Top honour to Coast veteran
A SOUTHPORT World War II veteran scooped from the English Channel after his ship was torpedoed by a German attack boat at Normandy has been awarded the French Legion of Honour 75 years later.
Alexander Murdoch, 93, trembled with emotion as he was presented with France’s most prestigious order of merit yesterday in front of family, friends and members of the Southport RSL Sub Branch.
Mr Murdoch – who has already been awarded six UK medals as a result of simply asking the RSL for help to obtain a veteran’s health card – was overwhelmed by the recognition.
“It was very emotional, but everyone has been so friendly and accepting and that helped me to relax a bit,” he said. “I’m very proud. It’s really a great honour.”
Mr Murdoch was born on his parents’ farm in Scotland and served as a merchant seaman for the British in the Atlantic, Greece, Croatia, Italy and North Africa after joining the Merchant Navy as a radio officer at age 16.
His ship was attacked and sunk while transporting 256 Canadian troops to Juno Beach in 1944. Mr Murdoch was rescued by an American tank landing ship and proceeded to Omaha Beach.
He then jumped on a ship sailing from England to the Mediterranean Sea to transport troops and equipment.
After the war, Mr Murdoch took a job at a rubber plantation in Malaya.
Unable to escape conflict, he found himself undertaking anti-terrorist activities as Hon. Inspector of Police during the “Malayan Emergency” that flared up in 1948.
Mr Murdoch returned to Australia in 1967 and took up farming in Western Australia before he moved to Eastern Australia in 2000 and settled on the Gold Coast.
At the ceremony, Mr Murdoch was presented with the medal by Consul General of France in Sydney Nicolas Crozier and Defence Attaché of the French Embassy to Australia Captain Phillipe Petitdidier.
Mr Petitdidier was “honoured” to be part of the “very important ceremony” which demonstrated the strong historical and ongoing military ties between Australia and France.
Linking past with present, Mr Murdoch was joined at Southport RSL by Australian Army Captain Taylor Carnell, 29, who was awarded the French National Defence Medal for his work with French troops as part of a US-led coalition in Iraq.