| Regimental number | 5665 |
| Place of birth | Goulburn, New South Wales |
| School | Public School, Tuena, New South Wales |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Occupation | Shearer |
| Address | Rockdale, Tuena, via New Bridge, New South Wales |
| Marital status | Single |
| Age at embarkation | 30.2 |
| Height | 5' 6" |
| Weight | 150 lbs |
| Next of kin | Mother, Mrs C Corby, Rockdale, Tuena, via New Bridge, New South Wales |
| Previous military service | Nil |
| Enlistment date | |
| Place of enlistment | Liverpool, New South Wales |
| Rank on enlistment | Private |
| Unit name | 3rd Battalion, 18th Reinforcement |
| AWM Embarkation Roll number | 23/20/3 |
| Embarkation details | Unit embarked from Sydney, New South Wales, on board HMAT A55 Kyarra on |
| Rank from Nominal Roll | Corporal |
| Unit from Nominal Roll | 3rd Battalion |
| Fate | Killed in Action |
| Place of death or wounding | France |
| Age at death | 32.7 |
| Age at death from cemetery records | 32 |
| Place of burial | Outtersteene Communal Cemetery Extension, France |
| Commemoration details | Australian National Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, France Villers-Bretonneux is a village about 15 km east of Amiens. The Memorial stands on the high ground ('Hill 104') behind the Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery, Fouilloy, which is about 2 km north of Villers-Bretonneux on the east side of the road to Fouilloy. The Australian National Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux is approached through the Military Cemetery, at the end of which is an open grass lawn which leads into a three-sided court. The two pavilions on the left and right are linked by the north and south walls to the back (east) wall, from which rises the focal point of the Memorial, a 105 foot tall tower, of fine ashlar. A staircase leads to an observation platform, 64 feet above the ground, from which further staircases lead to an observation room. This room contains a circular stone tablet with bronze pointers indicating the Somme villages whose names have become synonymous with battles of the Great War; other battle fields in France and Belgium in which Australians fought; and far beyond, Gallipoli and Canberra. On the three walls, which are faced with Portland stone, are the names of 10,885 Australians who were killed in France and who have no known grave. The 'blocking course' above them bears the names of the Australian Battle Honours. After the war an appeal in Australia raised £22,700, of which £12,500 came from Victorian school children, with the request that the majority of the funds be used to build a new school in Villers-Bretonneux. The boys' school opened in May 1927, and contains an inscription stating that the school was the gift of Victorian schoolchildren, twelve hundred of whose fathers are buried in the Villers-Bretonneux cemetery, with the names of many more recorded on the Memorial. Villers-Bretonneux is now twinned with Robinvale, Victoria, which has in its main square a memorial to the links between the two towns. |
| Panel number, Roll of Honour, Australian War Memorial | 35 |
| Miscellaneous information from cemetery records | Parents: Reuben and Catherine CORBY, 'Rockdale', Tuena, New South Wales |
| Other details |
War service: Western Front Embarked Sydney, 3 June 1916; disembarked Plymouth, England, 3 August 1916. Proceeded overseas to France, 16 September 1916; taken on strength, 3rd Bn, in the field, Belgium, 29 September 1916. Appointed Lance Corporal, 13 May 1917. Detached to Anzac Corps Infantry School, 16 June 1917; rejoined Bn, 19 July 1917. Promoted Corporal, 12 October 1917. On leave to United Kingdom, 22 October 1917; rejoined Bn from leave, 4 November 1917. Killed in action, France, 14 April 1918. Medals: British War Medal, Victory Medal Originally recorded as having no known grave. The remains of four Australian soldiers were unearthed by a French farmer in March 2003. Two of the men have been identified with a reasonable degree of certainty as Corby and [637] Lt Christopher CHAMPION. [DNA testing was not possible in the case of Champion because no surviving relatives could be traced.] The four soldiers were buried on 22 April 2005 in a ceremony attended by Chief of Army, LT General Peter Leahy. |
| Sources | NAA: B2455, CORBY Ernest |
Postal Address:
Po Box 7916
Canberra BC 2610, Australia
Street Address:
Northcott Drive,
Campbell, ACT 2600
