William Holmes ( Australian general ) Major General William Holmes CMG , DSO , VD ( 12 September 1862 – 2 July 1917 ) was an Australian Army Major General in World War I . He was mortally wounded by a German shellburst while surveying the ground won at the Battle of Messines . Biography . Early life and career . Holmes was born in Sydney on 12 September 1862 , the son of Captain William Holmes , the chief clerk at New South Wales Military Forces Headquarters . Holmes lived in the Victoria Barracks and was educated Paddington Public School . Holmes worked at the Sydney Mint and then joined the Department of Works as a clerk on 24 June 1878 . On 24 August 1887 , he married Susan Ellen Green , whose family also lived in the Victoria barracks . On 20 April 1888 he became chief clerk and paymaster of the Metropolitan Board of Water Supply and Sewerage . Under his leadership , the department underwent a major expansion and the Cataract , Cordeaux and Avon dams were built . In 1872 at the age of 10 Holmes joined the 1st Infantry Regiment of the New South Wales Military Forces as a bugler and served in every enlisted rank . Holmes served for 18 months in a submarine mining company before returning to the regiment and being commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1886 . He was promoted to lieutenant in 1890 , captain in 1894 and major in 1900 . Boer War . In 1899 , Holmes volunteered for service in South Africa . The company left for South Africa in November 1899 , and on arrival was incorporated in the Australian Regiment . Originally an infantry unit , it became mounted in February . He saw action at Colesberg , Pretoria and Diamond Hill in June 1900 , where he was wounded . Holmes was mentioned in dispatches , promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel , and awarded the Distinguished Service Order ( DSO ) . He reurned home in August 1900 . Holmes commanded the 1st Australian Infantry from 1902 to 1911 . He was promoted to colonel on 6 January 1912 and was appointed to command the 6th Infantry Brigade . The Great War . German New Guinea . Shortly after war broke out , a special expeditionary force , the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force , was formed to occupy German possessions in New Guinea and the Pacific Islands . Under Holmes command the force sailed from Sydney on the auxiliary cruiser HMAS " Berrima " on 19 August 1914 . The German governor surrendered to Holmes on 17 September 1914 and the British flag was raised over the town . Holmes was criticised in Australia for offering extremely lenient terms , but he was under orders to occupy , not annex , German New Guinea . Holmes became administrator of New Guinea . He relinquished the post to Colonel S Petheridge in January 1915 and returned to Australia , where his appointment to the AN & MEF was terminated on 6 February 1915 . Gallipoli . On 16 March 1915 , Holmes was appointed to the First Australian Imperial Force as commander of the newly formed 5th Infantry Brigade with the rank of colonel . The brigade left Sydney in May and arrived in Egypt in June 1915 , where it became part of the 2nd Division . The 5th Brigade began moving to Gallipoli in early August and Holmes arrived on the 19th . The brigade was placed at the disposal of Major General A Godley of the New Zealand and Australian Division and elements participated in the fighting for Hill 60 . The 5th Brigade took over the trenches facing the Nek from the 3rd Light Horse Brigade on 28 August 1915 . Holmes made a habit of regularly visiting every key part of his front lines . When Major General Legge fell ill in November and was evacuated , Holmes took over acting command of the 2nd Division . Western Front . After the evacuation of Anzac , Holmes returned to the 5th Brigade , which he took to the Western Front in April 1916 . He led the brigade in the attacks on the Pozieres Heights in August and at Flers in October 1916 . In January 1917 , Holmes was given command of the 4th Division , replacing Major General H . V . Cox . Holmes continued his habit of personally reconnoitring every part of his line . On 31 March 1917 , he paid a daylight visit to an outpost near Lagnicourt , as usual wearing his red hat band , accompanied by his aide , Lieutenant Fergusson . Holmes was sniped at but not hit ; Fergusson was hit and had to be left behind , to be evacuated after nightfall . Shortly afterwards the post was shelled , causing heavy casualties to the garrison , including Fergusson who was injured for a second time . Holmes commanded his division at Bullecourt in April , where he opposed the operation that ultimately caused his division very heavy losses , and at Messines in June . On 2 July 1917 , Holmes took the Premier of New South Wales , William Holman , to survey the Messines battlefield . The party left his car in order to avoid a dangerous corner , something Holmes usually would not do . As they set out on foot , a German shell , believed to be a seventy - seven , or a " pip - squeak " landed nearby and Holmes was hit through the chest and lung . His aide , Captain Maxwell , along with Frank Edwards the private secretary to W . A Holman , took Holmes to the nearest aid post , where he died . He was buried at Trois Arbres Cemetery , Steenwerck , France . Holmes was the most senior Australian officer killed in action on the Western Front . Memorial . William Homes Street in the Potts Hill Business Park , Potts Hill New South Wales is named after Major General William Holmes . Potts Hill Business Park is on the edge of the Potts Hill reservoir , a major water storage operated by Sydney Water . General Holmes Drive that runs between Botany Bay and Sydney Airport is named after him .