From battlefields to new beginnings: The Anzac journey of the Segal Family

Many readers will cognize Aron Segal from his attendance astatine Hellenic commemorative events held successful Melbourne. But not galore will cognize of his family’s affluent transportation to Australia’s Anzac tradition, including the Greek Campaign of 1941. Recently, I sat down with Aron and listened arsenic helium recounted his household story. It is simply a tale of migration, acquainted to galore readers.

Russia to Kalamata: The start of the Segals’ Anzac story

Aron’s household subject past stretches backmost to Imperial Russia, with his comparative Solis Segal, who was conscripted into the Russian Imperial Army successful 1897. He would permission Russia and get yet successful Portland successful 1910, where helium would found a draper’s shop. But we should statesman the story by travelling guardant successful clip to Kalamata successful the acheronian days towards the extremity of the Allied run to prevention Greece from Axis occupation.

The Allied forces – comprising principally British and ANZAC troops– joined with the Greek Armed forces facing the force onslaught. The Allied forces included respective ancillary units such arsenic those from Cyprus and Palestine. The second included the Palestine Labour Corps, raised successful the British Mandate epoch Palestine and comprised mostly of Jewish members. One of those men was Aron’s uncle, Aron Wajcma,n who was calved successful the Polish town of Bedzin successful 1922, and had moved with his household to Palestine successful the mid-1920s. It was present that helium joined the telephone to combat fascism by joining the Corps. After the war, helium would grounds his experiences of the Greek run successful a missive to relatives, present successful the arrogant possession of his nephew successful Melbourne.

Aron Segal astatine the Lemnos Gallipoli Memorial commemorative work successful August 2025 with historiographer Dr Peter Ewer and person Paul Sougleris. Photo Jim Claven 2025.

The run had seen Corporal Wajcman’s unit service implicit the magnitude of Greece, supporting the Allied frontline forces and being subjected to force aerial attacks arsenic the Allied forces retreated. He writes of his six-week Greek run comprising three weeks of retreat. The Allied forces would retreat to a fig of ports crossed southern Greece, where they would await evacuation. One of the astir important evacuation ports was Kalamata, with its waterfront facilities and ample bay. By 28 April, some 18-20,000 Allied troops had made their way to the harbour, by truck and by foot. While implicit 9,000 would beryllium successfully evacuated, some 8,000 would not. One of those was young Aron.

While some non-frontline troops were evacuated – some from Trahila successful Mani, photographed by Australian Private Syd Grant aboard an evacuation vessel – astir did not. In the harsh realities of war, the constricted evacuation space aboard the evacuation ships was reserved for warring troops, not engineers oregon drivers. Australian accounts uncover that galore of these troops had to beryllium forcibly removed from evacuation ships oregon stopped astatine the harbour beforehand by equipped troops policing the evacuation. A bittersweet extremity to a bitter and tragic campaign.

Prisoners of war: Survival, sacrifice and the struggle for liberation

Aron would person watched the past evacuation vessel permission the harbour connected the evening of 28 April. As helium writes connected that night, they “were told to surrender and propulsion our arms away, arsenic elemental soldiers we had to obey.” He goes connected to picture the accomplishment of the German forces successful Kalamata astatine 9.30 americium the adjacent morning. Aron and thousands of different troops – including galore Australians such arsenic the 2/6th Battalion’s Captain Albert Gray from Red Cliffs, who had taken portion successful the conflict of Kalamata waterfront the nighttime earlier – were present prisoners. Aron writes that it was German paratroops who ordered the men to assemble astatine the Kalamata waterfront.

Corporal Aron Wajcman a captive of war. photo: Supplied/German archives.

Red Cross documents revealed that Aron was taken captive connected 29 April and was σύντομα taken to the POW transit campy established by the Germans astatine Corinth. A vermin-infested disused erstwhile Greek Army barracks; the thousands of Allied prisoners held present would retrieve these days and weeks with disgust. Aron writes of being there for six weeks, “living connected very mediocre nutrient and atrocious conditions.” The campy would σύντομα beryllium closed and the prisoners sent to the larger transit campy astatine Thessaloniki, having had to march 45 miles crossed Mount Olympus. Here helium stayed for 2 weeks, where “the nutrient [was] worse”.

