Clifford William King Sadlier VC

b. 11/06/1892 Camberwell, Victoria, Australia. d. 28/04/1964 Busselton, Western Australia.

Clifford William King Sadlier (1892-1964) was born on 11th June 1892 in Camberwell, Melbourne, Australia. His father Thomas George Sadlier, was originally from County Waterford, Ireland. He emigrated to Australia and became a salesman. He married Mary Ann Roberts on 3rd October 1887 at St Phillip’s Church, Collingwood, Melbourne. He later became a manager. Clifford had four siblings.

Clifford W K Sadlier VC

Clifford was educated at University High School, Melbourne. Sadlier was working as a commercial traveller when he enlisted as a private in the Australian Imperial Force in May 1915. Posted to the 1st Australian General Hospital, Australian Army Medical Corps, he embarked for Egypt in June and served with the hospital at Heliopolis. In March 1916 he returned to Australia on nursing duties, but on 9th November he re-embarked for active service as an acting sergeant with the 7th Reinforcements for the 51st Battalion. In England he reverted to the rank of private on 11th January 1917, but in February began a course at the school for non-commissioned officers, Tidworth. Crossing to France, he joined the 51st Battalion, 13th Brigade, on 13th May. He was promoted corporal five days later and was commissioned second lieutenant on 14th July and promoted lieutenant on 1st April 1918.

Sadlier was to be awarded the Victoria Cross for what the official historian, Charles Bean, called ‘an extraordinarily bold attack’ on German machine-gunners during the 2nd battle of Villers-Bretonneux on 24-25 April 1918. The Germans had re-taken the town in a dawn attack on 24 April. Allied counter-attacks were carried on all day without success but towards evening hurried orders were given for another counter-attack using the 13th Brigade on the south and the 15th Brigade on the north. The 51st and 52nd Battalions were allotted for the 13th Brigade’s advance and they set out at 10.10 p.m., in darkness and under enemy artillery fire. Beforehand they had been told to ignore any noise in a wood to their left as British troops were clearing out small enemy parties there. Hardly had the advance begun, however, when several machine-guns opened up on the Western Australians. Most of the company adjoining Sadlier’s were killed but Sadlier led his men forward, only to be halted again by machine-guns. He organized a bombing attack and, having located the nearest machine-gun post, led a Lewis-gunner and a bombing party against it. Before the Germans had recovered, the Australians were in among the trees, fighting wildly in the dark. Hurling bombs as they ran, they silenced one machine-gun post and although Sadlier was shot in the thigh they went on to destroy two more. Sadlier was then shot again, this time in the arm, and was forced to the rear but his few remaining men continued the job and the threat to the 13th Brigade’s advance was removed. Although running an hour late it got through and linked up with the 15th. By dawn Villers-Bretonneux was again in allied hands.

Clifford was treated at 2/3rd Anzac Corps Field Ambulance for a gunshot wound to the right arm, and was transferred to 8th General Hospital, Rouen on 26th April 1918. He was evacuated to Britain. The VC was presented to him by King George V at Buckingham Palace on 17th July 1918. He was transferred to the Supplementary List on 16th August. He embarked for Australia on 24th August and following having to travel across Australia, he was discharged from the Army on 4th March 1919. He was appointed lieutenant on 1st January 1920 and was placed on the Retired List on 1st September 1927.

Clifford was State Secretary of the Returned Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen’s Imperial League for a time, and in 1919 set up the Subiaco sub-branch serving as its first President. He became a manufacturer’s agent in the 1920s, running his own agency briefly in 1929. In 1930 he contested the State seat of Nedlands, Perth as a Nationalist. He was unsuccessful. In 1936 he was appointed as a clerk in the Repatriation Department in Perth and invalided out of the public service in 1949.

Clifford married Maude Victoria Moore on 23rd August 1922 at St Mary’s Anglican Church, Perth. The marriage ended in divorce in 1934. Clifford remarried on 17th July 1936 to Alice Edith Smart in Subiaco, Perth. Clifford travelled to the UK on the SS Orcades with other Australian VCs to attend the VC Centenary Celebrations at Hyde Park, London on 26th June 1956.

Clifford suffered from emphysematic bronchitis in later life, and after suffering for over ten years, he died at Busselton District Hospital, Perth on 28th April 1964. A full military funeral was attended by over 70 former soldiers from 51st Battalion and a bearer party from 22nd Construction Squadron, Royal Australian Engineers. He was cremated at Karrakatta Crematorium, Perth and a commemorative plaque was placed on the Western Australian Garden of Remembrance Memorial. His ashes were later scattered in the Indian Ocean on 17th May 1990. He is also commemorated on the Victoria Cross Memorial in Campbell, ACT, on the VC Memorial at Springvale Botanical Cemetery, Melbourne, on the VC Memorial in the Queen Victoria Building, Sydney, and with Sadlier Street in Subiaco. He also has a VC commemorative stone alongside the other 144 overseas recipients at the National Memorial Arboretum, Alrewas, Staffordshire.

In addition to his VC, he was awarded the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal 1914-20, Victory Medal 1914-19, George VI Coronation Medal 1937 and Elizabeth II Coronation Medal 1953. Clifford’s VC was bequeathed to St George’s Cathedral in Perth, where it was displayed. His other medals were reunited with the VC having been at the Army Museum of Western Australia in 2009. In July 2017, the medals were loaned to the Australian War Memorial in Canberra to go on display in the Hall of Valour for temporary loan.

LOCATION OF MEDAL: ST GEORGES CATHEDRAL, PERTH, AUSTRALIA.

CURRENTLY ON LOAN TO AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL, CANBERRA FROM JULY 2017.

BURIAL PLACE: KARRAKATTA CEMETERY, PERTH, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. (CREMATED)