George Hubert Wilkins
| Sir Hubert Wilkins | |
|---|---|
Sir George Hubert Wilkins (1931)
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| Born |
31 October 1888 Hallett, South Australia |
| Died | November 30, 1958 (aged 70) Framingham, Massachusetts |
| Known for | Polar explorer |
| Awards |
Knight Bachelor Military Cross & Bar |
Sir George Hubert Wilkins MC & Bar (31 October 1888 – 30 November 1958) was an Australian polar explorer, ornithologist, pilot, soldier, geographer and photographer.
Hubert Wilkins was a native of Hallett, South Australia, the last of 13 children in a family of pioneer settlers and sheep farmers. He was born at Mount Bryan, South Australia, 177 kilometres (110 mi) north of Adelaide by road. The original homestead has been restored by generous donation. He was educated at Mount Bryan East and the Adelaide School of Mines. As a teenager, he moved to Adelaide where he found work with a traveling cinema, to Sydney as a cinematographer, and thence to England where he became a pioneering aerial photographer whilst working for Gaumont Studios. His photographic skill earned him a place on various Arctic expeditions, including the controversial 1913 Vilhjalmur Stefansson-led Canadian Arctic Expedition.
In 1917, Wilkins returned to his native Australia, joining the Australian Flying Corps in the rank of Second Lieutenant. Wilkins later transferred to the general list and in 1918 was appointed as an official war photographer. In June 1918 Wilkins was awarded the Military Cross for his efforts to rescue wounded soldiers during the Third Battle of Ypres. He remains the only Australian official photographer from any war to have received a combat medal. The following month Wilkins was promoted to Captain and became officer commanding No.3 (Photographic) Sub-section of the Australian war records unit.
Unfortunately due to his modest nature, many iconic WW1 photographs have been attributed to ( or even claimed by) the self-promoting Frank Hurley. For example, the famous photograph of dazed Australian soldiers walking the duckboards through Chateau Wood on 29 October 1917 has always been credit to Hurley, when in fact Hurley's diary reveals he was nowhere near Chateau Woods that day.
Wilkins work frequently led him into the thick of the fighting and during the Battle of the Hindenburg Line he assumed command of a group of American soldiers who had lost their officers in an earlier attack, directing them until support arrived. Wilkins was subsequently awarded a bar to his Military Cross in the 1919 Birthday Honours.
When Sir John Monash was asked by the visiting American journalist Lowell Thomas ( who had written 'Lawrence of Arabia' and had made him an international hero ) if Australia has a similar hero, Sir John replied "Yes, there was one. He was a highly accomplished and absolutely fearless combat photographer . What happened to him is a story of epic proportions. Wounded many times ... he always came through. At times he brought in the wounded, at other times he supplied vital intelligence of enemy activity he observed. At one point he even rallied troops as a combat officer ... His record was unique."
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