christine liava'a Posted 3 October , 2003 Share Posted 3 October , 2003 Could anyone tell me whether there existed a unit called the "Grenade section" in the BEF, or possibly the AIF? In it there was a Charles E Smith who received a Military Medal. He was the son of Charles Ernest and Elizabeth Jane Smith of Coogee, NSW, and had a brother Milton Hutchinson Smith in the AIF However I cannot identify him in the Australian records, so he could have been in the British Army. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew P Posted 3 October , 2003 Share Posted 3 October , 2003 I believe AIF battalions specially trained soldiers to become bombers so that in an attack the role these men play would be to take charge of bombing or counter bombing the Germans. I had a look on the AWM website under awards and while there were some Charles Smith's who were awarded the MM, none had a middle name beginning with E, so It's probably a good bet that your man was in the BEF. Cheers Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Hill 60 Posted 3 October , 2003 Share Posted 3 October , 2003 I had a look on SDGW but the only C. E. Smith with an MM was 39225 A/Sgt Charles Edward Smith of the RAMC (no previous units mentioned) who was KIA on 17 April 1918. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 3 October , 2003 Share Posted 3 October , 2003 Most if not all infantry battalions formed a specialist Bombing Section (also called a Grenade Section), from the point when bombs started to become available to the point when they were so plentiful that many men carried them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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