William George Phillips enlisted in the 22nd Battalion of the Australian Imperial Forces but also served in the 15th Brigade Machine Gun Company and the 57th, 58th and 59th Battalions. William was born on 7th August 1894 in Williamstown (a suburb of Melbourne), Victoria, Australia, to William Robert and Mary Ann Phillips. He was the eldest of eleven children, with the youngest child, Jack, born in 1916 while William was serving on the Western Front.

When he enlisted on 5th July 1915, William was a 20-year-old labourer and required parental consent due to his age. His enlistment papers state that he had served for four years previously with the Royal Australian Navy Reserves in Williamstown. William’s 18-year-old brother Edgar had enlisted two weeks prior to him on 22nd June 1915; he also needed his parents’ consent.

William embarked with the 22nd Battalion for Egypt on board the HMAT Afric on 5th January 1916. Arriving in early February, William was then transferred four times within three weeks eventually transferring to the 58th Battalion on 15 March. His brother was transferred to the 58th on the same day. Just two months later, on 19th May 1916, both brothers were transferred yet again - this time to the 59th Battalion.

The Battalion left Egypt for France in June and on 19th July 1916, both William and his brother Edgar were wounded in action at the Battle of Fromelles. William sustained a gunshot wound to the hand (parts of his fingers were blown off) and was shipped to England on July 21st for medical treatment. Fellow Williamstown lad, Hughie Lewis, gave a good account to their local newspaper of the battle at Fromelles and the roles of local boys in the action. In relation to William, he said:

Later, in the article, Hughie mentions William’s brother, Edgar, also being wounded early in the fighting. As an aside, Tom Phillips (service number 2770) is not known to be related to William and Edgar; he survived Fromelles but, because of his wounds, was returned to Australia in February 1917 for discharge.

Nearly four months after the battle at Fromelles, on 15th November 1916, William was discharged from the 2nd West Hospital to duty, remaining in England for a further four months. During that time, William was charged in Wareham for being absent without leave for 11 days from 20th to 30th December 1916 – who knows, perhaps he was enjoying the novelty of celebrating a white Christmas far from home. Whatever the reason, William spent a day in custody awaiting trial and was awarded 11 days detention and forfeited 23 days’ pay.

Returning to France in March 1917, William rejoined his unit and, on 13th May 1917, he was again wounded in action suffering a gunshot wound to the head which fractured his skull. He was transferred to England 10 days later for treatment at the Maida Vale Hospital in London. His father, as next of kin, was sent regular updates on his progress including advice on 7th June 1917 that William had been removed from the seriously ill list.

On 26th September 1917 William returned to Australia on board the HMAT A30 Borda and was discharged medically unfit on 14 March 1918. He was granted a pension of 45 shillings per fortnight.

William’s fractured skull required a steel plate to be inserted in his head, which he apparently had until he died. It seems he never fully recovered. The following excerpt is from an interview with William’s sister, Dorrie Stanford (nee Phillips):

There was a strong tradition of military service in William’s family. Apart from his brother Edgar, William’s maternal uncle Edmund John Sambell and two first cousins also served in World War I. William’s younger brother Roy served as an Officer with the Royal Australian Navy for twenty-seven years and his only other brother, Jack, was killed in action in World War II. William also had at least seven first cousins, two nephews and a niece who served in World War II. Seventeen family members across two world wars – an incredible contribution.

After the war, William married and lived in Yarraville (a suburb of Melbourne) with his wife Myrtle Rubina (nee Edwards) and their two daughters, Mervil Thelma and Sylvia Gladys. William died on 18th September 1973 at the age of 79 years and was cremated. His ashes were interred in Altona Memorial Park in the Rose Garden next to his wife, Myrtle, who died on 8th January 1969.

William's name is in the Books of Remembrance at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne and on the World War 1 Honour Boards at Williamstown Primary School, the Newport Railway Workshops (Boiler Room) and St Andrew's Church in Williamstown.

In January 2018, William’s great-niece (granddaughter of William’s youngest brother, Jack) was fortunate enough to travel to the Western Front for the second time to visit places where family members served and died in World War One. One of the places visited was Fromelles, where William and his brother Ed were both wounded. It was a rare privilege.