"Born in 1909 in the picturesque Central Otago town of Arrowtown, Reg Romans came from a prominent local family – the family name still features in Arrowtown street names and historical plaques today.

9232 Lieutenant Colonel Reginald Everard (“Reg”) Romans was, by all accounts, a leader. As the Commanding Officer of the 23rd Battalion between July 1942 and his death in December 1943, Romans established himself as one of the leading New Zealand combat commanders of the Second World War. Then-Brigadier Howard Kippenberger, as commander of 5 NZ Brigade, considered Romans his “most fiery” battalion commander and under Romans’ leadership the 23rd Battalion fought in numerous tough actions in the Western Desert and Italy.

As it transpired, Howard Kippenberger would comfort Romans during his last moments of consciousness. On 15 December 1943, Romans was mortally wounded leading the 23rd Battalion in an assault against the Italian town of Orsogna as part of “Operation Florence”. Of Romans, Kippenberger would write that “I knelt by my friend in his last conscious moments and held his hand and said with a full heart, ‘Reg, my dear friend, may God be with you and help you”.

Reg Romans succumbed to his wounds and died on19 December, 1943. Aged just 34 at the time of his death, and is commemorated, among other locations, on the Arrowtown War memorial, overlooking the valleys and landscape of his youth.

Attribution: The words of Howard Kippenberger quoted in this post are attributed to: Glyn Harper, Kippenberger: An Inspired New Zealand Commander

[NZ Remembrance Army/anon. Retreived 23/12/2021]