Reginald Roy Inwood VC (1890 - 1971)

Ancestors

Contents 1 Biography 1.1 First World War 1.2 a soldier's nightmare: no war 1.3 Second World War 1.4 no more war 1.5 display of VC 2 Sources 3 See also

Biography

Reginald Roy Inwood VC was born on 14th July 1890 at North Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. He was the eldest son of Edward Inwood and his wife Mary Anne Minney.^[1] Roy was educated first at the North Adelaide Public School, and after the family moved to Broken Hill, New South Wales, he attended the Broken Hill Model School. After completing his schooling, he found work in the local mining industry, where he was employed at the outbreak of the First World War.

First World War

Inwood enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 24th August 1914,^[2] embarking on the HMAT Ascanius A11 on 20th October.^[3] He was posted to the 10th Australian Infantry Battalion, 3rd Brigade, landing at Gallipoli on 25th April 1915.^[4] He fought at Gallipoli until being evacuated sick to Egypt in September. He rejoined his unit on the Western Front on 30th July 1916 where, in August, he fought in the Battle of Mouquet Farm. He was promoted to Corporal, however, while in camp in October, he was charged with absence without leave and reduced in rank to private. In April 1917, Inwood was with his battalion when it fought in the Battle of Lagnicourt, then the Second Battle of Bullecourt the following month.

During the Battle of Menin Road in September, he was involved in the elimination of a German machine gun post and other actions, for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross. Inwood's citation was published on 23rd November 1917, and read: "For most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty during the advance to the second objective. He moved forward through our barrage alone to an enemy strong post and captured it, together with nine prisoners, killing several of the enemy. During the evening he volunteered for a special all night patrol, which went out 600 yards in front of our line, and there – by his coolness and sound judgment – obtained and sent back very valuable information as to the enemy's movements. In the early morning of the 21 September, Private Inwood located a machine gun which was causing several casualties. He went out alone and bombed the gun and team, killing all but one, whom he brought in as a prisoner with the gun."^[5]

He was again promoted to Lance Corporal on 28th September, after which he went on leave to the United Kingdom. On his return, he was promoted to Corporal. He was invested with his Victoria Cross by King George V at Buckingham Palace on 12th December. He was promoted to Sergeant before being sent back to Australia in August 1918 to assist in recruiting campaigns. He disembarked from the SS Medic in Adelaide on 11th October, and was discharged on 12th December. Two of his younger brothers also served: Private Harold Ray Inwood served with the 43rd Battalion and returned to Australia in 1917, while Sergeant Robert Minney Inwood, also of the 10th Battalion, fought at Gallipoli and was killed in action during the Battle of Pozières (which Roy had missed whilst recuperating in Egypt). Inwood was awarded the 1914–15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal for his service in the war.

a soldier's nightmare: no war

Inwood returned to a hero's welcome in Broken Hill in October 1918 but at an event organised in his honour gave a speech that some took to be controversial. Although subsequently apologising for his comments he was clearly not welcome in Broken Hill so moved to Adelaide, where he met and married a 23-year-old widow, Mabel Alice Collins née Weber, on 31st December 1918.^[6]

Having difficulty finding satisfying work and tormented by both memories of the war and the loss of his brother, he and Mabel divorced in 1921. He then moved to Queenstown, Tasmania to work in the mines, and then back to Kangaroo Island in South Australia, where he worked in a eucalyptus distillery. Inwood married Evelyn Owens in 1927. Returning to Adelaide, he was employed by the Adelaide City Council as a labourer from 1928 onwards. He was awarded the King George VI Coronation Medal in 1937. By 1937, Evelyn had died.

Second World War

Less than a month after the outbreak of the Second World War, Inwood volunteered for service in the militia. He enlisted as a private, but was promoted to Sergeant within a week. In March 1940 he was transferred to the 4th Military District (4 MD) Australian Provost Corps (military police) section, and was promoted to Staff Sergeant. In November 1941, he was promoted to Warrant Officer Class Two.

Inwood married Louise Elizabeth Gates in 1942, and this was apparently a happy marriage. He was promoted to Warrant Officer Class One in November 1943 but, aged 54 years, he was medically discharged on 30th November 1944 due to a deterioration in his overall health. For his service in this second war, Inwood received the War Medal 1939–1945 and Australia Service Medal 1939–1945.

no more war

Inwood returned to the Adelaide City Council where he continued working until 1955. He was also awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal in 1953. Louise passed away in 1959, following which he lived at Norwood. He passed away on 23rd October 1971 at Saint Peters, South Australia. He was buried with full military honours in the AIF Cemetery, West Terrace.^[7] Despite his three marriages, he had no children.

Inwood maintained strong links with his 10th Battalion comrades over the years, and always marched alongside them in the Adelaide ANZAC Day March. The 10th Battalion Other Ranks' Mess at the Torrens Parade Ground, Adelaide, was called the Roy Inwood VC Club.

display of VC

In his will, Inwood bequeathed all his war medals to the 10th Battalion Club who, when informed, indicated they would donate the VC itself to the Australian War Memorial. Inwood objected and stated he wanted the medal to remain in Adelaide. His medals were formally handed over in 1972 and displayed in the Adelaide Town Hall until 1989, when it was decided to place them in a high security vault while a replica medal set was put on display. In 2005 funds were allocated to provide security so the original VC could be displayed in the Adelaide Town Hall.

Sources

1. ↑ South Australia Birth Index #463/315 1890
2. ↑ Australian War Memorial nominal roll: 506 Corporal Reginald Roy Inwood; accessed 30 Apr 2019
3. ↑ Australian War Memorial embarkation roll: 506 Corporal Reginald Roy Inwood; accessed 30 Apr 2019
4. ↑ Australian War Memorial unit record: 10th Australian Infantry Battalion; accessed 1 May 2019
5. ↑ Australian War Memorial Honours and Awards: 506 Corporal Reginald Roy Inwood; accessed 30 Apr 2019
6. ↑ South Australia Marriage Index #277/794 1918
7. ↑ South Australia Death Index #144A/8202 1971

See also

• Wikipedia profile: Roy Inwood.

• Find a Grave, database and images memorial page for Reginald Roy Inwood (14 Jul 1890–23 Oct 1971), Find a Grave Memorial ID Find A Grave: Memorial #7714330, citing West Terrace Cemetery, Adelaide, Adelaide City, South Australia, Australia ; Maintained by Find a Grave .

• Joyce Gibberd, Inwood, Reginald Roy (1890–1971), Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/inwood-reginald-roy-6795/text11753, published first in hardcopy 1983, accessed online 14 July 2022.