Thomas Hartley grew up in Invercargill and was originally a farmer and a Territorial Officer. He joined the Invercargill City Guards in 1909 and was appointed from Sergeant to 2nd Lieutenant in the 8th (Southland) Regiment (which replaced the Guards under the Territorial System) in April 1913. He also had 3 months' experience with the Artillery. He was made full Lieutenant a year later. He left with his Regiment, part of the Otago Battalion, for the war in February, 1915.
In May of 1915 he was in hospital on the island of Lemnos, wounded at Gallipoli in the left heel and shoulder and suffering from acute bronchitis and also from dysentery, was granted 6 months leave of absence in August and was invalided home. He was passed fit for duty in October and promoted to Captain in November of 1915.
He returned to the war with the 11th Reinforcements, this time attached to the New Zealand Field Artillery, in April of 1916. In November of 1916 he is recorded as being promoted from Captain to Major.
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| Andersons Bay Cemetery, Dunedin |
In the winter of 1917-18 the New Zealand Division were stationed in the Ypres Salient. The collapse of Russia and the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with the Germans was ominous news and a defensive strategy was prepared so there was much work to do in the cold and wet of Flanders. This work was sporadically disrupted by German shelling.
For the Field Artillery, January was mostly occupied in what was described as "harassing fire," disrupting preparations for an enemy assault as much as possible and, on the 22nd, stopping a German raid on British trenches. It was during this period that Thomas Hartley died, killed in action.
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