Arthur Anderson Martin
Born 26 Mar 1877 - Died 17 Sept 1916
- Service number
- 3/1737 AWMM
- Also known as
- —
- Armed force / branch
- Army AWMM
- Last rank
- Major/Military AWMM New Zealand Medical Corps AWMM
- War
About
- Title
- DoctorPublic - Lorraine M - Researcher - 12 June 2016 - Military Record
- Forenames
- Arthur Anderson AWMM
- Surname
- Martin AWMM
- Ingoa
- —
- Also known as
- —
- Service number
- 3/1737 AWMM
- Gender
- Male AWMM
- Iwi / Hapū / Waka / Rohe
- —
- Religion
- AnglicanPublic - Lorraine M - Researcher - 12 June 2016 - Military Record
Images
Documents
About birth
- Birth
- 26 Mar 1877 AWMM
- Date of birth
- —
- Place of birth
- —
- Birth notes
- son of Thomas Martin, a labourer, and his wife, Jessie Anderson.Public - Lorraine M - Researcher - 12 June 2016 - Research
- Address before enlistment
- Unknown AWMM Palmerston North, New Zealand AWMM
- Post war occupation
- —
- Next of kin
- Mrs Constance Margaret Martin (wife), Palmerston North, New Zealand AWMM
- Relationship status
- Pre 1914 AWMM Married AWMM
- Date of marriage was 8 December 1906Public - Timothy - Researcher - 17 May 2023 - Sydney Morning Herald, 10 December 1906, p.6
- 1908 married Constance Margery Harley in SydneyPublic - Lorraine M - Researcher - 12 June 2016 - Military Record
Wars and conflicts
- War
- Campaign
- Battle of the Somme AWMM
- Armed force / branch
- Army AWMM
- Service number
- 3/1737 AWMM
- Military service
- Civil Surgeon, South Africa Field Force 1901 AWMM
- Promotions/ Postings/ Transfers
- —
Military decorations
- Medals and Awards
- Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) AWMM
London Gazette, 4 January 1917, p262, Rec NO 426: "The death of this Officer, killed in action on 18th September 1916 at Flers is a very severe loss both to the Division and to the Medical Profession in New Zealand. His devotion to duty regardless of danger was untiring and his professional services invaluable." AWMM - 1914 Star (5th Aug-22nd Nov 1914 clasp) AWMM
- British War Medal (1914-1920) AWMM
- Victory Medal with oak leaf AWMM
- Mentioned in Despatches (MiD) AWMM
London Gazette 4 January 1917, p262, Rec No 426 AWMM
- Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) AWMM
Training and Enlistment
- Military training
- —
- Branch Trade Proficiency
- —
- Enlistment
- Unknown AWMM Medical practitioner AWMM
- Age on enlistment
- —
- Occupation before enlistment
- —
Embarkations
- Embarkation details
- WW1 Major/Military AWMM Royal Army Medical Corps AWMM British Expeditionary Force AWMM
- WW1 05 Feb 1916 AWMM
HMNZT 42 or HMNZT 43 or HMNZT 44 AWMM Vessel was Ulimaroa or Mokoia or Navua AWMM No. 2 Field Ambulance AWMM New Zealand Expeditionary Force AWMM
2nd Embarkation AWMM
Prisoner of war
- Capture details
- —
- Days interned
- —
- Liberation date
- —
- POW liberation details
- —
- Liberation Repatriation
- —
- POW serial number
- —
Medical history
- Medical notes
- Wounds Diseases Etc., WWI AWMM
Wounded Flers 1916 AWMM - Died of wounds, Cause of Death AWMM
- Wounds Diseases Etc., WWI AWMM
Last known rank
- Last rank
- Major/Military AWMM
New Zealand Medical Corps AWMM - Last rank
- —
Biographical information
- Husband of Constance Margaret nee Harley
"Major Martin resided in Palmerston North for about ten years, and during that time built up a very extensive practice, so much so that his name became a household word over a considerable portion of the North Island at least. He was a man of inexhaustible energy and exceptional ability. His surgical technique was sure and unhesitating. A born fighter, he probably never realised a difficulty until he had dealt with it. His life was chiefly notable for a magnetic enthusiasm. He died in harness, in the maelstrom of the battlefield, as befitted his temperament." (Chronicles of the N.Z.E.F. October 16 1916 p. 77).
Author of 'A Surgeon in Khaki' (1916).
Obituary in 'The Government Insurance Recorder', Nov 1916, p666. Martin had been a cadet in the department 1893-1895, before going to medical study in Edinburgh.
Next of Kin: Mrs C. M. Martin C/- Wright Stephenson, Wellington (Roll of Honour, Auckland Province 1914-1918 (Volume 2))
Member of the Manawatu Philosophical Society.
Arthur Martin describes the aftermath of the Battle of The Marne in 1914 in his book 'A Surgeon in Khaki'. He illustrates the effects of modern weapons:
“Four German soldiers of the Mecklenberg Corps were lying together in a ditch. All had been killed by shrapnel wounds in chest and head. It seemed as if the four men had sat down exhausted in the ditch by the roadside and that one of our shrapnel shells had burst right over them, killing them all outright. We removed their identification discs in order that they could be sent to Germany later on. Close by was another dead German lying face downwards on the earth and with both hands extended above his head. Shrapnel had caught him full in the back of the neck. In a small clump of trees to the left of the road were two more dead Germans. One was lying on his back with his left hand over a wound in his chest. The other soldier had evidently been trying to assist him, for he had been kneeling on the right side of the wounded man when he too received a mortal hurt and fell dead across his dying comrade. His head was lying in a deep puddle of coagulated blood.”
