Most Australian visitors to Gallipoli pass by the war cemetery bearing the
titles 'Courtney's and Steele's Post' but few realise the significance of the
name. In April/May 1915 this are was held by the 14th Battalion AIF, commanded
by Lieutenant Colonel Richard Courtney, and known throughout the campaign as
Courtney's Post.
The saga of the Courtney's commences in Ireland, and moves to Australia
during the gold rush where the family soon became heavily involved in the local
volunteer movement at Castlemaine. Military service became a tradition carried
through four generations, embracing not only the Great War and Gallipoli where
two brothers served as officers, but also the 1939-45 War with one family
member serving as a doctor in the RAN and the other as a doctor in the British
Army, landing with the paras in Arnhem, where he was captured by the Germans.
'The Courtneys' is amply illustrated with photos from the Courtney
collections, and provides the readers with valuable insight into the developmet
of the Australian Army over a 120 year span from Colonial times, through two
world wars and beyond.
Contents:
Foreword
1. From Cavan to Castlemaine: The Courtney Brothers - Thomas Wilson (1833-1906)
and James Jon (1838-1907)
2. Thomas John Courtney (1858-1922)
3. James Henry Courtney (1864-1947)
- Appendix 1. The District Selection Committee
- Appendix 2. State Parliamentary Recruiting Committee Documents
4. Charles Arthur Courtney (1869-1966)
- Appendix 1. War Pensions Administration
5. Richard Edmond Courtney (1870-1919)
6. Charles Wilson Courtney (1896-1978)
7. Geoffrey Charles Palliser Courtney (1900-11975)
8. Thomas Richard Brian Courtney (1911-2001)
9. Alasdair Wilson Courtney (1936- )
Appendix 1. Abbreviations
Bibliography
Index
Appendix 2. Medals Awarded to the Courtneys
