The group of four awarded to Harry George Bateman, a New Zealander who received the Croix de Guerre for his service whilst attached to the Belgian Army during the Great War.

 

Harry Bateman was born at Dunedin on 11th June 1884. He was the fifth child of Edward Thomas, a brickmaker, and his wife, Fanny Bateman (née Upton). Harry was educated at Mornington School before taking employment as a telegraphist. In March 1900 he enrolled in the Dunedin Naval Artillery Volunteers, serving as a gunner. In March 1902 Harry attested for service with the Ninth Contingent, New Zealand Mounted Rifles, and was posted as a reinforcement for the Seventh Contingent then in South Africa. He embarked with the Ninth Contingent, sailing on the S.S. Kent on 12th March 1902, and formally transferred to the Ninth Contingent whilst at Durban. He served on active service for 160 days, receiving the Queen’s South Africa Medal with clasps Transvaal and South Africa 1902. 

 

In 1904 Harry passed the junior Civil Service examination, and in March of that year resigned from the Volunteers. He later passed two subjects of the Senior Civil Service exmaination, and by 1911 was working as a draughtsman at Hokitika for the Lands and Survey Department. In 1912 Harry left New Zealand, bound for China where he was employed by the China Inland Mission doing “hospital work”. In early 1916 Harry arrived in London, where he enlisted with the Royal Horse Artillery. In June 1916 he was accepted for a commission in the Royal Garrison Artillery (Special Reserve) (L.G. 23/6/1916), and in September 1916, entered France. He served on the Western Front throughout late 1916 and into 1917, apparently on attachment to the Belgian Army. He was buried by a shell in March 1917 and gassed in June/July 1917 which resulted in a diagnosis of shell-shock. In 1918, in an effort to relieve the symptoms of neurasthenia, he was posted to Hong Kong and then to Singapore, where he remained until 1919. For his service with the Belgian Army he was awarded the Croix de Guerre (L.G. 23/7/1918).

 

Harry married Marjorie Booth in London in March 1918, just prior to posting to Hong Kong. He demobilised in April 1919, and was resigned his commission in 1920. For his service during the First World War, Harry qualified for the British War Medal and Victory but he never applied for these in his lifetime. His First World War medals were presumably claimed by family in the mid-2000’s under a UK MoD policy which allowed such claims to be made where the original recipient had never made a claim.

 

Harry returned to New Zealand around 1926, settling in Palmerston North where he worked in the insurance industry. Harry Bateman died at Napier on 5th July 1955 and is buried in the Wharerangi cemetery.

 

The QSA is correctly impressed 8131 TPR: H.G. BATEMAN. N.Z.M.R. 9TH CONT:, the WW1 pair is correctly named MAJ. H.G. BATEMAN and the EVA Cross is nicely engraved H.G. BATEMAN

 

The photograph of Bateman is a digital copy from a genealogy site.