Andrew John McFarlane
Born 1915 - Died 1 Dec 1941
- Service number
- 25715 AWMM
- Also known as
- —
- Armed force / branch
- Army AWMM
- Last rank
- Gunner/Military AWMM New Zealand Artillery, 6 Field Regiment AWMM
- War
- World War II, 1939-1945 AWMM
About
- Title
- —
- Forenames
- Andrew John AWMM
- Surname
- McFarlane AWMM
- Ingoa
- —
- Also known as
- —
- Service number
- 25715 AWMM
- Gender
- Male AWMM
- Iwi / Hapū / Waka / Rohe
- —
- Religion
- —
Images
Documents
About birth
- Birth
- 1915 Births, Deaths and Marriages
- Date of birth
- —
- Place of birth
- —
- Birth notes
- —
- Address before enlistment
- WW2 95 Layard St., Invercargill AWMM
- WW2 95 Layard St., Invercargill AWMM
- Post war occupation
- —
- Next of kin
- WW2 Mrs. B. McFarlane, 95 Layard St., Invercargill (mother) AWMM
- WW2 Mrs. B. McFarlane, 95 Layard St., Invercargill (m) AWMM
- Relationship status
- Pre 1940-1941 AWMM Single/WWII AWMM
- Pre 1941 AWMM Single/WWII AWMM
Wars and conflicts
- War
- World War II, 1939-1945 AWMM
- Campaign
- —
- Armed force / branch
- Army AWMM
- Service number
- 25715 AWMM
- Military service
- B Force, 8th Brigade, New Zealand 3rd Division AWMM
- Promotions/ Postings/ Transfers
- —
Military decorations
- Medals and Awards
- —
Training and Enlistment
- Military training
- —
- Branch Trade Proficiency
- —
- Enlistment
- WW2 1940-1941 2NZEF Nom. Roll 3, p.292 Wool classer/Civilian 2NZEF Nom. Roll 3, p.292
- Age on enlistment
- —
- Occupation before enlistment
- —
Embarkations
- Embarkation details
- WW2 Gunner/Military 2NZEF Nom. Roll 3, p.292 35th Battery 2NZEF Nom. Roll 3, p.292 Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force AWMM
- WW2 Gunner/Military 2NZEF Nom. Roll 4, p.219 N.Z. Artillery 2NZEF Nom. Roll 4, p.219 Second 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
- Killed on Active Service, Cause of Death AWMM
Last known rank
- Last rank
- Gunner/Military AWMM
New Zealand Artillery, 6 Field Regiment AWMM - Last rank
- —
Biographical information
- Son of Herbert Milne McFarlane and Elizabeth McFarlane, of Invercargill, Southland, New Zealand AWMM
- Andrew John McFarlane was born in Invercargill on 31 August 1915. His father, Herbert, was 34 (and a veteran of the Boer War) and his mother, Elizabeth (Bess), was 25. Andy shared the same name as his paternal grandfather, who was also Andrew McFarlane and was a veteran of the Crimean War; and also his father's younger brother, who was serving in Gallipoli in August 1915 when his nephew and namesake was born.
Arriving mid-family, Andy had five brothers and six sisters. Born 18 months after his sister Myrtle (my Nana), these two children were particularly close. Andy became a wool classer and rabbitskin grader, and he lived with his parents at 95 Layard Street, Invercargill, at least through to 1938.
Andy was a good looking, quiet man, with an extroverted girlfriend, Margaret Davidson, a farmer's daughter from Waimahaka.
Andy enlisted to fight in WWII and became a gunner: Gunner A J McFarlane 25715 NZ Artillery. He was posted to the Pacific Islands, and then to Egypt. Andy was killed in active service on December 1, 1941, in the battle of Sidi Rezegh, at the age of 26. He was initially buried at Belhamed before his remains were exhumed and transferred to the Knightsbridge Cemetery as his final resting place.
Grieving for Andy and remembering him throughout her lifetime, his girlfriend Margaret ultimately married Norman [Mac] Dawson. Margaret and Mac stayed closely connected to Myrtle and her husband Ernie.
Andy was especially beloved by his sister Myrtle, who honoured, loved and missed him throughout the whole of her life - reuniting with Andy in her death, on 2 February 2016. After Andy's parents both died in 1977, his portrait was always prominent in Myrtle's homes, and is now cared for by his great nephew, Paul (Myrtle's grandson).
Myrtle was buried with Andy's photo against her heart, and a photo of his gravestone was tucked alongside her. She had missed him for 75 years and kept his memory alive in our family.Public - Kathryn - Other relative - 28 April 2022 - Family knowledge and anecdotes from Andy's sister, Myrtle, and from Myrtle's daughter, Joan. Ancestral research with the family's military service verified. - Born on 31 August 1915 at 95 Layard Street, Invercargill. Middle child, with five brothers and six sisters.Public - Kathryn - Other relative - 27 April 2022 - Source: Andy's sister (my grandmother), Myrtle Violet McFarlane, born 14 March 1914.
About death
- Death
- 1 Dec 1941 AWMM
Age 26 AWMM - Date of death
- —
- Age at death
- —
- Place of death
- —
- Cause of death
- Killed on Active Service AWMM
- Death notes
- —
- Cemetery
- Knightsbridge War Cemetery, Acroma, Libya AWMM 6. E. 6. AWMM
- Cemetery name
- —
- Grave reference
- —
- Obituary
- —
- Memorial name
- —
- Memorial reference
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Memorial
- Memorial name
- —
Sources
- External links
- Commonwealth War Graves Commission record
https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2162741
Sources Used - References
- Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force. (1941). Nominal Roll Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force No. 3 (Embarkations from 1st July, 1940 to 31st March, 1941). Wellington, N.Z.: Govt. Printer.
p.292 - Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force. (1941). Nominal Roll Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force No. 4 (Embarkations from 1st April, 1941 to 30 June, 1941). Wellington, N.Z.: Govt. Printer.
p.219 - Nominal rolls - Embarkation rolls B-force 8th infantry brigade group [New Zealand Military Forces - "B" Force - Embarkation Roll]. Archives New Zealand, Wellington, AAYS 8638 AD1/1421 (R22440171)
- Gillespie, O. (1952). The Pacific. Wellington, N.Z.: Department of Internal Affairs, War History Branch.
- Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force. (1941). Nominal Roll Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force No. 3 (Embarkations from 1st July, 1940 to 31st March, 1941). Wellington, N.Z.: Govt. Printer.
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