Skip to Content

Morgan Mansell

Illness plagued Private Morgan Mansell and claimed his life10 days before armistice was declared and the war ended.

Sickness and illness dogged Private Morgan Mansell, who served with the 40th Battalion on the Western Front in France. Mumps, influenza, pyrexia and dysentery were among the ailments he suffered.

Private Mansell of Cape Barren Island, Tasmania, enlisted on 6 December 1916 at the age of 23 years and 11 months. He embarked from Australia on 14 June 1917 and disembarked in Liverpool, England, on 26 August 1917. Two days later, Private Mansell was admitted to hospital suffering from mumps. 

During the war, Private Mansell was also admitted to hospital with influenza, pyrexia (rise in body temperature) and dysentery. Poor sanitation in the trenches and a lack of clean drinking water meant that dysentery was common among soldiers.

Private Morgan’s battle with ill-health eventually claimed his life. He died of broncho-pneumonia on 1 November 1918 in the 3rd Australian General Hospital in Abbeville, France. 

Private Morgan was buried in the Communal Cemetery Extension, Abbeville, Picardie, in France.