Introduction

The damage wrought by war can be a lifelong legacy of mental turmoil. Reginald Dack Baker (originally from Norwich) served in the Royal Australian Field Ambulance regiment from August 1914 to near the end of the war. During that time he served in some of the bloodiest theatres of war, including the Western front and Gallipoli.

Returning to Australia after the war, in 1923 he was sectioned and was an patient at the Goodna Asylum in Brisbane. Upon his release he came back to his native city, Norwich and lived there for the rest of his life (dying in the 1960s).

This blog attempts to make some sense of the remarkable collection of six journals he compiled. They betray an obsession with the idea that radio waves were being used to control and kill innocent people. In places there are brief references to his service in WW1. There are also letters from a 'sweet heart' who he left in Australia, Kitty.

For Reginald Dack Baker the legacy of his war years was a life sentence of mental ill-health and obsessive delusion. It is a tragedy.

Tuesday 23 June 2009

War Service



To read the blog introduction, click HERE.

On the 20th August 1914, the 25 year old William Reginald Dack Baker, enlisted in the Royal Australian Field Ambulance. He went on to serve in some on the field in some of the most terrible battles of the First World War. In the midst of the carnage, brave men like Reginald risked their young lives to save others - often in the thick of the fighting.

Fortunately for us, there is a free online service called, 'Mapping Our Anzacs', which allows us to view the complete war service record for veterans of Gallipoli like Baker. Here's the link to his records on the site -> MAPPING OUR ANZACS

At this stage of my research I don't know if his wartime experiences were the catalyst for his subsequent incarceration in the Goodna Mental Hospital in the 1920s, but it is plausible that being a hands-on witness to so much suffering might have been the cause of subsequent mental health problems. Until I find a way to get access to the records at Goodna in Queensland, Australia, this will remain one of the unanswered questions about this story. In the meantime, however, here is a link to some excellent radio programmes which discuss different aspects of the hospital's history -> All In The Mind

POSTSCRIPT: I have just found the following reference to the death of Reginald's younger brother, Ernest:
'Here is the Private (Lance Corporal) 241781, 1/5th Battalion (Territorial), Northumberland Fusiliers. Died in France 14th November 1916. Age 20. Enlisted Norwich. Youngest son of Robert and Elizabeth Jenner Baker of 8 Valentine Street, Norwich. Formerly 2946, Norfolk Regiment. Commemorated on Thiepval Memorial, Somme, France'
[Source: Norwich Cathedral Boys Model School Roll of Honour, http://www.roll-of-honour.com/Norfolk/NorwichBoysModelSchool.html]
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