Letters relating to Brian Colden Antill Pockley, 1914 - Part 1

Copy.
Parramatta
At Rabaul
New Britain
Sunday 13.9. 1914
Dear Mrs Pockley
I got your letter on Friday 11^th
* * *.
Of course you will have heard by this time but
I will try & give you all the detaits that I can of
dear old Brian, it is not much that I can tell
you as unfortunately I could not go with him -
if only I could have! But I did not even know
that he had landed till it was all over. I saw
him for an hour or so down at Port Moresby; he
was thin but otherwise well & glad that he had
come with the force. That was last Sunday
Sept. 6^th.
We left Port Moresby that day & came on up to
New Britain, where we arrived on Friday 11^th. The
Destroyers searched the Harbour before daylight &
finding nothing, "Warrego" & "Yarra" stayed with
"Berrima" & "Sydney" while "Parramatta went up
to Rabaul. Sydney landed the first force of the
Naval Brigade at Herbertshoe - 50 men under

2.
from
Alec. B Doyle
Copy
Lt. Cdr Elwell - & Brian went with them as
medical officer. On landing they were assured
that no resistance would be offered & commenced
scouting towards the wireless atation some four or
five miles inland. At once they met serious
trouble; the road was mined & trenches dug on
either side & manned by native constabulary under
German officers. They had men concealed in these
trenches & in the thick bush & even up in the tops
of trees to fire down on our people as they went.
The first man wounded was the German leader;
as he was about to fire a mine one of our
people saw him & shot off his hand & this saved
most of our men. Brian at once proceeded to
attend to this German officer, & amputated his
arm & bandaged him up. He was then sent back
by bearers to our landing place, only a little way
back, & Brian took his red cross badge off his arm
& tied it onto one of the sailors who was acting
bearer. The man remonstrated with him, but
Brian said "You take it, you can't do anything
while you are carrying him back & I can look
after myself." The firing was very heavy by
then, & one of the bullets struck him in the breast
killing him almost at once.   *   *   *

3

from
Alec B. Doyle.
Copy.
I have just been talking to one of his bearers. He
had attended to one or two more wounded after the
first German officer & when he had sent them back
he started off in the road saying "take these
fellows back & get help for them as soon as you
can; I must get back into the firing line." He
was shot from up in a tree very soon after &
while he lived he was still giving orders for the
attendance of the other wounded.
He gave his life altogether for the others & died
a very gallant death. God help the rest of us to
do as well if the need comes
*   *   *
(signed) Alec B. Doyle

Extract.
*   *   *   *
The reason Brian went with the naval party was
that the Sydney apparently lacked sufficient
medical officers for one to be spared to accompany
the landing party. Twenty five men of the Naval
Reserve were sent ashore into unknown country to
take the one point the Germans were likely to
defend if all else was abandoned. They landed at
three in the morning, & moved up towards the wireless
along the road. The bush in the vicinity is
really terrible & it would have been a rank 
impossibility to try much extended movement. Before
they were aware of it they stumbled into the
trenches, & if only a panic had not commenced
among the Germans, who believed a large force was
attacking them, not one man of the 25 would have
been spared. Brian was brought down through the
bush by some A.M.C. men, & was met near the
wharf by Keith Henderson, an old 'Varsity chum.
*   *   *   *   
(signed) Lionel H. Tehrman

Copy
of letter from Colonel Holmes.
Government House
Rabaul
New Britain
13/9/1914
Dear Sir
I regret that it is my duty to inform you that your
son (Captain Pockley) of the Army Medical Corps Unit
which accompanied the troops under my command was
killed in action on the 11^th September at Kabakaul. At the
same time I am pleased to be able to say that he displayed
conspicuous gallantry in action & as a matter of fact
forfeited his life for those under his command, as I am
informed that he deliberately removed the red cross badge
from his arm & handed it to one of his own men who
was without one, & unfortunately your gallant son paid
the penalty with his life.
I am informed by Lieut-Colonel Howse that his injuries
were so severe when brought on board H.M.A.S. Berrima
that his case was regarded as hopeless. I was with him
immediately before he died & he was then quite conscious
& knew & spoke to me. His body was interred in the
cemetery at Herbertshoe at sundown, along with an
Able Seaman who fell with him, the burial service

