Corporal John French V.C.Print Page 
The plaque commemorates Corporal John French V.C. It is located on the Milne Bay Memorial Wall.
John French was awarded the Victoria Cross (V.C.) posthumously. At Milne Bay in New Guinea on 4th of September 1942, a company of an Australian infantry battalion attacked the Japanese position east of the Buna Mission where it encountered terrific rifle and machine-gun fire. The advance of the section of which Corporal French was in command was held up by fire from three enemy machine-gun posts, whereupon Corporal French, ordering his section to take cover, advanced and silenced one of the posts with grenades.
He returned to his section for more grenades and again advanced and silenced the second post. Armed with a Thompson submachine-gun, he then attacked the third post, firing from the hip as he went forward. He was seen to be badly hit by the fire from this post, but he continued to advance. The enemy gun then ceased to fire and his section pushed on to find that all members of the three enemy gun crews had been killed and that Corporal French had died in front of the third gun pit.
Location
| Address: | Bage Street, Nundah Memorial Park, Nundah, 4012 |
|---|---|
| State: | QLD |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -27.402767 Long: 153.058712 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Plaque |
|---|---|
| Monument Theme: | People |
| Sub-Theme: | Military |
| Actual Event Start Date: | 04-September-1942 |
| Actual Event End Date: | 04-September-1942 |
Dedication
| Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Sunday 7th September, 2008 |
|---|
QX 1071
Cpl John Alexander French, VC
2 / 9 Infantry Battalion - 19 Brigade AIF
Milne Force
The following citation for the Victoria Cross as published in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette of 21 Janaury 1943
"At Milne Bay on the afternoon of the 4 September 1942, a company of an Australian Infantry Battalion attacked the Japanese position east of the Buna Mission where it encountered terrific rifle and machine-gun fire.
Advance of the section of which Corporal French was in command was held up by fire from three enemy machine-gun posts, whereupon Corporal French, ordering his section to take cover, advanced and silenced one of the posts with grenades. He returned to his section for more grenades and again advanced and silenced the second post.
Armed with a Thompson sub-machine gun, he then attacked the third post, firing from the hip as he went forward. He was seen to be badly hit by the fire from this post, but he continued to advance. The enemy gun then ceased to fire and his section pushed on to find that all members of the three enemy gun crews had been killed and that Corporal French had died in front of the third gun pit.
By his cool courage and disregard of his own personal safety, this non-commissioned officer saved the members of his section from heavy casualties and was responsible for the successful conclusion of the attack."
