Allegiance Australia Service/branch Australian Army Years of service 1915–1919 Rank Private | Name John Leak Awards Victoria Cross Role Armed force officer | |
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Battles/wars First World War
Battle of Pozieres Died October 20, 1972, Redwood Park, South Australia, Adelaide, Australia Unit 9th Battalion, Royal Queensland Regiment, First Australian Imperial Force | ||
John Leak, VC (1892 – 20 October 1972) was an Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
Biography
Born in Portsmouth, England in 1892. He emigrated to Australia when he was young.
He enlisted into the 9th Battalion, Australian Imperial Force, on 28 January 1915 in Rockhampton, Queensland. He was 23 years old when, on 16 April 1915, he embarked from Brisbane, Queensland, on board HMAT A55 Kyarra to Gallipoli.
He was a twenty-four-year-old private when, on 23 July 1916 at the Battle of Pozières, France, he committed an act of great bravery and heroism for which his was awarded the Victoria Cross.
In 1918 he was wounded, and discharged the next year.