation of local Hampshire ladies that had him singing a solo that was excruciating for a ‘such a shy boy’.

 

GEORGE KLOOGH

George Kloogh lost his life on the 12^th of October 1917 in what is recognized as New Zealand’s Darkest Day during the Battle of Passchendaele. The Battle resulted in more than 2,700 New Zealand casualties, with the day ending with 45 officers and 800 men were either dead or lying mortally wounded between the lines.

As the NZ History Online site records:

‘With visions of a strategic breakthrough fading fast, Haig now looked to General Herbert Charles Onslow Plumer’s Second Army (which included the New Zealand Division as part of II ANZAC Corps) to seize Passchendaele. Using the bite-and-hold tactics he had employed at Messines, Plumer launched his first attack on 20 September. He aimed to take the plateau in a series of short steps, each carefully prepared and well supported by artillery fire.

‘The New Zealand Division made its first attack on 4 October 1917. Its role was to provide flanking cover for an Australian assault on the Broodseinde Ridge. The New Zealanders’ objective was Gravenstafel Spur, the first of two spurs from the main ridge at Passchendaele (the other was Bellevue Spur). Once again artillery played a big part in the success of the attack, which was made by 1st and 4th brigades.

‘The bombardment, which began at 6 a.m., caught many Germans in the front lines, causing heavy casualties and disrupting the defence. Although the going was difficult – ‘The mud is a worse enemy than the German,’ divisional commander Sir Andrew Russell complained – the New Zealand troops advanced 1000 metres to secure the spur and consolidate their position. More than a thousand prisoners were taken, but the attack cost more than 320 New Zealand lives, including that of the former All Black captain Dave Gallaher.

‘The events of 4 October had a tragic aftermath. The British high command mistakenly concluded that the number of enemy casualties meant enemy resistance was faltering. It resolved to make another push immediately. An attack on 9 October by British and Australian troops was to open the way for II Anzac Corps to capture Passchendaele on the 12th.

‘In the rapidly deteriorating conditions, this timetable was a recipe for disaster. The plan failed at the first hurdle. Without proper preparation and in the face of strong German resistance, the 9 October attack collapsed with heavy casualties.

‘Preparations for the 12 October attack on Bellevue Spur, especially the positioning of the supporting artillery, could not be completed in time because of the mud. As a result, the creeping barrage was weak and ragged. Some of the shells dropped short, causing casualties among the New Zealanders waiting to advance. To make matters worse, the earlier artillery bombardment had failed to breach the obstacle presented by the German barbed wire. Another key target, the Germans' concrete pillboxes with their deadly machine-guns, were also left largely undamaged.

‘Troops from 2nd Brigade and 3rd (Rifle) Brigade advanced at 5.25 a.m. in drizzle that soon turned to driving rain. As they struggled towards the ridge in front of them, they found their way blocked by the uncut barbed wire. Exposed to raking German machine-gun fire from both the front and flank, the New Zealanders were pinned down in shell craters in front of the wire. A few determined individuals tried to get through the barrier, but they were quickly killed.

‘Orders came for another push at 3 p.m., but this was mercifully postponed and then cancelled. The troops eventually fell back to positions close to their start line. For badly wounded soldiers lying in the mud, the aftermath of the battle was a private hell; many died before they could be rescued.

‘On 18 October, II Anzac Corps was relieved by the Canadians. In a series of well-prepared, but costly, attacks in atrocious conditions, Canadian troops finally occupied the ruins of Passchendaele village on 6 November.’

We also have a photograph of Rifleman George Kloogh with his ‘mate’ Sydney [‘Sid’] George James, of the Otago Regiment. George is buried at Tyne Cot Cemetery, near Ypres, Belgium. Sid died 76 days later on 27^th December 1917. He is also commemorated at Tyne Cot.