FAMILY LIFE

Norman Vivian Cheers was born in Kempsey on 7^th May 1899, son of Walter Chapman & Isabella Euangeline (Taylor) Cheers. He was one of 10 children. Norman had two brothers who also enlisted- Dick & Stanley. Norman’s parents arrived on the Tweed in 1903. They settled on a farm at Dungay Creek where Walter carried out mixed farming.  Walter spent his entire life on the land

APPLICATION

Norman was a Grocer at Murwillumbah when he decided to enlist. On the 18^th April 1917 he had his preliminary physical examination at Lismore. He was 5ft 9 ½ inches tall (1.7m), weighed 12stone 10 lbs (80kgs) with a dark complexion, hazel eyes & brown hair. He had a birthmark on the outside of his right thigh. His parents both signed the preliminary application, giving their permission for Norman to enlist

Norman was Church of England. He was found fit for service so he enlisted on 9^th May 1917 at Liverpool, recruited as a private in the 19^th Battalion 20^th reinforcements. Norman was 18 years old, single with his next of kin being his father, Walter Chapman, of Murwillumbah. He had spent 3 years as a senior cadet.

THE 19^TH INFANTRY BATTALION

The 19th Battalion was raised at Liverpool in New South Wales in March 1915 as part of the 5th Brigade. It fought in Gallipoli campaign and on the Western Front. The battalion is remembered for its grit and sacrifice, particularly in major Western Front battles

LIVERPOOL TRAINING CAMP

The Liverpool training camp was the primary location for recruits in the 19^th Battalion.  Henry started his training. For many it was their first time away from home. Men from every walk of life, from clerks and teachers to factory and shop workers, were crammed together.

Now their training began. Firstly, a recruit had to be inducted into military forms of discipline, command, and order. This was partially achieved through a program of basic training carried and, in a sense, was maintained for a long as a man was in the service.

It involved marching and drilling with the rifle, cleaning and caring for personal equipment and being supervised and inspected in ways quite different to ordinary civilian life. For example, no boots should be allowed to get in a bad state of wear but must be sent to the bootmaker without delay for repair. Men who were found with hair long and unshaven had to have a haircut and shave

Secondly, after basic training there followed the far more serious exercise of turning a man into a fighting soldier at least partially prepared for the kind of warfare he was about to experience overseas

The topics and exercises in the syllabus of training were a world away from their former lives and included daily physical training, entrenching, wiring, firing rifle grenades, firing the Lewis light machine gun, dealing with gas attack, using hand grenades, using the bayonet, and the routines to be followed in the trenches.

This training was then put into practice during what were called ‘Field Days,’ when men would practice using the skills they had acquired in mock attacks both by day and by night. How well men had learnt to use their weapons, in cooperation with each other in training, would be tested in the harsh reality of the front line. Training would take several months.

VOYAGE OVERSEAS

He embarked on the Port Melbourne at Sydney on 16^th July 1917. They thought it was the start of a new adventure- for many it was their first time away from home. However, after some time at sea the biggest problem turned out to be boredom. Attempts at breaking up the boredom, apart from the regular drill, varied. Shipboard activities included regular church parades and concerts. Troops engaged in lifebelt drill; a cookhouse on deck; soldiers on fatigues peeling potatoes 'spud bashing'; going to the dentist; barber, pay day; soldiers cleaning personal equipment; medical inspection. Sports and recreation included boxing, deck quoits, draughts. Also, the commanding officer's morning inspection; kit inspections; submarine drill; recreation such as the on deck 'open air' library, deck billiards, pillow fighting and card games including Nap

ROLLESTONE TRAINING CAMP

He disembarked at Liverpool, England on 16^th September and marched into the 5^th training camp at Rolleston where more training was in front of them. They had already completed their basic training in Australia but over many more tough months the volunteers left their old lives farther behind. They began their training with physical fitness exercises, they were taught individual and unit discipline, how to follow commands, how to march, some basic field skills and how to safely handle his weapons.  Later, as soldiers specialised in a particular area (for example, machine gunner or signaller) they would be trained in specific skills and would take part in practice manoeuvres and sham fights. They would spend many hours learning training in the use of bayonets, anti- gas training and guard duty along with lectures on camouflage or trench warfare and much more. Training would normally up to last 3 months

TRENCH WARFARE

On 2^nd February 1918 Norman was taken on strength in France. The recruits now found themselves fighting the German in trench warfare. On the Western Front in 1914–1918, both sides constructed elaborate trench, underground, and dugout systems opposing each other along a front, protected from assault by barbed wire. The area between opposing trench lines (known as "no man's land") was fully exposed to artillery fire from both sides. Attacks, even if successful, often sustained severe casualties. Trench warfare created a living environment for the men which was harsh, stagnant, and extremely dangerous. Not only were trenches constantly under threat of attack from shells or other weapons, but there were also many health risks that developed into large-scale problems for medical personnel. Apart from the inescapable cold during the winters in France & Belgium, trenches were often completely waterlogged and muddy, and crawling with lice and rats

The time soldiers spent in the trenches varied depending on factors like their army's rotation system and the intensity of the conflict in their sector. On average:

·      Front-line trenches: Soldiers typically remained here for about 4–6 days at a time. This was where the fighting was most intense and the conditions were the harshest.

·      Support and reserve trenches: After time on the front line, soldiers were rotated to these positions for around 6–12 days. These trenches were set further back and offered slightly better conditions.

·      Rest periods: Soldiers were then moved away from the trench system entirely for rest, training, and recovery, often lasting several weeks, depending on operational needs.

The rotation system helped prevent complete physical and mental exhaustion, but the constant dangers of trench life meant there was rarely any true respite.

BATTLE OF HANGARD WOOD APRIL 1918

The spring of 1918 brought a major German offensive that the 19th Battalion helped to stop. The battle of Hangard Wood was part of the German offensive Operation Michael, in the Arras–Saint-Quentin–La Fère sector of the Somme. This was a major German military offensive during World War I that began the German spring offensive on 21 March 1918. It was launched from the Hindenburg Line, in the vicinity of Saint-Quentin, France. Its goal was to break through the Allied lines and advance in a north-westerly direction to seize the Channel Ports, which supplied the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), and to drive the BEF into the sea. The many battles fought in this action went from 21^st March to 5^th April. It involved 26 divisions and the casualties totalled 254,816.

The spring of 1918 brought a major German offensive that the 19th Battalion helped to stop. With this last desperate offensive defeated, the 19th participated in the battles that pushed the German Army ever closer to defeat.

WOUNDED IN ACTION 4^TH APRIL 1918

Amongst all that fighting Norman was wounded in action on 4^th April 1918 with a gunshot wound to his chest- penetrating, severe and dangerous.

HOSPITALISATION ENGLAND

He was admitted to a French Hospital but embarked for England in May. He was admitted to Colchester Military on 11^th May 1918. He was moved to the 3^rd Australian General Hospital on 22 May. He was convalescing in June of 1918 and spent the next few months recovering from his wound.

GETTING HOME

Norman returned to Australia 4^th September 1918 on the HMAT Kanowna and was discharged medically unfit on 5^th March 1919.

FOR HS SERVICE

For his service, Norman was awarded the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, and the Victory Medal and the Dungay Public School WW1 Honor Roll.

HOME LIFE

Norman married Bridgett Mary Nugent in 1932. He enlisted on 25^th October 1941 for WWII and was discharged 15^th September 1944. He died 22^nd May 1956, at Maryborough, Qld, aged 57. He is buried in Maryborough Cemetery, plot Monumental N Plot 56

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