39th Australian Infantry Battalion

The 39th Australian Infantry Battalion 1941-1943 existed as a unit for only twenty months of World War II, but its story is one of the most unusual and proudest in the annals of Australian military history.

The 39th Battalion was originally raised in February 1916 for service during World War I as part of First Australian Imperial Force. Making up part of the 10th Brigade, it was attached to the 3rd Division and served on the Western Front in France and Belgium before being disbanded in March 1919.

After the WW1 the defence of the Australian mainland lay with the part time soldiers of the Citizens Military Force, also known as the Militia. Formed in haste in October-November 1941, its ranks largely composed of 18-19 year old boys armed with WWI weapons, the 39th Battalion was, in the full sense of the term, a ‘scratch’ unit.

Just three weeks after the devastating aero-naval attack against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbour, the battalion embarked on the Aquitania for Port Moresby, where it was to fulfill a much more significant and historic role than the passive garrison role envisaged at the time of its formation. Arriving in Port Moresby in January 1942, the 39th joined the 49th and 53rd Infantry Battalions.

Despite a dearth of military training, the battalion suddenly found itself as the only Australian unit between Port Moresby and the Japanese. Clad in uniforms designed more for the Syrian desert than the deep green jungle of Papua New Guinea, with rifles that jammed in the humidity and already struggling with malaria and dysentery, the 39th started their trek up the Kokoda Track. Their orders were to block any possible Japanese overland advance.

The village of Kokoda – and its airstrip – was a target for the Japanese. On July 29th the Japanese launched a ferocious attack on the battalion. By this time, the battalion had lost their commanding officer and, outgunned and outnumbered, they withdrew to Deniki to regroup.

On 8th August, the battalion launched a counter attack in an attempt to retake Kokoda, but short of ammunition, they withdraw to Isurava over the period from 13th-19th August. By this time, the 39th were led by Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Honner, a leader revered by his men. Both sides had sustained heavy casualties, and it was clear that the Japanese were preparing for a major assault.

It was here that the battalion was – finally – reinforced by the 2/14th Battalion AIF. One can only imagine the relief: “That’s the first time I’d ever seen a man dressed in green. That was at Isurava and this bloke jumped into our pit and I thought ‘Jesus! He’s a bloody Nip!’ Green Uniform? I said, ‘Where are you from? Who are you? ‘We’re the 2/14th.’ I thought Christ had come down again! We all did. We thought of them as Gods, these blokes. They were tall and they were tanned…clean uniforms…whereas you’d look around at your mates and their eyes were sunk back in their heads and they were pale and dirty and grubby.” (John Manol: Four Corners Interview, 1995)

On 26th and 27th August, the Japanese brought forward two battalions, and fighting was fierce. And it was on this and subsequent days on the Kokoda Track that a legend was born, as the young and inexperienced diggers of the 39th battalion proved their mettle.

This was a critical day for the Japanese and their forces could have inflicted much more damage than they did. But for whatever reason, Horii failed to capitalize on his advantages. Perhaps this was due to poor intelligence or decision making. Perhaps also, he simply did not understand the courage and tenacity of the 39th battalion.

The combined Australian forces held up the Japanese at Isurava for 4 critical days. To those of us uninformed of these things, 4 days may not seem a significant period. But in a conflict so heavily impacted by the environment and the challenges of supply, it was critical.

Heavy fighting – and rain – continued on 28th August. The Australians were strengthened by more reinforcements, bolstering defence against the continuous attacks from the Japanese. By nightfall it was estimated that around 350 casualties had been inflicted by the Australians.

A captured Japanese diary entry for that day read: “The enemy is gradually being outflanked, but his resistance is very strong and our casualties great. The outcome of the battle is difficult to foresee.” (Field Guide to the Kokoda Track: Bill James, 2008)

On 29th August, the Australians continued to sustain heavy attack, and it was becoming clear they would need to withdraw. Bruce Kingsbury of the 2/14th battalion was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions this day, clearing a path for his platoon to recapture lost ground. His citation reads: “In the Isurava area, New Guinea, in August 1942 the battalion to which Pte. Kingsbury belonged had been holding a position for two days against continuous and fierce attacks. On August 29th the enemy broke through on the right flank, creating a serious threat to the battalion and its headquarters. It was essential to regain the lost ground immediately, and Pte. Kingsbury, one of the few survivors of his platoon, volunteered to join another platoon ordered to counter-attack. Rushing through terrific machine-gun fire, and firing his bren gun from the hip, he succeeded in clearing a path through the enemy, inflicting an extremely high number of casualties; but was seen to fall, shot dead by a sniper. Pte. Kingsbury displayed a complete disregard for his own safety. His initiative and superb courage made possible the re-capture of the position, which undoubtedly saved battalion headquarters as well as causing heavy casualties among the enemy. His coolness, determination and devotion to duty in the face of great odds were an inspiration to his comrades.”

