AUDLEY CHARLES HYDE MILLAR, M.C.
Regimental NO. 1/467 and 8/2290
27 December 1883 – 16 October 1917
Audley Charles Hyde MILLAR was born in Auckland on 27 December 1883. He was the only son of Walter Charles and Hannah/Annie (nee Hyde) Millar/Miller who had married at St Mark’s Church, Wellington on 27 April 1881. Audley had two sisters, Ethel Winifred (known as Winnie) born 1882 and Ada Gwendoline (known as Gwen) born in 1886, also born in Auckland. Audley’s father appears to have been in the services as he was the Honorary Secretary of the N.Z. Regiment Artillery “A” Battery, Auckland during the period 1885-1890 and in 1887 received a £30 grant under the Naval and Military Settlers and Volunteers Act.
The family remained in Auckland until 1895 when they moved to Nelson and the children attended Toi Toi[1] school for a year. In 1896 they moved to Wellington, and lived first at 38 Nairn Street. From their house it was only a short walk across Upper Willis Street to Te Aro School which Audley and his sisters attended. Audley left this school on 13 December 1898 for Wellington College. By 1900 the family had moved from Nairn Street to 18 May Street, in Thorndon, and by 1905 the family had moved again, this time to 36 Maarama Crescent, Brooklyn. On the 1905-1906 Electoral Roll, Audley’s occupation is warehouseman and his father Walter is a compositor working at the Government Printing Office in Wellington.
Audley moved to Nelson in 1910 and took part in activities in that city. In September his cocker spaniel dog, Rod, won a Very Highly Commended prize in the Nelson Kennel Club inaugural show and in October he joined the Nelson Rowing Club as an active member. By the time of the 1911 Electoral Roll, Audley had moved back to Wellington and was living with his parents and sisters at 36 Maarama Crescent. His occupation was then a clerk. His younger sister, Gwen married Charles Mackintosh Hill on 29 November 1911 and Audley was a groomsman. Their second son, born in 1915, was named Audley Rex, presumably after his maternal uncle.
On 10 August 1914, only five days after war was declared, Audley enlisted. By this time he had moved yet again and was living at 19 Tanera Crescent and was working as a clerk with Sargood, Son and Ewen Ltd.[2] His ‘apparent age’ was 29 years and 7 months; he was 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighed 10 stone 10 pounds. He had dark complexion, brown eyes and dark hair. His religious profession was Church of England. His medical examination showed him to be in good health with no defects that could cause his rejection.
Audley was given the regimental number 1/467 with the 5th Wellington Regiment and as he had served with the College Rifles Volunteers, he was immediately made a Corporal. Two days after enlisting he left Wellington for Samoa with the Advance Guard. Here Audley was transferred to the Otago Infantry and given a new regimental number of 8/2291. He served in Samoa until 22 March 1915 when he returned to Wellington and was discharged at his own request on 15 April 1915.
Audley then opted to go to England in company with several other Victoria College students to re-enlist. In May 1915, after a very short time at home, Audley and his friend Alan Miller, who had also served in Samoa, left for England on the “Turakina”. In July they obtained commissions with the 3rd Battalion Yorkshire Regiment (Special Reserve)[3] and in October 1915 they were sent for training at Fort Darland, Chatham in Kent. After a year as Bombing Instructor to his regiment, he went to France, and fought on the Somme, in the notorious Ypres Salient.
After being promoted to Second Lieutenant Audley was mentioned in Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig’s dispatches dated 13 November 1916. He was then promoted to First Lieutenant, and became Lewis-gun officer to his regiment.
In the King’s Birthday Honours List of June 1917 (notified in the Supplement to the Edinburgh Gazette 4 June 1917) Audley was awarded the Military Cross for Distinguished Service in the Field, by which time he had been promoted to Captain. Awards made as part of the King's Birthday or New Year's honours were made for reasons of meritorious service often in recognition of a period of sustained gallant performance rather than a single act of bravery.
In late September of 1917 the 9th battalion was involved in fierce fighting around Cameron Covert in the Salient. After a short relief period they were rushed back into the line on October 13th on a frontage of 500 yards just to the east of Polygon Wood. For four days they were under heavy artillery fire which was being directed by German spotter planes. Captain Audley Charles Hyde Millar MC was wounded during these actions on October16th 1917, dying later the same day at the age of 33.[4]
He was buried at the Menin Road South Military Cemetery, on the eastern outskirts of Ypres, West Vlaanderen, Belgium in Grave II M 24. According to Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) documents which can be viewed online Walter was able to add an inscription to Audley’s headstone. It read: Thy Will Be Done. The date of death on the headstone may be 15 October 1917, according to the CWGC records. If so, this is not in accordance with many other records.
Christmas presents sent to Audley arrived in England after his death. His mother was asked how the presents were to be disposed of. She replied that she would like them to be used for the benefit of his old regiment. Three presents were cakes and these were auctioned and generated £51.10s for members of the Yorkshire Regiment.
