The 30th Battalion was raised in NSW, in August 1915 — mostly from the Newcastle district, with an entire company drawn from former RAN ratings — and served in the 8th Brigade, 5th Division. It received its brutal baptism of fire as a carrying/support unit at Fromelles in July 1916, then rotated through quieter roles for the rest of that year before occupying Bapaume in the German withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line in early 1917. It played a comparatively minor part in the heavy fighting of 1917 (Bullecourt, Polygon Wood) and the German Spring Offensive of 1918, but came into its own during the Allied Hundred Days Offensive — spearheading the 5th Division's advance at the Battle of Amiens in August 1918 and fighting its final major action in the assault on the Hindenburg Line at St Quentin Canal in late September/early October 1918. The battalion was disbanded in March 1919.
The book blends a narrative operational history with a second section of 65 firsthand contributions from former members, plus a full nominal roll listing casualties and honours — giving it the vividness and personal texture typical of the best AIF association histories.
Published: 1938 - First Edition
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 399
Indexed
Illustrations: Black & White
Condition: Used, Fair - worn and dented front cover, foxing on cut edges and rear end page |
![The Fighting 10th – A South Australian Centenary Souvenir of the 10th Battalion AIF | Cecil B.L. Lock | 1936 | First Edition Second Printing [USED – HC – Very Good]](https://onlinestore.bookcellar.com.au/images/T/Fighting%2010th-X5tHKk.png "The Fighting 10th – A South Australian Centenary Souvenir of the 10th Battalion AIF | Cecil B.L. Lock | 1936 | First Edition Second Printing [USED – HC – Very Good]")
![With the Twenty-Second – History of the 22nd Battalion A.I.F. | E. Gorman | First Edition 1919 [USED – HC]](https://onlinestore.bookcellar.com.au/images/T/With%20the%20Twenty%20Second-otdM3t.png "With the Twenty-Second – History of the 22nd Battalion A.I.F. | E. Gorman | First Edition 1919 [USED – HC]")
![The Thirty-Ninth – History of the 39th Battalion AIF in the Great War | Alexander Patterson | First Edition 1934 [USED – HC – Very Good]](https://onlinestore.bookcellar.com.au/images/T/IMG_3382-ggkadT.png "The Thirty-Ninth – History of the 39th Battalion AIF in the Great War | Alexander Patterson | First Edition 1934 [USED – HC – Very Good]")
![The Story of a Battalion – History of the 48th Battalion AIF in the Great War | W. Devine | First Edition 1919 [USED – HC – Good]](https://onlinestore.bookcellar.com.au/images/T/Story%20of%20a%20Battalion-GWkNmF.png "The Story of a Battalion – History of the 48th Battalion AIF in the Great War | W. Devine | First Edition 1919 [USED – HC – Good]")
![The Whale Oil Guards – A History of the 53rd Battalion AIF | J.J. Kennedy DSO | First Edition 1919 [USED – HC – Very Good]](https://onlinestore.bookcellar.com.au/images/T/Whale%20Oil%20Guards%201st%20Ed-GVdMKd.png "The Whale Oil Guards – A History of the 53rd Battalion AIF | J.J. Kennedy DSO | First Edition 1919 [USED – HC – Very Good]")
