Mary Anne Pocock, (20 July 1863 – 16 July 1946), commonly known as Bessie Pocock, was an Australian nursing sister and army matron who served in the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...

and the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. She was awarded the

Associate Royal Red Cross The Royal Red Cross (RRC) is a military decoration awarded in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth for exceptional services in military nursing. Foundation The award was established on 27 April 1883 by Queen Victoria, with a single class of Mem ...

and thrice

Mentioned in Despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

for her wartime service.

Early life

Pocock was born in Dalby, Queensland, on 20 July 1863 to Mary Ann (née O'Toole) and George Pocock. She was the first of their eight children. Her mother was born in Ireland and her English father became a blacksmith at Copmanhurst. The family home was called "The Punchbowl" and it was in

Grafton, New South Wales Grafton ( Bundjalung-Yugambeh: Gumbin Gir) is a city in the Northern Rivers region of the Australian state of New South Wales. It is located on the Clarence River, approximately by road north-northeast of the state capital Sydney. The closest m ...

. She qualified as a nurse at

Sydney Hospital Sydney Hospital is a major hospital in Australia, located on Macquarie Street in the Sydney central business district. It is the oldest hospital in Australia, dating back to 1788, and has been at its current location since 1811. It first rece ...

in 1890 and in 1899 she joined the New South Wales Army Nursing Service Reserve.

Military service

When the New South Wales second contingent was sent to South Africa to fight in the

, Pocock was one of fourteen nurses of the New South Wales Army Nursing Service Reserve chosen to also make that journey. She travelled aboard the SS ''Moravian'' in 1900. She worked in hospitals in Johannesburg and the Transvaal before she caught endemic fever. She was sent home via the United Kingdom in 1902 and returned to Australia in 1903. She was awarded the

Queen's South Africa Medal The Queen's South Africa Medal is a British campaign medal awarded to British and Colonial military personnel, and to civilians employed in an official capacity, who served in the Second Boer War in South Africa. Altogether twenty-six clasps wer ...

and the King's South Africa Medal and

for her service. left, Pocock in Egypt in 1916 Hospital Ship Assaye in 1915

By December 1914 the First World War had started and Pocock was already in Cairo as part of the Australian Imperial Force. She was a senior sister with No. 2 Australian General Hospital and she worked there and at a temporary hospital at the city of Ismailia. For over six months starting in July 1915 she was in charge and looking after wounded soldiers as they were ferried from the Gallipoli campaign. She cared for them on the hospital ship ''Assaye'' as it travelled between Alexandria and Gallipoli and then on to Malta and the United Kingdom before returning again to Alexandria. In July 1916 Pocock moved from Marseilles and Wimereux in France to the 2nd Australian Casualty Clearing Station in Trois Arbres near

Steenwerck Steenwerck (; Dutch: ''Steenwerk'') is a commune, in French Flanders, in the Nord department in northern France. It is located about north of Lille and in 2013 had a population of 3519. People from Steenwerck are known as ''Steenwerckois''. I ...

. In that month, a cemetery was started for the station. This became the basis for a much larger one after the war had finished. Her final thirteen months of war service was in Dartmouth in England with No. 3 Australian Auxiliary Hospital. She was twice Mentioned in Despatches and was awarded the

for her wartime service. Pocock died in Grafton on 16 July 1946. Over 100 pages of her letters which were sent home to her family are in the

Australian War Memorial The Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in wars involving the Commonwealth of Australia and some conflicts involving pe ...

, Canberra.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pocock, Bessie 1863 births 1946 deaths Associate Members of the Royal Red Cross Australian military nurses Australian women nurses Australian military personnel of the Second Boer War Australian military personnel of World War I People from Dalby, Queensland Women in the Australian military Australian women of World War I