Cornielius Harold (Con) Kerrison

Cornielius Harold (Con) Kerrison

Personal Information
Date of Birth	17 Feb 1906
Place of Birth	Armadale, Western Australia
Age at Enlistment	33 years, 8 months
Description	5'9" (1.75m) tall ; ; medium complexion ; blue eyes ; dark hair
Occupation	Firewood contractor
Religion	Congregational
Address	c/- Mrs A Candish, Mandurah
Next of Kin	Wife , Mrs Mavis Kerrison
Military Information
Reg Number	WX530
Date of Enlistment	9 Nov 1939

War Service

Enlisted while in Busselton and was allocated to the 2nd/11th Battalion, 6th Division. On 7 Dec 1939 they moved to the eastern states to train with the rest of the Division, before returning to Perth in early April 1940. While in Sydney he was promoted Temporary Corporal on 10 Jan 1940 before spending two days in the Prince of Wales Hospital with haemorrhoids.

On 20 Apr 1940 his rank of Corporal was confirmed, and the battalion boarded HMT Y3 Nevasa for Kanatana in Egypt where they disembarked on 19 May 1940. After arriving in the Middle East, the 2/11th trained in Palestine and Egypt. A decision to reorganise Australian infantry brigades along British lines, with three battalions instead of four, meant the 2/11th was now part of the 19th Brigade, but it remained part of the 6th Division. On 25 Jul 1940 Corneilius was admitted to 2nd/1st Australian General Hospital with sand fly fever, returning to the battalion at Gaza Ridge on 30 Jul 1940.

The battalion went into action for the first time at Bardia on 5 Jan 1941 and, as part of the Allied advance into Italian-occupied Libya, subsequently fought at Tobruk on 21-22 Jan 1941, and to secure Derna airfield on 25 Jan 1941. It was advancing to the south of Benghazi when the Italians surrendered on 7 Feb 1941. Returning to Palestine, Cornielius could be considered lucky in that he was admitted to the 8th British General Hospital on 28 Mar 1941 suffering with an Inguinal Hernia, and thus did not go to Greece and Crete from which very few returned. On 5 Apr 1941 he was transferred to the 2nd/2nd Australian General Hospital in Gaza, and on 18 Apr 1941 to the 1st Australian Convalescent Depot at Dimra. Well again, he was released on 12 May 1941 to the 19th Australian Infantry training Battalion at Dimra and then he rejoined what was left of the 2/11 Battalion on 8 Jun 1941.

Promoted Sergeant on19 Jul 1941, he was sent to the Middle East Tactical School on 23 Jul 1941, but was again in need of medical attention on 31 Jul 1941 when he was seen by the 2nd New Zealand General Hospital with a severe case of sinusitis. Released to the training course on 8 Aug 1941 he rejoined the battalion the next day. Early 1942 was spent in garrisoning Syria.

Along with the rest of the battalion, Cornielius boarded the HMT Durban Castle on 9 Aug 1942, and disembarked in Adelaide on 17 Mar 1942. The battalion was used to carry out defensive duties in Western Australia until 6 July 1943 when it transferred to Queensland. He was promoted Acting Warrant Officer Class 2 on 5 Dec 1942 before illness struck again. On 22 Dec 1942 he was seen by the 4th Australian Casualty Clearing Station who on 28 Dec 1942 passed him on to the 110 Australian General Hospital. On 18 Jan 1943 he was well enough to rejoin the battalion, and on 6 Jul 1943 they entrained for Queensland. Suffering with dysentery, Cornielius was treated by the 2nd/7th Australian Field Ambulanceon

On 16 Sep 1944 qualified at the 1st Australian Army Regimental Training School's RSM & CSM Course No 4. Was demobilised at his own request in NSW on 25 Sep 1945 after service in the Middle East from 20 Apr 1940 until 17 Mar 1942 and in New Guinea from 5 Nov 1944 to 7 Aug 1945.

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