John Hamilton Ingram

Born 5 Aug 1918 - Died 20 Apr 1943

Service number: WWII 67534 AWMM
Also known as: Te Kaiamo AWMM
John Te Kaiamo Ingram AWMM
Armed force / branch: Army AWMM
Last rank: Private Gardiner, W. (2019). Ake ake kia kaha e! 28 (Maori) Battalion, B Company Gardiner, W. (2019). Ake ake kia kaha e!
War: World War II, 1939-1945 AWMM

John Hamilton Ingram — Portrait - This image may be subject to copyright

Show empty fields Hide sources

Biographical information

John Ingram was the son of James and Ngahaka Ingram of Rotorua and the husband of Paterehia Ingram of Murupara, Auckland.

The following Waiata has been supplied by John Te Kaiamo Ingram's family for inclusion in this record. The waiata was composed by John's mother, Ngahaka, a few weeks after she received the news that her only son had been killed in the battle of Takrouna. The song is now sung by members of Ngahaka's family and is dedicated to her memory and that of her son.

HE WAIATA TENEI MO JOHN TE KAIAMO INGRAM

NA TONA MANA A NGAHAKA INGRAM I TITO

Pari rere o Takrouna i Tunihia

I piki ai koutou e tama ma

Ahakoa nga wehe nui

Piki tonu koutou e

Mapu ai to manawa Aue! Ra

Rongonui! Rongotoa!

Mohou ra te iwi Maori

Moe mai ra e te Raukura

I te marae o Tumatauenga

Nga kura i muri nei

Tangi hotuhotu nei

Kua ngaro Te Matua i te Ao

The cliffs which rose towards Takrouna in Tunisia

You climbed its heights oh soldiers brave to battle there

Filled with fear, heads held high

You continued the climb

Beating hearts, courageously, you carried on

Rongonui! Rongotoa!

Mohou ra te iwi Maori

Sleep in peace my beloved only son

On the fields of Tumatauenga

The loved ones here, we wait at home

With hearts sobbing, bereft, alone

Aue! my only son, gone forever, from my embrace

Aue! my only son, gone forever, from my embrace

Private Ingram was closely associated with Sergeant Manahi who was awarded the DCM for his part in this action. The plan was for a 'force' to create a diversion that would assist D. Company to attack Takrouna from the rear. Before dawn a group of about ten men led by Sergeant Rogers gathered in a hollow and were divided into two. Ingram went with Manahi and three other Privates H. Grant, K. Aranui and J. Takiwa, whilst Rogers took with him Sergeant Smith, Lance-Corporal H. Ruha and Privates E. Douglas, J. Douglas, W. Ratahi and W. Takurua. The action was reasonably successful but the price was high, as of this small group five were killed and several wounded.

The circumstances surrounding the action in which Private Ingram died took place at Takrouna, Tunisia. The Rock of Takrouna was a key point of the enemy's defence line. Nestling on the northern slopes was the village of Takrouna, uninhabited at the time but normally the home of about 500 people. The countryside between the troops and this strategic feature though fairly flat and undulating was a natural death trap. One of the worst features being impenetrable walls of cactus which, it transpired, had been heavily mined. On the night of the attack each assaulting battalion was allotted three Crusader tanks for the purpose of smashing through the cactus. Machetes were also issued to the men. The New Zealand Division's intention was to attack and capture the Djebel el Froukr and Djebel el Ogla features and exploit to the north-west and north. In other words, they were to secure the end of a ridge and exploit into the hills. Fifth Brigade on the left of the New Zealand sector had for its first objective the capture of Djebel Cherachir which lay beyond Takrouna and Djebel Bir. The final objective, Djebel Froukr, lay a mile further north. The Enfidaville-Zaghouan road ran between Cherachir and Takrouna and was the final objective for the first phase of the attack - the responsibility of 28 Battalion, on the right and 21 Battalion on the left. The 21 Battalion was to reach the road by moving around the left or western side of Takrouna. Takrouna hill itself and Djebel Bir were to be taken by the 28 Battalion. For a detailed account of the whole event refer to 28 (Maori) Battalion by J.F. Cody Chapter II. AWMM

The development of the Online Cenotaph is an ongoing process; updates, new images and records are added weekly. In some cases, records have yet to be confirmed by Museum staff, and there could be mistakes or omissions in the information provided.

Online Cenotaph Data by Auckland War Memorial Museum is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

John Hamilton Ingram