Light horseman a quietly spoken hero
BERT Kenny was a North Queensland legend, an ordinary bloke who achieved extraordinary things. Bert was a Gallipoli veteran, member of the 7th Light Horse and a North Queensland farmer and family man.
This article is dedicated to Bert’s daughters Colleen, Lesley and Elizabeth ( deceased) and their families, most of whom live in North Queensland.
Born in Melbourne on January 23, 1888, son of an adventurous station manager, Bert Kenny was 26 and living in rural NSW when war was declared in 1914. An accomplished horseman, he enlisted in the 7th Light Horse Regiment and sailed to Egypt. He was among the thousands of light horsemen sent without their horses as reinforcements for the Anzac infantry weeks after the initial landing on April 25.
His regiment was based on the southern flank of the battlefield leading up to the Lone Pine area.
Many of his cobbers from the 7th are buried in Shell Green cemetery, known as an exposed field used for cricket matches during lulls in the battle.
Bert was wounded at Gallipoli and returned to duty only to be evacuated due to illness, along with hundreds of others living in such appalling conditions. After Gallipoli, the 7th were sent to the Sinai Peninsula area where they again were matched against the Turkish Army. He witnessed the famous Charge of Beersheba.
Like many World War I veterans, Bert did not speak about his experiences in much detail to his family. But among his possessions was a Turkish coin given to him by a Turk whom he assisted on the battlefield.
He did speak of the sadness the light horsemen experienced in having to shoot their loyal horses when the war ended.
The men who fought in this tragic war were not inclined to glorify their actions and were grateful to return to some sort of normal life, knowing that many of their friends did not have that opportunity.
When Bert returned to Australia he travelled to North Queensland to visit his married sister in Bowen, where he met his future wife May Maclean. He led a quiet life farming and raised three daughters, who gave him 14 grandchildren, the eldest of whom graduated from Royal Military College Duntroon.
Bert lived to 91 and is buried in a war grave in the Bowen Cemetery.
We honour the memory of those men who sacrificed so much a century ago. We remember those who did not return home. We recognise the effort of those to develop our country after they returned. We salute the reconciliation and friendship that exists between two different countries long after this war ended.