Help please identifying 32nd Australian Infantry Battalion uniform

[DoubleD]

George Martin Nicholson is a former pupil of Perth Academy (Scotland) and is commemorated on the school war memorial. 

 

I have been sent this photo by a descendant of the Nicholson family and I've labelled the photo with the names of the people he THINKS it could include. The two soldiers may have been on furlough in Scotland before going to France. The descendant is an elderly gentleman and has had great difficulty sending the photo so I hope that it is clear enough for people to pick out any detail.

 

1631, George Martin Nicholson (born 1893), 32nd Australian Infantry Battalion. KIA 11 October 1917, buried in Tyne Cot Cemetery.

6488, 126, Charles Enos Boxsome (1868-1945), 32nd Australian Infantry Battalion. Also served in South Africa.

 

George was a private, and the soldier in the photo is a lance-corporal, but family history has it that he was a bit of a naughty boy on more than one occasion so he may have lost his stripes. 

 

Can anyone help with their uniforms please? I'm no expert, but the hats don't look like the hats normally worn by Australians.

 

 

Many thanks,

 

Dave

[FROGSMILE]

Both men are wearing the cap badge of artillery.  They also wear a type of slouch hat styled as a lemon squeezer or campaign hat, that is associated with New Zealand rather than Australia.  Their uniforms too are the British pattern of service dress worn by NZ troops rather than Australian.  The man on the right appears much older and possibly has a shoulder title worn as a collar badge.  The younger man at left is a Lance Corporal and the crossed flags on his left sleeve show him to be a qualified signaller.

 

Edited 20 December , 2020 by FROGSMILE

[CorporalPunishment]

Definitely New Zealand Artillery, not Australian Infantry. I think the collar badges are the universal pattern grenade type. The older man looks like he may be wearing the medal ribbons for the 2nd Boer War but it might just be a blur on the photo.    Pete.

[DoubleD]

Thank you both for that. Dissapointing when you think you've found a photo and it turns out not to be the person you're looking for, but at least we now know. No idea who they could be though!

 

Thanks again for your help.

 

Dave

[FROGSMILE]

2 hours ago, CorporalPunishment said:

Definitely New Zealand Artillery, not Australian Infantry. I think the collar badges are the universal pattern grenade type. The older man looks like he may be wearing the medal ribbons for the 2nd Boer War but it might just be a blur on the photo.    Pete.

Thanks Pete, you’re right, I can see that they are indeed universal grenades now.