In December 1918 Walter, was presented with Audley’s Military Cross by the Governor General Earl Liverpool. This must have been a proud, and also a sad, occasion.
Audley was amongst those remembered by the Wellington Accountant Students’ Society at their AGM as noted in the Evening Post on 6 February 1919:
“A motion of sympathy with the relatives of four members of the Wellington Accountant Students’ Society who died while on active service in France during the past year, was carried at the annual meeting last evening”.
By the time the Electoral Roll was compiled in 1919 Walter and Annie were living at 103 Coromandel Street in Newtown with their daughter Ethel (Winnie). Audley’s Victory, British and 1915 Star Medals were sent to his father care of his son-in-law Mackintosh Hill at the Public Works Department, Wellington on 9 February 1922.
The family inserted notices in the Evening Post in October 1920, 1921, 1922 and 1923:
MILLAR – In loving memory of Audley (Captain A.C.H. Millar, M.C.) only and beloved son of Walter C. and Annie Millar, killed in action on the Western Front on the 15th October 1917.
These notices suggest the family were told he died on 15 October, rather than the 16th.
Audley’s father, Walter Charles Millar, died aged 73 in 1929 and was buried in a grave which is still unmarked in Karori Cemetery. Annie lived with her daughter Winnie at 10 Hamilton Road, Hataitai, until her death in 1947 at the age of 90.
Research conducted by Ann Walker, supplemented by Barbara Mulligan
[1] The first school in Nelson was in a house built of toi toi, a native reed plant, and this became Nelson Central School.
[2] Sargood, Son and Ewen was a large importing firm of a type common in New Zealand. Due to the country’s distance from major supply centres importing merchants purchased or ‘indented’ a range of items from their agents and suppliers overseas, paid for and then sold locally with an increase in price to ensure a profit. Salesman or ‘travellers’ would visit local stores to sell the range of imported stock. Dunedin was the shipping and importing centre for this lucrative trade. Sargood, Son and Ewen was one of the oldest and most prominent Australasian firms of this type, with branches in most major cities on both sides of the Tasman Sea and a London purchasing house. The company’s Dunedin branch, established in 1862, served as the head office for New Zealand
[3] Known as the Alexandra Princess of Wales Own Yorkshire Regiment, and the Green Howards
[4] Yorkshire Regiment Officers Who Died in the First World War. A Memorial Roll of the Officers of the Alexandra Princess of Wales Own Yorkshire Regiment, who died 1914-1919. Compiled by Robert Coulson (1952-2008). Page 154
Regimental NO. 1/467 and 8/2290
27 December 1883 – 16 October 1917
Audley Charles Hyde MILLAR was born in Auckland on 27 December 1883. He was the only son of Walter Charles and Hannah/Annie (nee Hyde) Millar/Miller who had married at St Mark’s Church, Wellington on 27 April 1881. Audley had two sisters, Ethel Winifred (known as Winnie) born 1882 and Ada Gwendoline (known as Gwen) born in 1886, also born in Auckland. Audley’s father appears to have been in the services as he was the Honorary Secretary of the N.Z. Regiment Artillery “A” Battery, Auckland during the period 1885-1890 and in 1887 received a £30 grant under the Naval and Military Settlers and Volunteers Act.
The family remained in Auckland until 1895 when they moved to Nelson and the children attended Toi Toi[1] school for a year. In 1896 they moved to Wellington, and lived first at 38 Nairn Street. From their house it was only a short walk across Upper Willis Street to Te Aro School which Audley and his sisters attended. Audley left this school on 13 December 1898 for Wellington College. By 1900 the family had moved from Nairn Street to 18 May Street, in Thorndon, and by 1905 the family had moved again, this time to 36 Maarama Crescent, Brooklyn. On the 1905-1906 Electoral Roll, Audley’s occupation is warehouseman and his father Walter is a compositor working at the Government Printing Office in Wellington.
Audley moved to Nelson in 1910 and took part in activities in that city. In September his cocker spaniel dog, Rod, won a Very Highly Commended prize in the Nelson Kennel Club inaugural show and in October he joined the Nelson Rowing Club as an active member. By the time of the 1911 Electoral Roll, Audley had moved back to Wellington and was living with his parents and sisters at 36 Maarama Crescent. His occupation was then a clerk. His younger sister, Gwen married Charles Mackintosh Hill on 29 November 1911 and Audley was a groomsman. Their second son, born in 1915, was named Audley Rex, presumably after his maternal uncle.
On 10 August 1914, only five days after war was declared, Audley enlisted. By this time he had moved yet again and was living at 19 Tanera Crescent and was working as a clerk with Sargood, Son and Ewen Ltd.[2] His ‘apparent age’ was 29 years and 7 months; he was 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighed 10 stone 10 pounds. He had dark complexion, brown eyes and dark hair. His religious profession was Church of England. His medical examination showed him to be in good health with no defects that could cause his rejection.
