Victor Norman Levien

Private

Conflict:

WW1

Additional Information:

Son of Joseph Thomas and Elizabeth Jane Levien, of Mangaweka. Native of Havelock, Marlborough.

References:

CWGC

Archives New Zealand

NZ WAR GRAVES

Public Contributions:

GREAT UNCLE VICTOR I never knew Great Uncle Victor, but he’s been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. Grandma used to often talk of him. He was her favourite sibling and as she had eig...ht other brothers and sisters to choose from, I guess that was a feather in his cap. Grandma used to describe him as tall, handsome and with a real twinkle in his eye. She was several years younger and would do anything to please him. Great Grandpa owned a saw mill in Ohingaiti and Victor went to work for him. He would drive the horse and trailer to the railway station and as he passed their home, yell at my grandmother to make a batch of scones! She said she always did! I can only imagine that when Victor announced he was off to fight for the Empire in World War 1, the news was greeted with a mixture of pride and sadness. We have a photograph of him standing tall and proud in his uniform. Grandma said he had a sense of wanting to do the right thing for King and country and that, combined with a grand sense of adventure, was enough to ensure he joined the Wellington Battalion. He was twenty three years old. He landed at Gallipoli one hundred years ago. Like all the other soldiers his world became his trench. His belongings were his greatcoat, webbing, rifle and bayonet. His dress, a singlet and shorts. His diet was beef and biscuits, initially salty and eventually rock hard. Bacon fat, rotten cheese and watery jam completed the menu. Water at best was rationed to half a gallon a day and had to be shipped in from Malta. We hope that Victor with all his personality was one of the kiwis who threw his water canteen to the Turks during the long months they faced each other across the trenches. He would have done what he had to but never forgotten who and what he stood for. It was in these desperate conditions that Great Uncle Victor took part in the Wellington Battalion’s storming of Chunk Bair. He was killed that day in the one of the most inspiring actions very performed by New Zealand soldiers. It took some time for word of his death on the 8th August 1915 to reach the family. In fact, it was my grandfather, Thomas Skinner, who as the Postmaster at Ohingaiti, received the message. He handed it to Victor’s youngest brother, George. who was working as the Telegraph boy. He told him to take it home to his mother and not to return for the rest of the day. That Christmas as the story goes, the remaining eight children and their parents sat down to Christmas dinner. Apparently our Great Grandfather said, “There is one less place this Christmas” and never mentioned Victor’s name again. The family knew that his grief just gnawed away at him and he never forgot. Eighty three years later, I was the first of our family to visit Gallipoli for ANZAC Day. The memory of it will remain with me forever. I visited the Commonwealth War Graves Commissioner and was devastated to learn that my Great Uncle Victor was buried in an unmarked grave on the battlefield somewhere between Farmers Field and Chunk Bair. I was undone at this news and wondered whether his mother; my great grandmother, ever knew. The next morning, at dawn, I stood at ANZAC Cove looking up at the rising sun which displayed the threatening cliffs directly to our front. We stood with four thousand others, mainly young kiwi and Australian backpackers – and I remembered Great Uncle Victor. I traversed the stark terrain where they had landed and saw the remnants of the trenches from where he would have fought hard physical combat. Later in the day I stood at Chunik Bair and etched on the memorial was his name which I traced with my finger, as if it was a way I could touch him. During the service I placed three red roses at its feet; one from Grandma, one from Mum and one from me following a female line down through the family. There was something cathartic in this action. I sensed that Grandma would be smiling down on me and that Mum would be pleased that I had done that for her. Our beloved Victor had finally been farewelled at the place of his death eighty three years later. [Entered on behalf of Rosemary Heaton] Read More

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Casualty

Service Number:

10/416

Name:

Victor Norman Levien

Rank:

Private

Date of Birth:

Not known

Next of Kin:

J.T. Levien, Ohingaiti, New Zealand

Date of Enlistment:

Not known

Enlistment Address:

Ohingaiti, New Zealand

Armed Force:

Army

Unit:

NZEF, Wellington Regiment

Casualty Details

Cause of Death:

Killed in action

Date of Death:

08 August 1915

Day of Death:

Sunday

Age at Death:

Conflict:

WW1

Embarkation Details

Embarkation Body:

Main Body

Embarkation Place:

Wellington, New Zealand

Embarkment Date:

16 October 1914

Transport:

HMNZT 7
HMNZT 10

Vessel:

Limerick or Arawa

Destination:

Suez, Egypt

Text in italics supplied by Cenotaph Online, Auckland War Memorial Museum

Cemetery

Cemetery:

Chunuk Bair (New Zealand) Memorial

Cemetery Reference:

Cemetery Location:

Turkey