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Edward Horace Huggett - Information

Edward Horace Huggett was born in Douglas Park in 1883. When the war commenced, Edward was residing at 127 Underwood St in Paddington with his wife Johanna. Edward was working as a miner, when he decided to answer his country’s call. He enlisted at the Sports Ground in Sydney on the 24th of April 1916 at the age of 33. He was also perhaps inspired by the example of those around him; his brother, George Alexander, had joined the military in March 1916. The Huggett family were then to say goodbye to another son, when Edward’s other brother James Theodore, enlisted in the AIF in December 1917.

Edward trained in Kiama, and was posted as a Private to the 13th Battalion. His unit departed Sydney on the HMAT Ceramic in October 1916. He spent two months completing exercises, before leaving Folkestone for the Western Front. The Anzacs were then surprised when the Germans withdrew to the Hindenburg Line. In April, they were ordered to attack them at Bullecourt. Operations then moved to Belgium in June for attacks at Messines. The battle commenced on the 7th of June, with the explosions of huge mines, and heavy artillery fire. On the 12th, Edward was wounded in action with a laceration to his right toe. After treatment, he returned to his Battalion in late August. He then fought in the mud during the Third Battle of Ypres. In early 1918, the Allies were engaged in counter-attacks against the German Spring Offensive. After helping to halt the German advance, the Anzacs used tactics of peaceful penetration to etch closer to the German lines. The Allies then launched their own offensive with the Battle of Amiens on August 8th. During these operations, Edward was killed in action during the Battle of Lihons on the 10th of August 1918. The location of his body is unknown; his name is recorded on the Villers-Bretonneux Memorial in France.

Back in Australia, Johanna had been told about the loss of her husband, and unfortunately, the Huggett family had lost another son. Edward’s brother, George Alexander, had been killed at Passchendaele during the Third Battle of Ypres in 1917.