Person
Derham, Alfred Plumley (1891 - 1962)
CBE MC
- Born
- 12 September 1891
Camberwell, Victoria, Australia - Died
- 26 June 1962
Heidelberg, Victoria, Australia - Occupation
- Physician
Summary
Alfred Derham joined the 5th Battalion of Australian Imperial Force in 1914 and was appointed assistant director of medical services during the second world war (1941). On the day he landed in Gallipoli (25 April 1915) Derham was wounded, but continued to work tirelessly refusing to be evacuated until five days later. He was awarded the Military Cross (MC) for this gallant effort. Derham returned to Australia in 1917 to complete his medical training. During the 1920s he started up a private practice in Melbourne and specialised in treating children's diseases. He was also appointed honorary physician at the Children's Hospital and commanded field-ambulances in the Militia during the 1930s. When war broke out again, Alfred Derham was sent to Malaysia, then Singapore. In 1942 he was imprisoned in the Changi prisoner-of-war camp for six months and this lead to a major decline in his health. He returned to Australia in 1945 and was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE).
Details
Chronology
- 26 August 1914
- Military service - Enlisted and posted to 5th Battalion of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF)
- 1915
- Award - Military Cross (MC) - Infantry - 5th Battalion
- 25 April 1915
- Military service - Platoon Commander with the AIF in Gallipoli
- August 1915
- Military service - Transferred to the 2nd Brigade of the AIF
- 1918
- Education - Bachelor of Medicine (MB) and Bachelor of Surgery (BS), University of Melbourne
- 1922
- Career position - Private practice established in Melbourne
- 1923
- Education - Doctor of Medicine (MD), University of Melbourne
- c. 1930 - c
- Military service - Field-Ambulance Commander in the Militia with the Australian Army Medical Corps
- 1940
- Military service - Colonel and Assistant Director of Medical Services at the 8th Division
- 1941
- Military service - Assistant Director of Medical Services for the AIF
- 1941
- Military service - Served in Malaysia and Singapore
- 1942
- Life event - Imprisoned (six months) in Changi prisoner-of-war camp in Singapore
- 1945
- Life event - Returned to Melbourne
- 1946
- Award - Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) - Army - Distinguished service in Malaya in 1942
- 1946
- Military service - AIF appointment terminated
Related entries
Archival resources
The University of Melbourne Archives
- Alfred Plumley Derham - Records, 1915 - 1979; The University of Melbourne Archives. Details
Published resources
Book Sections
- Grey, Jeffrey, 'Derham, Francis Plumley (1885-1957) and Alfred Plumley (1891-1962)' in Australian dictionary of biography, volume 13: 1940 - 1980 A-De, John Ritchie, ed. (Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1993), pp. 618-619. http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A130690b.htm. Details
Journal Articles
- Anderson, Fay, 'Alfred Derham: a Tale of Two Wars', Australasian Science, 21 (2) (2000), 46. Details
Resources
- Wikidata, http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q24250715. Details
- CA 2001 Australian Imperial Force, Base Records Office, 'NAA: B2455, Derham A P', B2455 First Australian Imperial Force Personnel Dossiers, 1914-1920, National Archives of Australia, RecordSearch, https://RecordSearch.naa.gov.au/scripts/AutoSearch.asp?O=I&Number=3502022. Details
- CA 2002, 2 Echelon, Army Headquarters; CA 46, Department of Defence [III], Central Office, 'NAA: B883, VX13486', B883 Second Australian Imperial Force Personnel Dossiers, 1939-1947, National Archives of Australia, RecordSearch, https://RecordSearch.naa.gov.au/scripts/AutoSearch.asp?O=I&Number=6214715. Details
- 'Derham, Alfred Plumley (1891-)', Trove, National Library of Australia, 2009, https://nla.gov.au/nla.party-1470803. Details
Annette Alafaci
Created: 20 October 1993, Last modified: 15 June 2022
- Foundation Supporter - Committee to Review Australian Studies in Tertiary Education