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Albert Hazelwood - Information

Albert was born and raised on Broughton St in Campbelltown by parents Stephen and Annie Hazelwood. He was working with the navy when he surprisingly enlisted in the AIF on the 13th of February 1916 in Bathurst. Albert trained at Bathurst Camp before leaving Sydney aboard the HMAT Warilda on the 22nd of April 1916, as part of the 45th Battalion.

Albert arrived at Plymouth in July. He was then marched into the 12th Training Battalion at Rollestone and was shipped to France in January 1917, joining the 45th Battalion. Albert was shortly involved in heavy fighting following the German withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line. They attacked the Germans at Bullecourt, running into strong fire, barbed wire, and concrete blockhouses. In June, they participated in the Battle of Messines in Belgium. The 45th was then put to work during the Third Battle of Ypres attacking Passchendaele on the 12th of October, where he was wounded when a bullet struck his left hand. Albert was then taken to hospital in Rouen, and rejoined his Battalion at the end of December. In 1918, Albert spent time in hospital with gonorrhoea, before joining his unit in pushing the Germans back after their Spring Offensive. On the 8th of August, during the Battle of Amiens, Albert was wounded a second time with a gunshot wound to a right finger. It was a slight injury, and with manpower dwindling, he was quickly treated and rushed back to the lines two days later. Albert survived the war and was sent home to Australia on the Frankfurt in July 1919.