Bruce Kingsbury

Bruce Steel Kingsbury was posthumously awarded a Victoria Cross (VC) for his actions in the Battle of Isurava in 1942. He was the only Australian awarded a Victoria Cross for action along the Kokoda Track in Papua. His unit, the 2/14th Infantry Battalion, was one of the most highly decorated units in Australian history.

Early life

Bruce was born in Melbourne, Victoria, on 8 January 1918 to English-born parents, Phillip and Florence Kingsbury. His father worked as a real estate agent. Bruce completed his education at Melbourne Technical School. Preferring the country to the city, he took a job as a farm caretaker at Boundary Bend on the Murray River. Bruce and his friend Alan Avery later moved to country New South Wales to work on sheep and fruit farms. Eventually they both returned to Melbourne, where Bruce joined his father's real estate business.

War service

In May 1940, Bruce joined the Australian Imperial Force.

He was initially posted to the 2/2nd Australian Pioneer Battalion. Bruce then sought a transfer to the 2/14th Australian Infantry Battalion a week later, to join his friend Alan. Alan had by chance enlisted the same day as Bruce. Both become close friends of Harry Saunders.

They both undertook training at Puckapunyal near Seymour, Victoria. In October 1940, their unit sailed from Sydney to the Middle East aboard Aquitania. After arriving in Egypt on 25 November, the battalion travelled to Palestine to complete training.

Invasion of Syria and Lebanon

Bruce fought in the Syria-Lebanon Campaign in mid-1941.

On 24 June 1941, the 2/14th Battalion reinforced the 2/31st Australian Infantry Battalion during fierce fighting against the Vichy French at Jezzine in Central Lebanon. The 2/14th mounted an unsuccessful attack on a rocky peak known as Hill 1284. Several of the men were wounded.

Bruce's friend Alan was injured during the battle when a grenade exploded sending metal splinters into his spine and buttocks. He was awarded a Military Medal for his actions during the attack. The Vichy French commander described the courage of the Australians in this action as 'incomparable'.

Fellow Australian, Jim Gordon, was awarded a Victoria Cross for his role at Jezzine a fortnight later.

In March 1942, Bruce and the 2/14th returned to Australia. They were given short leave before undertaking jungle warfare training for action in the Territory of Papua.

Kokoda Track and Isurava

On 13 August, Bruce arrived at Port Moresby in Papua. By 16 August, he was advancing with the 2/14th Battalion along the Kokoda Track to confront the Japanese.

The Kokoda Track runs almost 100 km over the Owen Stanley Range through dense jungle. It was the site of a 4-month campaign where soldiers fought in some of the most difficult conditions imaginable.

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In late August, the first 2 companies of 2/14th Battalion arrived at Isurava to relieve an exhausted 39th Battalion. The 39th Battalion had withdrawn from Deniki on 14 August after fighting the Japanese. Tired, poorly equipped and with many young soldiers – the average age was 18 – the 39th had dug in waiting for relief and reinforcements.

The commander of 39th, Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Honne, aware of the impending attack by the Japanese, decided they would remain in place to provide reinforcement. Honner moved the 39th to the rear, placing the companies of 2/14th Battalion at the most threatened parts of their position.

The second day of the battle, 29 August 1942, brought ferocious attacks from the Japanese. The battalion headquarters was at serious risk of being taken by the Japanese as they broke through on the right flank.

Bruce was one of the few survivors of the 9th Platoon and had been engaged in fighting since 27 August. But he volunteered immediately to join another platoon in the counterattack.

Bruce rushed forward during the attack. Firing his Bren gun, he managed to clear a path through the enemy and kill several Japanese troops. He was then shot by an enemy sniper bullet and killed. His action enabled other soldiers to move forward and consolidate the ground that had been taken, protecting Battalion Headquarters.

Alan was also involved in the attack.

The enemy's fire seemed to be concentrated on Kingsbury, but he took no notice of it ... It was a minute or so before I saw him again but I noticed many of the enemy who had been killed by his fire, and who could have brought dangerous fire to bear on us had they not been wiped out. I saw Kingsbury stop and wait for us to rejoin him and then go to move forward again as if he had seen some more enemy and was going to clean them up before we arrived.

[Acting Sergeant, Alan Avery, 2/14 Australian Infantry Battalion, in his statement of support for Kingsbury's VC. [National Archives of Australia, B883, VX19139]

After seeing Bruce fall to the ground, Alan is said to have carried his friend back to base, trudging through the jungle for a few hundred metres.

Bruce was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions on this day.

The battle at Isurava was a notable Japanese victory. During the retreat hundreds of Australians dispersed into the jungle. Over the next week most of these men were able to make their way back to the main base. Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Samuel Key, commander of 2/14th Battalion, was captured, taken back to the Japanese base, interrogated then executed.

During the battle, from 25 August to 31 August, Australia lost 99 killed and 111 wounded.

Victoria Cross citation

The citation in the London Gazette on 9 February 1943 reads:

No. VX 19139 Private. Bruce Steel Kingsbury, Australian Military Forces.

In New Guinea, the Battalion to which Private Kingsbury belonged had been holding a position in the Isurava area for two days against continuous and fierce enemy attacks. On the 29th August, 1942, the enemy attacked in such force that they succeeded in breaking through the Battalion's right flank, creating a serious threat both to the rest of the Battalion and to its Headquarters. To avoid the situation becoming more desperate, it was essential to regain immediately the lost ground on the right flank.

Private Kingsbury, who was one of the few survivors of a Platoon which had been overrun and severely cut about by the enemy, immediately volunteered to join a different platoon which had been ordered to counter-attack.

He rushed forward firing his Bren Gun from the hip through terrific machine-gun fire and succeeded in clearing a path through the enemy. Continuing to sweep the enemy positions with his fire and inflicting an extremely high number of casualties on them, Private Kingsbury was then seen to fall to the ground shot dead, by the bullet from a sniper hiding in the wood.

Private Kingsbury displayed a complete disregard for his own safety. His initiative and superb courage made possible the recapture of the position which undoubtedly saved Battalion Headquarters, as well as causing heavy casualties amongst the enemy. His coolness, determination and devotion to duty in the face of great odds was an inspiration to his comrades

[Supplement to the London Gazette No. 35893, published 5 February 1943, p 695.]

Commemorating Bruce Kingsbury

Bruce is buried at Bomana War Cemetery at Port Moresby.

In August 2002, a memorial to those who fought on the Kokoda Track, including Bruce, was opened. The Isurava Memorial remembers the sacrifices of the Australians and Papua New Guineans who fought there.

Bruce is remembered with a rest area on the Remembrance Driveway near Marulan, NSW. A Melbourne suburb was also named in his honour and a commemorative plaque was unveiled at his old primary school.

The Australian War Memorial holds his war medals, including his Victoria Cross.