The annual Dawn Service on Anzac Day will be held in Helensburgh's Charles Harper Park on Friday, 25 April 2025, from 5.45am.

Helensburgh’s RSL Sub-branch has never forgotten and they have held Remembrance Services just about every year since World War I.

The Helensburgh Historical Society produced two books In Remembrance and they are still available from the society. The district has always had many Royal Australian Navy (RAN) personnel, who served or were related to either service men or women. This article was written for our booklet Our Boys Not Forgotten, by the late retired Lieutenant RAN Kevin Slade.

The Royal Australian Navy in World War I 

In 1859 Australia was established as a separate British Naval station and until 1913 the Royal Navy remained in Australian Waters. Whilst King George V granted the title ‘Royal Australian Navy’ to the Commonwealth Naval Forces, the date 1 March 1901 is accepted as the birthday of the Royal Australian Navy.

The Commonwealth also possessed some ageing gunboats and torpedo boats from the former colonial navies which were fired, old and inadequate even for training. In 1909 discussion between the British Admiralty and the Australian Government decided to establish an Australian Fleet unit. The first units of this Navy, the destroyers, HMA Ships Yarra and Parramatta, built in United Kingdom reached Australian waters in November 1910. In June 1912, a third destroyer, HMAS Warrego, was commissioned at Sydney.

At the outbreak of war in August 1914, the Australian fleet comprised the Battlecruiser HMAS Australia, the Light Cruisers Melbourne, Sydney and Encounter, the small cruiser Pioneer, the Torpedo Destroyers Parramatta, Yarra and Warrego, and the submarines AE1 and AE2, along with numerous support and ancillary craft. A light Cruiser and two Torpedo Destroyers were under construction in Australia.

The total number serving in the Permanent Naval Forces at the outbreak of hostilities was 3800 all ranks. At the close of hostilities, 5263 personnel were serving. The Reserves provided a further 76 officers and 2380 for home service, and 51 officers and 1775 ratings (sailors) for service overseas.

The Royal Australian Navy’s first task was to protect Australia’ ports, shipping and trade routes. The first task of the RAN following the declaration of was to seize or neutralize German territories and colonies in the Pacific with the first major effort in seizing German interests in New Britain which formed part of the German wireless network. The initial landings in New Britain, in what would become Australia’s first joint force operation, took place at dawn on 11 September 1914 when 25 petty officers and men landed at Kabakaul with instructions to seize the wireless station at Bitapaka. Outcome was successful, but it was Australia’s first World War 1 causalities of one Naval Officer, four Navy Sailors and one Army Medical Officer killed and another four Navy personnel wounded.

The success of the operation was marred by the disappearance of AE1 on 14 September 1914 with her entire complement of three officers and 32 sailors and was the RAN’s first major tragedy while patrolling the narrow St George’s Strait between New Britain and New Ireland – the first RAN unit lost in wartime. The wreck was located in December 2017 in 300 metres of water off the Duke of York Island group.

After this operation, the ships of the RAN began the vital role of convo escort. It was whilst escorting a convoy that the light cruiser HMAS Sydney was detached to investigate the sighting of a strange warship. This ship turned out to be the German light cruiser Emden. In the ensuing battle Sydney destroyed the Emden and thus won the RAN’s first sea battle.

Retired Lieutenant RAN Kevin Slade (1951 – 2020)
A Helensburgh resident with a career of distinction

Kevin Slade had a career spanning 30 years in the Royal Australian Navy as sailor and officer in the Australian Hydrographic Service, specialising in hydrographic surveying on the coast of Australia with postings to HMAS MORESBY and PALUMA and detached teams. As a Senior Sailor, he had postings to Papua New Guinea in 1975 conducting surveys, and then as the initial OIC Solomon Islands Defence Cooperation Hydrographic Project (1980-82) which continued to 1993. Kevin was the Branch Warrant Officer of the Hydrographic Branch (1986- 1990), being promoted Lieutenant SD (H) in 1990 taking over as Officer in Charge of the Hydrographic Office Detached Survey Unit (HODSU). Kevin participated in survey operations in Australia, Antarctica, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and South West Pacific and Indonesia. Kevin had two periods at the Hydrographic School RAN training naval, civilian and foreign defence cooperation students in hydrographic surveying. Kevin also saw service in Vietnam on HMAS SYDNEY IN 1968.

On leaving the Navy in 1996, Kevin joined the Australian Hydrographic Office Public Service in the Nautical Information Section, retiring in 2014 as Deputy Director Nautical Information and Publications Section. The section was involved with Maritime Boundaries Geographic Names, Shipwrecks and the compilation of Australian Nautical Publications and had many relationships to Commonwealth and State agencies. Kevin also had a key role in Historic Research of the Hydrographic Branch in Australia and the South Pacific. Kevin was awarded the Public Service Medal in 2010 for his work in geographic names and maritime boundaries. Kevin completed his service in the Naval reserves in 2016.

Source: Helensburgh & District Historical Society's publication Our Boys Not Forgotten (2018)

Kevin Slade’s story continues in Our Boys Not Forgotten, with information sourced from Navy Sea Power Centre – Sydney.