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Cenotaph record

Stuart Alexander Campbell

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In uniform

Stuart Alexander Maireriki Campbell

Image may be subject to copyright restrictions. This image was anonymously uploaded and the copyright holder does not wish to be contacted.

Identity

About

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  • Title
  • Forenames
    Stuart Alexander AWMM
  • Surname
    Campbell AWMM
  • Ingoa
  • Also known as
    Stuart Alexander Maireriki Campbell AWMM
  • Service number
    WWII 446853 AWMM
  • Gender
    Male AWMM
  • Iwi / Hapū / Waka / Rohe
  • Religion

Civilian life

About birth

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  • Birth
    2 March 1923 AWMM
  • Date of birth
  • Place of birth
  • Birth notes
  • Address before enlistment
    • WW2 Unknown AWMM Glendining Home, Andersons Bay, Dunedin, New Zealand AWMM
    • WW2 Miss M. Campbell (sister), Glendining Home, Andersons Bay, Dunedin, New Zealand AWMM
  • Post war occupation
  • Next of kin on embarkation
  • Relationship status
    Single/WWII AWMM

Service

Wars and conflicts

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  • War
    World War II, 1939-1945 AWMM
  • Campaign
    Italy AWMM
  • Armed force / branch
    Army AWMM
  • Service number
    WWII 446853 AWMM
  • Military service
  • Promotions/ Postings/ Transfers

Military decorations

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Training and Enlistment

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  • Military training
  • Branch Trade Proficiency
  • Enlistment
    WW2 Panelbeater/Civilian 2NZEF Nom Roll 2
    Dunedin, Otago 2NZEF Nom Roll 2
  • Occupation before enlistment
  • Age on enlistment
    18 Public - Ella - Other relative - 30 October 2016 - New Zealand, World War II Ballot Lists, 1940–1945.

Embarkations

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Prisoner of war

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  • Capture details
  • Days interned
  • Liberation date
  • Liberation Repatriation
  • POW liberation details
  • POW serial number

Medical history

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  • Medical notes
    Killed on Active Service, Cause of Death AWMM

Last known rank

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Biographical information

Biographical information

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    • Son of John Archibald Campbell and of Teu Campbell (nee Bosini). Brother of Bill, Margaret and Alistair Campbell

      "Stuart Alexander Maireriki Campbell was born in 1923 on Tongareva, the northernmost atoll in the Cook Islands also known as Penrhyn Island. He served New Zealand as part of the 28th Māori Battalion in the Second World War. Between 1941 and 1945 he served in Greece, North Africa and finally Italy.

      Stuart’s mother Teu Campbell, was a young woman from Tongareva, the eldest daughter of Bosini. Stuart's father Jock (John Archibald Campbell, service number 2/1544) was a papa'a (European) trader from New Zealand who had moved to the comparative serenity of the Cook Islands after his experiences serving in the First World War. He served in Europe and North Africa and was a part of the Gallipoli campaign with the New Zealand Field Artillery.

      Stuart was the eldest of four children. His younger brother was Alistair Te Ariki Campbell, who later became a successful poet, novelist and playwright, and was my grandfather. Much of what we know about Stuart comes from my Grandfather’s stories and the poetry he wrote about his memories of his brother, and his impression of the Māori Battalion that his brother was a part of.


      Photograph of Stuart's brothers Bill and Alistair (right) taken on their journey to New Zealand in 1933. This picture illustrated a story in the New Zealand Railways Magazine of 1 July 1933.

      Taken from the New Zealand Electronic Text Collection.
      Alistair wrote about his happy childhood in the Cook Islands and the later experiences of the children during the sad time when their mother Teu became ill and died in 1932 and when a year later, their father also passed away. When he was 9 years old, Stuart and his siblings became orphans and were sent away from the warmth of family life in Tongareva, posted like packages with baggage labels tied to their collars to be looked after by Jock’s grandmother in chilly Dunedin. The children's grandmother was unable to look after them and eventually they were sent to live in an orphanage. It is this address, Glendinning Home, Anderson's Bay, Dunedin that Stuart gave upon enlistment in 1941 at age 18.

      Stuart joined the 28th Māori Battalion. The companies were organised on a tribal basis and as a Pacific Islander Stuart was a part of D Company – made up of Ngāti Kahungunu from the Hawkes Bay, South Island iwi and Pacific Islanders.

      Stuart was killed in action on the 11th of April 1945 while waiting to cross the Santerno River near Massa Lombarda, Italy. He was killed by what was termed "friendly fire" when an RAF Bomber accidentally dropped a 500 pound bomb near Stuart’s D Company unit. His death came only a few weeks before the Māori Battalion were sent home as the war slowly came to an end.

      Despite the odds Stuart was a bright, intelligent young man, remembered for his skill on the cricket field as well as his sharp imaginative mind. Johnson, Ella. Stuart Alexander Maireriki Campbell. Auckland War Memorial Museum - Tāmaki Paenga Hira. First published: 29 November 2016. Updated: 6 December 2016. AWMM
    • Teu was the eldest of Bosini's two daughters. Public - Ella - Other relative - 30 October 2016 - Family papers
    • Stuart and his siblings arrived in New Zealand in 1933 and went to live at the Glendinning Childrens Home in Dunedin. Public - Ella - Other relative - 31 January 2017 - Family papers
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Death

About death

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  • Death
    11 April 1945 AWMM
    Age 22 AWMM
    Italy, Europe AWMM
  • Date of death
  • Age at death
  • Place of death
  • Cause of death
    Killed on Active Service AWMM
  • Death notes
  • Cemetery
    Faenza War Cemetery, Italy AWMM IV. D. 13. AWMM
  • Cemetery name
  • Grave reference
  • Obituary
  • Memorial name
  • Memorial reference

Memorials

Memorial

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  • Memorial name

Roll of Honour

Remember Stuart Alexander Campbell by laying a poppy.

Leave a note

Leave a tribute or memory of Stuart Alexander Campbell

Leave a note

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  • There is an amazing article about Stuart CAMPBELL at this link;

    http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/war-memorial/online-cenotaph/features/stuart-alexander-maireriki-campbell

    Lest we Forget.
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  • Kia orana Uncle Stuart, you were the beloved brother of my Grandfather Alistair. He shared your story with our whanau and also with many others around the world through his poetry. We will be remembering you this ANZAC day for the good man you were and the sacrifices you made.
    Public - Ella - Other relative - 19 April 2017
    Report 

Related Serviceperson

Sources

Sources

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Contributors

Command item
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DateFirst namesLocationRelationshipContact
08 March 2022Ian BanksTaumarunui New ZealandResearcher
05 October 2017EllaAuckland, New ZealandOther relative

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