Alfred Baden Brock (1918 - 1942)

Born 9 Apr 1918 in South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Ancestors

Died 1 Jul 1942 at age 24 in At Sea

Biography

Alfred Brock was a Prisoner of War during World War II.

Alfred Brock died as a prisoner of war on the Montevideo Maru during the Second World War.

Alfred Baden Brock was born in 1918 at South Melbourne, VIC, the son of Alfred and Margaret Myrtle Brock.

He enlisted in the Australian Army for overseas service at Caulfield, VIC on 10 Jun 1940 as a Private (VX24496). At the time he was single, a steward and was living in Richmond, VIC. He had dark brown hair and blue eyes and had a tattoo of a heart on his left arm.

He was posted to 2/22nd Bn on 15 Jul 1940.

He entrained from Victoria to Sydney on 10 Apr 1941, embarked in Sydney on HMT "Katoomba" on 12 Apr 1941 for Rabaul, New Britain in the Territory of New Guinea, disembarking there on 26 Apr 1941. His Battalion was to form the core of "Lark Force" to defend the Territory.

After the Japanese invasion of 23 Jan 1942, he was captured at Toma and became a Prisoner of War, initially held at Rabaul. Japanese records show him as part of D Coy.

He died on board the "Montevideo Maru" when it was torpedoed and sunk off the coast of the Philippines on 01 Jul 1942, en route from Rabaul to Hainan where he was destined for forced labour.

Sources

• Birth - Victoria BDM Birth index - Event: births; Registration number: 13080 / 1918; Family name: BROCK; Given name(s): Alfd Baden; Place of event: SOUTH MELBOURNE, VIC, Australia; Personal detail Mother's name: Margt Myrtle; Mother's family name at birth: SIMPSON; Father's Name: Alfd

• WW2 Australian Army Service File - National Archives of Australia - BROCK ALFRED BADIN : Service Number - VX24496 : Date of birth - 09 Apr 1918 : Place of birth - STH MELBOURNE VIC : Place of enlistment - CAULFIELD VIC : Next of Kin - BROCK MYRTLE -

• Deaths On Active Service - Family Notices (1945, October 27). The Age (Melbourne, Vic. : 1854 - 1954), p. 11. Retrieved March 31, 2020, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article205651272

• Roll of Honour - Australian War Memorial - https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1694080

• Commonwealth War Graves Commission - https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2615418/brock,-alfred-baden/

• Virtual War Memorial Australia: https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/621142

• The Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial https://www.powmemorialballarat.com.au/prisoners-of-war/brock-alfred-badin/