Tom Bassett Morten

Forenames

Tom Bassett AWMM

Surname

Morten AWMM

Also known as

Thomas AWMM

Service number

WWII 9228 AWMM

Gender

Male AWMM

Birth

30 Sept 1913 AWMM Christchurch AWMM

Address before enlistment

WW2 Pre 1940 AWMM Tai Tapu AWMM

Next of kin

WW2 Mrs. R.M. Morten, Tai Tapu (mother) AWMM

War

World War II, 1939-1945 AWMM

Armed force / branch

Army AWMM

Service number

WWII 9228 AWMM

Military service

• Served with Territorial Forces prior to and after WWII AWMM
• Commissioned in 1934 AWMM
• 25 Infantry Battalion AWMM
• 1 Canterbury Regiment, Territorial Forces AWMM
• 3 New Zealand Infantry Brigade AWMM
• Army Board AWMM

Medals and Awards

• Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) AWMM
• Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) AWMM
  DSO citation: "Lieutenant Colonel Morten commanded on of the two battalions which attacked the enemy position west of the Roman Wall on the night 21/22 March 1943. The position was well dug and protected by a minefield, anti-tank ditches and wire entanglement. Only a limited artillery programme was available to support the attack but despite this his battalion penetrated the position to a depth of more than 2,000 yards, capturing Hill 201 in the face of considerable opposition and taking several hundred prisoners. As a result of this attack our tanks were able to cross the minefield and exploit the success gained. Again on the afternoon of 26 March 1943, Lieutenant Colonel Morten's battalion was in the hills flanking the advance of the main tank and infantry attack. Supported only by its own weapons, this battalion advanced some 1,300 yards during the main attack in spite of strong opposition from enemy machineguns and was able during the night to join with the troops in the field objective. Throughout both these operations Lieutenant Colonel Morten showed tactical skill of a high order and inspired his command by his own coolness and determination." (NZ Gazette, 21 September 1944) AWMM
• 1939-1945 Star AWMM
• Africa Star (8th Army clasp) AWMM
• Italy Star AWMM
• Defence Medal AWMM
• War Medal 1939-1945 with oak leaf AWMM
• New Zealand War Service Medal AWMM
• Efficiency Decoration and 2 bars (ED**) AWMM
• Mentioned in Despatches (MiD) AWMM

Enlistment

WW2 Shepherd/Civilian AWMM

Embarkation details

WW2 Lieutenant/Military AWMM Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force AWMM

Medical notes

Hospital Diseases , Wounds, WWII AWMM
Wounded 15 July 1942 AWMM

Last rank

Brigadier/Military AWMM
25 Infantry Battalion AWMM

Served as second-in-command (2 I/C) of 26 Battalion at El Alamein

Served as Commanding Officer (CO) of 25 Battalion, January 1943 - February 1944

Returned to Territorial Forces after WWII, serving as CO of 1 Canterbury Regiment, 1954-57

Promoted to Brigadier and served as Commander of 3 NZ Infantry Brigade, 1957-61

Served as Territorial Forces representative on NZ Army Board

Appointed Honorary Colonel of 2 Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment (RNZIR), 1966 AWMM

Death

16 Aug 1975 AWMM
Age  61 AWMM
Christchurch AWMM

Related Serviceperson

External links

• I am Richard James Morten, Tom Morten's eldest son. He was TOM Bassett Morten, not Thomas.
  Public - RICHARD JAMES - Child - 29 April 2017 - His birth certificate dated 3rd Oct 1949
  His marriage certificate dated 25 June 1943 - it bears his signature.
  His claim for campaign stars, defence and war medals he submitted in 1950 - it bears his signature
  His New Zealand Military History sheet covering his service during WWII
  Newspaper cuttings relating to his death all of which refer to him as TOM
  I will forward by separate email copies of the above docuemnts
• My father's name was TOM Bassett Morten.
  Not Thomas as recorded on your records.
  Public - Ian Tyler - Sibling - 27 February 2016 - Certificate of Date of Birth No 420966

References

• Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force. (1941). Nominal Roll Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force No. 2 (Embarkations to 30th June, 1940). Wellington, N.Z.: Govt. Printer.
  p.134
• Haigh, J., Polaschek, A. (Eds.). (1993). New Zealand and the Distinguished Service Order. Christchurch, N.Z.: Authors.
• Puttick, E. (1960). 25 Battalion. Wellington, N.Z.: Department of Internal Affairs, War History Branch.
• Norton, F. (1952). 26 Battalion. Wellington, N.Z.: Department of Internal Affairs, War History Branch.