It would be impossible to overstate the impact of Kingsbury’s actions on the morale of the diggers.

By dusk the Australian’s position was tenuous at best. Two days before, 30 sick and wounded from the 39th had been moved to Alola for rest and treatment. But these men knew different; their mates needed them and that was that.

“The battalion was in trouble, so 27 of the 30 went back. The three who didn’t were: minus a foot, had a bullet in the throat, had a forearm blown off. We never did it for God, King and Country – forget that. We did it because the 39th expected it of us.” (John Barrett, We Were There, 1987)

Though sick, wounded and exhausted, these diggers did not think twice about returning to support their mates. Previously referred to as ‘chocos’ – because it was thought they would melt in the heat of battle – the 39th had earned the respect of their own, their command, and the AIF battalions.

“When I saw those poor bastards, tottering on their bleeding, swollen feet, turn round and go straight back to Isurava, I knew they were good.” (AIF Soldier, cited by Chris Masters, Four Corners 1995)

“Without a word or a thought for the food their stomachs craved, they turned and hurried off to Isurava as fast as their crippled feet could carry them.” (Ralph Honner, 1956)

76 Australians died during the Battle of Isurava.

Exhausted, the 39th was relieved and sent down the track to Koitaki to rest. They were short on rations, wearing rags, lacked sleep and suffered from the ravages of malaria and dysentery. But they had acquitted themselves brilliantly and deserved whatever accolades came their way. Instead, they were paraded by General Blamey at what has famously become known as the Koitaki Address. At this stage the Australian Forces had driven the Japanese back to the north coast, had reoccupied Kokoda and were engaged in the the battle of Oivi and Gorari.

From the official record Blamey said that “the Jap was like a gorilla; he would get into a hole and he would not surrender; while in his hole and protected by it he would kill; to be dealt with he had to be got out of his holes and put to run. Blamey added that it was like shooting rabbits: while the rabbits were in their burrows they could not be shot; they had to be got on the run and then the man with the gun could get them.” The men under address were astonished and appalled. Captain Henry Devenish Steward, the 2/16th Battalion Regimental Medical Officer recalled:

“I suppose few of the shocks I have had in my life time could be greater than the one I got that day, with all the surviving members of the brigade drawn up in splendid order under the hot sun at Koitaki. Blamey showed no sign of nervousness. He spoke from a wooden platform in a clear, strong voice. He was no further, then say two cricket pitches length from where I stood with my hands clasped behind my back in the ‘at ease’ position. The troops could have withstood the Japanese mountain guns more easily than what they received from Blamey. He got them on edge almost at once by saying that they had been beaten by inferior troops in inferior numbers. Then he made the infamous remark to the effect that ‘the rabbit that ran away was the rabbit that got shot’. The entire parade, officers and men, were almost molten with rage and indignation.” (Steward, 1981)

Lieutent Colonel Carlyon made the following comments: “I was there when those fine soldiers formed up…..He told them they had been defeated….. In future he expected no further retirements, but advance at all costs. He concluded with a remark which I think was particularly ill-chosen and unfair. Remember he said, its not the man with the gun that gets shot, it’s the rabbit that is running away’….. It amazed me that Blamey should deal so insensitively with the men of such a well-proven brigade.” (Carlyon: 1980)

Some believe Blamey was lucky to escape with his life, such was the men’s rage. It has also been suggested that these comments led to the unnecessary slaughter of hundreds of men during the northern beaches battles.

