WWI hero honoured on postage stamp
He is now licked but was never beaten: West Otago soldier Arthur Gordon, who lost both legs in World War I, and became an advocate for disabled servicemen, is now on a postage stamp.
New Zealand Post announced on Wednesday the release of the fifth and final instalment of a fiveyear stamp and coin programme that commemorates WWI.
The collection features the late Private Arthur Gordon, of Tapanui, whose image is one of 10 commemorative stamps in the Back from the Brink series, which tells the story of the final year in this bloody battle, the toll it took on the servicemen and how they adapted on their return home.
New Zealand Post head of stamps and collectables Simon Allison said the stamps were a unique way to remember 1918, and a poignant reminder of New Zealand’s contribution to a significant war on the other side of the world.
‘‘The central figure in this year’s issue is Arthur Gordon from Tapanui, West Otago. Arthur was a heroic soldier who lost both of his legs while running a message back to headquarters. Struck by a shell, his legs were beyond saving and amputated.
‘‘On Arthur’s return home he learnt to live as normal life as possible with his new prosthetic limbs. Despite his disability, Arthur never let his circumstances get him down. He became a passionate advocate for disabled soldiers and a lobbyist to the Government, seeking improvements in everything from the quality of artificial limbs to the rules for war pensions.’’
Gordon, born in Heriot in 1895 and died in 1978, served with the 2nd New Zealand Entrenching Battalion, and fought on the Western Front. In September 1918, he was wounded, receiving gunshot wounds to the left leg and left forearm. His right foot had to be amputated. Then in October 1918, both his legs were amputated.
In June 1919, he was supplied with artificial limbs and in January 1920, invalided home to New Zealand. He was one of five men who went to war from the Tapanui area.
He went on to work as a draughtsman for the Department of Lands and Survey in Dunedin, got married in 1922 and had three sons.
West Otago Theatrical Society marked the centenary of WWI by putting on a stage show We Will Remember Them in 2015 based on Gordon’s diaries, which were written as he fought on the front line at Gallipoli and at other battles in Europe. It was directed by Mark MacKenzie, of Waipahi, who compiled the material to illustrate the diaries from various mediums including photographs, videos, songs and poems, to tell the story from Gordon’s eyes.
‘‘I think its amazing he’s ended up on a stamp. I’d learned so much about him – he sounded like a real character. It’s a great tribute to him.’’
Other themes for the 10 stamps include the Hundred Days Offensive, Flu Pandemic, Armistice, Le Quesnoy, Demobilisation, Resettlement, Great Air War, Return of the Pioneer Battalion, and Rehabilitation.
New Zealand Post is also issuing two commemorative coins – a 1/4oz gold proof coin which depicts loved ones embracing and shedding tears of joy and relief at the soldiers’ safe return home; and a 1oz silver proof coin depicting New Zealand soldiers scaling a ladder set against the ancient walls of Le Quesnoy, where they took the remaining Germans as prisoners.