Audley was given the regimental number 1/467 with the 5th Wellington Regiment and as he had served with the College Rifles Volunteers, he was immediately made a Corporal. Two days after enlisting he left Wellington for Samoa with the Advance Guard. Here Audley was transferred to the Otago Infantry and given a new regimental number of 8/2291. He served in Samoa until 22 March 1915 when he returned to Wellington and was discharged at his own request on 15 April 1915.
Audley then opted to go to England in company with several other Victoria College students to re-enlist. In May 1915, after a very short time at home, Audley and his friend Alan Miller, who had also served in Samoa, left for England on the “Turakina”. In July they obtained commissions with the 3rd Battalion Yorkshire Regiment (Special Reserve)[3] and in October 1915 they were sent for training at Fort Darland, Chatham in Kent. After a year as Bombing Instructor to his regiment, he went to France, and fought on the Somme, in the notorious Ypres Salient.
After being promoted to Second Lieutenant Audley was mentioned in Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig’s dispatches dated 13 November 1916. He was then promoted to First Lieutenant, and became Lewis-gun officer to his regiment.
In the King’s Birthday Honours List of June 1917 (notified in the Supplement to the Edinburgh Gazette 4 June 1917) Audley was awarded the Military Cross for Distinguished Service in the Field, by which time he had been promoted to Captain. Awards made as part of the King's Birthday or New Year's honours were made for reasons of meritorious service often in recognition of a period of sustained gallant performance rather than a single act of bravery.
In late September of 1917 the 9th battalion was involved in fierce fighting around Cameron Covert in the Salient. After a short relief period they were rushed back into the line on October 13th on a frontage of 500 yards just to the east of Polygon Wood. For four days they were under heavy artillery fire which was being directed by German spotter planes. Captain Audley Charles Hyde Millar MC was wounded during these actions on October16th 1917, dying later the same day at the age of 33.[4]
He was buried at the Menin Road South Military Cemetery, on the eastern outskirts of Ypres, West Vlaanderen, Belgium in Grave II M 24. According to Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) documents which can be viewed online Walter was able to add an inscription to Audley’s headstone. It read: Thy Will Be Done. The date of death on the headstone may be 15 October 1917, according to the CWGC records. If so, this is not in accordance with many other records.
Christmas presents sent to Audley arrived in England after his death. His mother was asked how the presents were to be disposed of. She replied that she would like them to be used for the benefit of his old regiment. Three presents were cakes and these were auctioned and generated £51.10s for members of the Yorkshire Regiment.
In December 1918 Walter, was presented with Audley’s Military Cross by the Governor General Earl Liverpool. This must have been a proud, and also a sad, occasion.
Audley was amongst those remembered by the Wellington Accountant Students’ Society at their AGM as noted in the Evening Post on 6 February 1919:
“A motion of sympathy with the relatives of four members of the Wellington Accountant Students’ Society who died while on active service in France during the past year, was carried at the annual meeting last evening”.
By the time the Electoral Roll was compiled in 1919 Walter and Annie were living at 103 Coromandel Street in Newtown with their daughter Ethel (Winnie). Audley’s Victory, British and 1915 Star Medals were sent to his father care of his son-in-law Mackintosh Hill at the Public Works Department, Wellington on 9 February 1922.
The family inserted notices in the Evening Post in October 1920, 1921, 1922 and 1923:
MILLAR – In loving memory of Audley (Captain A.C.H. Millar, M.C.) only and beloved son of Walter C. and Annie Millar, killed in action on the Western Front on the 15th October 1917.
These notices suggest the family were told he died on 15 October, rather than the 16th.
Audley’s father, Walter Charles Millar, died aged 73 in 1929 and was buried in a grave which is still unmarked in Karori Cemetery. Annie lived with her daughter Winnie at 10 Hamilton Road, Hataitai, until her death in 1947 at the age of 90.
Research conducted by Ann Walker, supplemented by Barbara Mulligan
[1] The first school in Nelson was in a house built of toi toi, a native reed plant, and this became Nelson Central School.
[2] Sargood, Son and Ewen was a large importing firm of a type common in New Zealand. Due to the country’s distance from major supply centres importing merchants purchased or ‘indented’ a range of items from their agents and suppliers overseas, paid for and then sold locally with an increase in price to ensure a profit. Salesman or ‘travellers’ would visit local stores to sell the range of imported stock. Dunedin was the shipping and importing centre for this lucrative trade. Sargood, Son and Ewen was one of the oldest and most prominent Australasian firms of this type, with branches in most major cities on both sides of the Tasman Sea and a London purchasing house. The company’s Dunedin branch, established in 1862, served as the head office for New Zealand
[3] Known as the Alexandra Princess of Wales Own Yorkshire Regiment, and the Green Howards
[4] Yorkshire Regiment Officers Who Died in the First World War. A Memorial Roll of the Officers of the Alexandra Princess of Wales Own Yorkshire Regiment, who died 1914-1919. Compiled by Robert Coulson (1952-2008). Page 154