Lieutent Colonel Ralph Honner led the 39th Battalion on the Kokoda Track and wrote an article, ‘The Koitaki Factor’ in 1992. An excerpt follows: “The dark cloud of Koitaki shadowed the brigade to Gona. Canberra and Brisbane tactics demanded that the troops be thrown, piecemeal as they arrived, into frontal attacks without adequate reconnaissance, planning, concentration, coordination or support over the protests of divisional, brigade and battalion commanders alike. It was the competent commanders at battalion level, already Koitaki-branded, who were removed because of their resistance to the wanton waste of their men. For them their command careers were shattered: for their men, it was their lives that were destroyed, not merely at random on the perilous path of duty but, for many, beyond it on some remoter byway of inevitable death with honour. The storms and the thunderings are quiet now; the Furies have faded from the scene; the heros are dead; the tragedy is finished. the carping critic of Koitaki (Blamey) is silenced too; his words can wound no more; but the undying deeds of the valiant he defamed proclaim their constant courage to all posterity.” (Honner: The Koitaki Factor, 1992)

While the battalion rested at Koitaki, the 7th Division, 25th Brigade came in to reinforce the Australian effort. Bitter fighting ensued and the Australians withdrew to Imita Ridge on 17th September. However, the Japanese had reached their limit and on 24th September they began their withdrawal. As there is no word in the Japanese military lexicon for ‘retreat’, the order that came to the troops was to ‘advance to the rear’. To a Japanese soldier who had fought such a battle, the order must have been particularly demoralizing. But the Australians had harried, frustrated and delayed the Japanese forces at every turn, leaving them exhausted and desperately short of supply. They simply had no choice.

The Australian advance was not without resistance, and significant actions were fought at Templeton’s Crossing and Eora Creek. The Australians were also plagued by supply shortages that increased the difficulties of jungle warfare, but reoccupied Kokoda on 2nd November, 1942.

Having endured the fighting on the Kokoda Trail, the 39th Battalion returned to Port Moresby in mid-October, where it prepared defensive positions at Pyramid Point. However, the break from fighting was brief. The 39th Battalion, as part of the 25th Brigade, began pushing the Japanese back towards the coast and engaged them in costly battles (“battle of the beachheads” at Buna, Gona, and Sanananda). At the end of November, the 39th Battalion became attached to the 21st Brigade.

After the Australian capture of Gona village on 1st December, the Japanese withdrew to Gona Mission. The combined fighting strength of the 21st Brigade was now down to 755 men, of whom 403 were from the 39th Battalion, now D Company. Nonetheless, on 8th December the 39th attacked again and captured half of the Japanese defences by nightfall. Gona Mission was captured the next day and on 18th December the 39th took the last Japanese position at the creek west of Gona.

From here, the battle moved towards the Sanananda Track. But the courageous 39th had suffered heavily during the fierce fighting along this coastline. When the battalion was flown to Port Moresby on 25th January it mustered only 32 men.

On 12th March the 39th boarded a troopship and returned to Australia, and was given only 14 days of home leave to recharge from five months in Papua New Guinea.

In July the 30th Brigade, comprising the 39th, 49th, and now 3rd Battalions, was disbanded. For those remaining, this was disappointing as they had performed so magnificently along the Kokoda Track and on the beachheads. Members of the 39th who had originally been called up for service were absorbed into another Militia unit, the 36th Infantry Battalion. Volunteers for overseas service were absorbed into the 2/2nd Infantry Battalion.

Today, many Australians acknowledge the Kokoda campaign and the 39th Battalion’s performance as an example of one of the finest moments in our nation’s history. It was a time when Australia came of age, when a group of young, inexperienced and untrained young men stood up to embody the words immortalised on the pillars at Isurava Memorial:

Courage, Endurance, Mateship, Sacrifice

‘The Anzac legend, forged in the cauldron of Gallipoli, is enshrined in Australia’s history. The courage, endurance and mateship shown by these Second World War diggers should also form part of our national spirit. If Gallipoli symbolises the Anzac spirit in the First World War, then the Kokoda Track is its equivalent in the Second World War. If Gallipoli was Australia’s baptism as a nation, then Kokoda was her confirmation.’ (Bill James: Field Guide to the Kokoda Track 2008, Simon Small)

Lt Col Honner DSO MC, Commander of the 39th Battalion, later wrote of these men in the foreword to Peter Brune’s book ‘Those Ragged Bloody Heroes’: “They have joined the immortals.” Of those that did not survive, he wrote: “Wherever their bones may lie, the courage of heroes is consecrated in the hearts and engraved in the history of the free.” (Brune: Those Ragged Bloody Heroes, Honner)

Lest We Forget