Private Ted d’Auvergne was a farm lad from my home town of Waimate. Well to be exact he came from a little settlement just through the Waimate Gorge called Waihao Forks. I have known of his story since I was a very young and I was lucky enough to find myself in Crete, Greece for the 60th anniversary of the German airborne invasion.
During this time the New Zealand Division fought hard to repel the attack from a huge airborne German force which dropped from the sky but along with other allied troops were forced to withdraw from the Island.
You can read the finer details of Ted’s story here (link). In summary;
- Before catching the train to war Ted stopped in for a beer at the Waihao Forks Hotel (as you do!).
- He left one bottle behind the bar with the publican with the intention of drinking it on his way home (from the war).
- He was killed in action during the fighting on Crete and was buried there.
- The bottle has been handed on as the pub has changed hands and is now in a small protected case which sits in the corner of the bar.
- Each ANZAC day a small local service takes place and a poppie is put into the case.
Having attended one of these services at the Hotel and given the local connection I was determined to find his resting place in the huge Suda Bay cemetary. It took a while to find and to be honest it was quite a moving moment to stand there with him and read his headstone. He lies amongst other young New Zealanders, a very long way from home and I had someone snap this picture of his headstone.
Thanks for doing your bit Ted. Sorry you didn’t make it home to drink that bottle of beer.
Lest we forget.
Leading from the front 