Alfred Shout

A.J. Shout at Quinn's Post, Gallipoli, 7 June, 1915.

Alfred John Shout VC MC (7 August, 1881–11 August, 1915) was the most highly decorated Australian soldier to serve during the Battle of Gallipoli, 1915, being awarded the Military Cross during the landing at Anzac Cove in April and winning the Victoria Cross posthumously during the Battle of Lone Pine in August. He was also Mentioned in Despatches twice.

Early life

Alfred Shout was born in Wellington, New Zealand on 7 August, 1881 the eldest of nine children including four sons of John Richard and Agnes Mary Shout (nee Kelly). Shout was educated privately in New Zealand and in 1900 went to South Africa to fight in the Second Boer War. He served as a Sergeant with the Border Horse until 1902. He was Mentioned in Despatches, made Queen's sergeant and was awarded the Queen's South Africa Medal and the King's South Africa Medal. He served as a Sergeant with the Cape Field Artillery until 1907. Married to Rose Alice, they had one child, a daughter, Florence Agnes Maud Shout, who was born at Cape Town, South Africa, on 11 June, 1905.

Shout emigrated to Australia in 1907 settling in the Sydney suburb of Darlington while working as a carpenter and joiner. He joined the 29th Infantry Regiment (Australian Rifles) of the Australian Citizens Military Force and obtained his commission as Second Lieutenant on 16 June, 1914. Following the outbreak of the First World War, Australian government began raising the Australian Imperial Force and Shout volunteered on 27 August, 1914, being appointed to F Company of the 1st Battalion, Australian 1st Division, AIF.

Shout was promoted to Lieutenant on 1 February, 1915, while the AIF was in training near Cairo, Egypt.

Landing at Anzac

The Australian 1st Infantry Brigade, which contained the 1st Battalion, was the third brigade ashore at Anzac Cove on 25 April, 1915 and Shout landed around 10 a.m.. In the confusion of the landing, Shout found himself engaged in the desperate struggle for the dominating hill known as Baby 700. When the Turks eventually wrested control of the hill the Anzac survivors, including Shout and Captain Leslie Morshead, who went on the command the Australian 9th Division during the Second World War, retreated to Russell's Top.

Two days later, by which time the brigades had untangled themselves and the 1st Battalion was now holding the southern flank near Gaba Tepe, Lieutenant Shout showed conspicuous courage in organizing and leading his men. While continually exposed to the enemy he planned and led a bayonet charge against the Turks. Then, with the position secured, Shout and a corporal left the trench, which was being continually swept with machine gun fire and went forward concealing themselves, and proceeded to fire on the Turks. In the words of Private Charles Huntley Thompson of the 13th Battalion, "That was the bravest thing I ever saw". During this action Shout carried more than a dozen men out of the firing line, despite being wounded himself. For this Shout was awarded the Military Cross and was Mentioned in Despatches.

On 11 May Shout was wounded in the side and had a bullet pass through his arm. He recovered from his wounds aboard the hospital ship Gascon before rejoining his unit on 26 May. On 29 July Shout was promoted to Captain and given a special Mention in Despatches by General Sir Ian Hamilton, commander of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force.

Lone Pine

On 6 August the August Offensive commenced at Anzac with a diversionary assault on the Turkish trenches at Lone Pine by the 1st Division.

The night preceding the charge at Lone Pine Shout spoke to the members of his platoon, telling Lance Corporal Alexander Ross McQueen, "We will make a name for Australia and ourselves tomorrow Mac". At midday on 6 August, Captain Shout issued his men with a white strip of calico to sew on the arms and back of their tunics. This was to indicate to the artillery the position of the Australian infantry during the attack.

The Australians attacked at 5.40 p.m. and captured Lone Pine within the hour. The Turks immediately began counter-attacking and the struggle continued for five days. On the morning of 9 August, the 1st Battalion relieved the 7th Battalion at a section known as Sasse's Sap. Captain Cecil Duncan Sasse DSO and bar, of the 4th Battalion had cleared the area of enemy troops but the Turks had reoccupied a large area of the captured trench.

Shout and Sasse enlisted the aid of eight volunteers and following Sasse's plan of attack that had previously been successful they charged down the trench with Shout bombing and Sasse shooting. The eight volunteers then built a barricade as each section of trench was secured. All went well and Shout, who was reported to be enjoying the fight, was preparing for the final dash of the day to capture just one more section of the trench.

Having lit three bombs he set off down the trench hurling two before the third went off prematurely blowing Shout's hand off and severely injuring his face and body. Shout continued to direct this attack, murmuring "Good old First Brigade, well done!", before he lost consciousness through loss of blood. He died from his wounds at sea on board the hospital ship Neuralia on 11 August, 1915.

The citation for Shout's Victoria Cross, published in the London Gazette on 15 October, 1915, reads:

For most conspicuous bravery at Lone Pine Trenches, in the Gallipoli Peninsula. On the morning of 9th August, 1915, with a small party, Captain Shout charged down trenches strongly occupied by the enemy and personally threw four bombs among them, killing eight and routing the remainder. In the afternoon of the same day, from the position gained in the morning, he captured a further length of trench under similar conditions and continued personally to bomb the enemy at close range, under very heavy fire, until he was severely wounded, losing his right hand and left eye.

This most gallant officer has since succumbed to his injuries.

Aftermath

Considerable confusion reigned following Shout's death. On 15 August the Army sent a cable telling Rose Shout that her husband had been wounded a second time (she had already received notification of his 27 April wound). Initially records showed Shout died on 11 August but they were then altered on 20 August showing him 'Not Dead' on Thermistocles returning to Australia. The press in Australia published news of his return, adding that he would arrive in Sydney mid-September.

When the error was realised, the Army's excuse was that a "Lieutenant A. J. Shirt" was the wounded man on board Thermistocles who had been mistaken for Lieutenant A. J. Shout. Rose Shout was then told of her husband's death. Lieutenant Arthur John Shirt No. 670 of the 1st Battalion was discharged on 23/12/15 suffering influenza and rheumatism, but later rejoined as a Private No. 53816 on 8/10/17 and served till 3/1/19 when he was again discharged. John Shout, Alfred's father, learnt belatedly of his son's death from a newspaper.

The errors continued when Rose Shout was awarded a pension of only £91 ($182) per year and her daughter Florence £13 per year as the widow and child of Lieutenant A. J. Shout. Rose had to remind the Army that her husband was a Captain at the time of his death and also that he was the holder of the Victoria Cross. The Army conceded that Shout had been promoted to Captain just days before he was mortally wounded but it was some time before records acknowledged a Victoria Cross being awarded. The pension paid to Rose was then increased by £10 ($20) per year and Florence had her pension doubled.

Shortly after the war the citizens of Darlington commemorated the name of Alfred Shout on a memorial plaque. This plaque is now held at Victoria Barracks having been removed from Darlington.

As of 2006 Shout's medals, including his Victoria Cross, remained in the possession of his family until 24th July 2006 — the only one of the nine VCs won by Australians at Gallipoli not in the collection of the Australian War Memorial. The medals were auctioned with the VC fetching a record $1,214,500, including commission and other charges. It was bought by Kerry Stokes, and he has requested that the medal will be displayed at the Australian War Memorial.

External links

• SHOUT A.J.
• New Zealand Troops who have won the Victoria Cross (brief biography details)
• Shout's medals in the auction catalogue

References

• Monuments To Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
• The Register of the Victoria Cross (This England, 1997)
• VCs of the First World War - Gallipoli (Stephen Snelling, 1995)

This page has been migrated from the Victoria Cross Reference with permission.