2
Copy
of letter from Colonel Holmes
being read over the graves by the Chaplain from
H.M.A.S. Sydney
*   *   *   *   
(signed) William Holmes
Colonel
Colonel Commanding Naval & Military Expedition
to New Guinea

Copy
of letter from Lieut. Heritage.
H.M.A.S. Berrima
Rabaul
17.8.14
Dear Dr Pockley
Every man suffered a most dreadful
shock at the disaster that befel us last 11^th, when
Brian fell in action, together with Com^dr Elwell &
5 men. The startling suddenness of it all was
truly crushing. Brian left us in great spirits at
Port Moresby to join the Sydney, proceeding ahead of us
to land a party of 53 men under Lieut. Bowen at
Kabakaul or Herbertshoe to take the wireless station
at Bitapakar. We arrived aboout 9 o' clock in the
morning & the party had landed shortly after daylight
& under naval orders split into two sections - Capt.
Pockley's C.M.C. orderly going as A.M.C. man with
other lot. Very strong opposition was met by Lieut.
Bowen a few miles from shore. The scrub on either
side of the road was almost impassable & it was
found that the Germans had thrown trenches
across, also constructed mines side-pits carefully
concealed, native police & troops also in trees. As far
as I have been able to gather, the following is authentic:-
The first man badly wounded was a German with
shattered arm. Brian amputated this & shortly after

2.

Copy
of letter from Lieut. Heritage
a Naval Reservist named Williams was severely
injured, & as he was likely to bleed to death unless
attended to at once, Brian & his naval orderly cared
for him, but before doing so Brian handed the
arm-band he was wearing to his man, who
remonstrated, but Brian - gallant man - replied
that he would take any risk. After making
Williams as comfortable as possible on side of road
Brian said he would proceed further ahead & see
how Bowen was getting on. Almost immediately
after he was hit by a heavy bullet in downward
direction - alas! a mortal wound - as Brian
would be bending forward, & from what his orderly
told me, I am confident that a native did not.
cause the injury, but from the Germans who had
re-occupied the first trench & intended to cut off
Bowen, who was pressing on to the 2nd line. Brian
mercifully became unconscious at once.
Poor Elwell, a fine man indeed, fell with several
men in near vicinity when later sent in support.
Col. Howse & Capt. Maguire will no doubt tell you that
Brian partly regained consciousness & passed away
very gently on board the Berrima. The vessel was
ordered to Herbertshoe, a few miles nearer Rabaul.
in the afternoon early. Maguire & I had the sad 

3.
Copy.
of letter from Lieut. Heritage
arrangements to make for burial of Brian & Williams,
who died shortly afterwards. A funeral boat was
sent ashore with the bodies wrapped in the loved
Union Jack - as boat moved off all the men on
Berrima & Sydney paid tribute to gallant men who
died in battle. We were all completely overcome.
I should like you to know that Brian was buried
with every honour due to his rank & gallantry. The
A.M.C. acted as bearers for our dear man, the
Naval Reservists for Williams. The white cemetery
is about a mile from the shore in a peaceful spot,
surrounded by giant palms, & just as dusk was
closing in, with a company of Infantry with reversed
arms, A.M.C. & naval party, together with about a
dozen officers gathered round decent Christian graves
saw a most deeply loved comrade buried with
head towards Sydney. No one who attended will ever
forget the quiet scene when the Last Post was
sounded.
We were all so fond of Brian - a charming gentleman, &
gallant soldier - & who gave his life to alleviate pain
for his comrade - a manly man to the last ounce, &
died nobly in action. No man can be capable of more,
or die better & I do assure you dear Sir, that in no