“Two young Germans were found lying close together in a clump of vegetation. They had been sorely wounded and had crawled off the roadside into the friendly shelter of the trees. Left behind by their countrymen, grievously wounded and in dire distress, they had curled up together in the damp grass and died during the night. One had died from haemorrhage and one from a brain injury. Another group of four soldiers had crawled into a ditch and were close together in their last long sleep – killed by one of our heavy shells.” AWMM - Arthur Martin features in the book 'Back to the Front The Experiences of Elsie Grey: A New Zealand World War I Nurse' edited by J Holms. Elsie Grey became acquainted with Arthur Martin through her uncle Capt Charlie Dovey NZSC, associated with the Manawatu Mounted Rifles, and Dovey also being a member of the local Masonic Lodge in Palmerston North. As Adjutant of Trentham Camp, it was Charlie Dovey who sought Arthur Martin when an outbreak of illnesses occurred that needed medical advice. Elsie Grey while serving at Amiens in the Somme took a few photos of Martin's gravesite aware of his significant and courageous service.Public - Kiwi Scribe - 21 January 2025 - Back to the Front The Experiences of Elsie Grey: A New Zealand World War I Nurse Ed. Holms, J. G.M. Zip Print , Maryborough, Qld (2023) ISBN 978-0-646-87591-1 p.22, 64-66
- Husband of Constance Margaret nee Harley
About death
- Death
- 17 Sept 1916 AWMM
- Date of death
- —
- Age at death
- —
- Place of death
- —
- Cause of death
- Died of wounds AWMM
- Death notes
- —
- Cemetery
- St Pierre Cemetery, Amiens, Somme, France AWMM V A 4 AWMM
- Cemetery name
- —
- Grave reference
- —
- Obituary
- —
- Memorial name
- —
- Memorial reference
- —
Memorial
- Memorial name
- Memorial plaque, St Paul's Church, No 3 Field Ambulance, 25 Symonds Street, Auckland, New Zealand AWMM
- Memorial plaque, Palmerston North Hospital, Palmerston North, New Zealand AWMM
- Memorial flag, All saints' Church, 338 Church Street, Palmerston North, New Zealand AWMM
- Auckland War Memorial Museum, World War 1 Hall of Memories AWMM
Related objects
Sources
- External links
- Papers Past. Digital New Zealand Newspapers.
http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast
Sources Used - Papers Past. Digital New Zealand Newspapers.
http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast
Sources Used - Military personnel file
https://collections.archives.govt.nz/web/arena/search/#/entity/aims-archive/R10928954
Further Reference - Other military personnel file
https://collections.archives.govt.nz/web/arena/search/#/entity/aims-archive/R7880484
Further Reference - Obituary. Personal War Notes: the late Dr Martin. Colonist, Volume LVII, Issue 14219, 18 October 1916, Page 11
http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=TC19161018.2.40.30&srpos
Further Reference - Dictionary of New Zealand Biography
http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/3m45/1
Further Reference - Massey University. memori to be republished and image of Paslmerston North Hospital memorial
http://www.massey.ac.nz/massey/about-massey/news/article.cfm?mnarticle_uuid=27C9D111-96BF-57FE-A1CA-991BDEA69E4E
Further Reference - A Street Near You record
https://astreetnearyou.org/person/205011/-
Further Reference - Commonwealth War Graves Commission Casualty record
https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/205011
Further Reference - Wikidata Entity
http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q4797817
Further Reference - New Zealand Institute. Roll of Honour Showing Members of The Institute Who Were on Active Service During The War. Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand, Volume 53, 1921, Unnumbered Page
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/periodicals/TPRSNZ1921-53.2.6
Further Reference - Diary 1916
http://tapuhi.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/spydus/FULL/ARCHIVESNR/OPHDR/1546/214811,72Public - Victoria - Researcher - 14 September 2015 - Alexander Turnbull Library
MSX-4131
- Papers Past. Digital New Zealand Newspapers.
- References
- New Zealand Army Expeditionary Force. (1917). Nominal Rolls of New Zealand Expeditionary Force Volume II. Wellington, N.Z.: Govt. Printer.
24: 34 - Martin, A. (1915). A surgeon in khaki. London, England: Edward Arnold.
- Beattie, P.J. & Pomeroy, M. (2013-2020). Onward : portraits of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (vols 1-5). Auckland, New Zealand: Fair Dinkum Publications
Vol. 3: Includes portrait - Stowers, R. (2009). Rough riders at war : history of New Zealand's involvement in the Anglo-Boer War 1899-1902 and information on all members of the 10 New Zealand contingents. Hamilton, N.Z.: R. Stowers.
- Harper, G., Clements, C., & Johns., R. (2019). For King and Other Countries: The New Zealanders Who Fought in Other Services in the First World War. Auckland, New Zealand: Massey University Press.
p. 48-49, 51 - Roll of Honour, Auckland Province (digital copy), 1914 - 1919. Auckland War Memorial Museum Library. MS-2016-2.
- Pat Clarkson Medical Practitioner Research Project (January 2014 - March 2022). This project identified Medical Practioners who served in WWI.
- McDonald, W. (2013). Honours and Awards to the New Zealand Expeditionary Force in the Great War, 1914-1918. (3rd ed.). Hamilton, N.Z.: Richard Stowers.
- Carbery, A.R.D. (1924). The New Zealand Medical Service in the Great War, 1914-1918 : based on official documents. Auckland: Whitcombe & Tombs.
- New Zealand Army Expeditionary Force. (1917). Nominal Rolls of New Zealand Expeditionary Force Volume II. Wellington, N.Z.: Govt. Printer.
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