He describes the depleted information of the prisoners astatine Thessaloniki – “we person been astatine the stage that when we stood up we fell again, so weak”. Soon they were connected their way again, leaving Thessaloniki by train, with 50 men to each wagon, arsenic they made their way to their last situation camps successful Germany. I person written antecedently successful Neos Kosmos astir the Corinth and Thessaloniki POW camps. Aron would beryllium held successful the Stalag 18 campy astatine Wolfsberg for a period earlier being transferred to Stalag 8B successful Lamsdorf, on with different Allied veterans of the Greek campaign.

A leafage from Aron Wajcman’s post-POW missive where helium writes astir the Greek campaign. Aron Segal Collection.

Aron was 1 of a radical of 12 prisoners who were relocated to work connected a workplace extracurricular Ratibur successful 1942, where they would beryllium based for 34 months. He would write that while connected work details to surrounding towns and villages, helium would witness victims of the Holocaust successful the surrounding region, suffering “terrible conditions”, Aron and his chap prisoners sharing what nutrient and covering they could with them. It is sobering to think that this Allied soldier, a veteran of the defence of Greece successful 1941, witnessed these terrible events first-hand. His work successful the British Army saved him from the demolition of galore of his chap Polish Jews by the Nazis.

Aron Segal recounts his family’s Anzac story successful an Oakleigh café surrounded by household documents. Photo Jim Claven 2025.

As the war drew to a close, Aron and the prisoners took portion successful the infamous forced marches further into Germany arsenic the Germans fled the advancing Soviet forces. It was while astatine a campy successful Frankfurt-Am-Main that Aron and his chap prisoners were yet liberated by US forces successful April 1945, Aron was repatriated to England and, aft a play of recuperation, returned to Palestine. A fig of his chap unit soldiers did not return; their graves stay connected Greek soil astatine Phaleron War Cemetery. These see 40-year-old Private Gelbart and Sergeant Shoner, some killed arsenic the Greek run connected the mainland drew to an end.

A Legacy of service: The Segal household successful two World Wars

Aron Wajcman’s work alongside the Anzacs successful Greece is lone a portion of the wider Segal family’s Anzac service. These see 5 relatives who served successful the Australian Army successful the Second World War and 1 who served successful the Australian Army successful the First World War. The second was Private Adolph Cantor, Aron’s 2nd relative erstwhile removed. Born successful Zagare successful Imperial Russia (now portion of Lithuania) successful 1876, helium had initially immigrated to the US successful 1889 earlier yet arriving successful Australia successful 1902. After a abbreviated play successful Tasmania, Adolph moved to Warrnambool, where helium continued his work arsenic a draper.

Tsarist Russia epoch subject work booklet from 1897 for Solis Segal. Photo:Aron Segal Private Collection

Before enlisting successful the 14th Battalion successful 1916, aged 39, Adolph had married, joined the section firearm nine and go a naturalised Australian. He served with the AIF’s Administrative Headquarters successful London, where his work was recorded arsenic “very good” earlier being discharged arsenic medically unfit successful 1917.

The Tobruk War Cemetery, where Major Schwartz is buried, photographed during the siege. Photo: Gil Easton Collection/SLV.

Those who served successful the Second World War included two who were killed connected progressive work and three who thankfully survived, 1 being Aron’s begetter Harry Segal. Born successful Zagare similar his comparative Adolph Cantor, Harry had arrived successful Australia successful the precocious 1920’s having been sponsored by an uncle who operated a pearling concern successful Broome. At 33 years old, Harry enlisted successful 1943 into the 121 Australian General Support Company successful Alice Springs and served retired the war successful Australia, being discharged successful May 1945. 26-year-old St Kilda storeman and packer Joel Wiseman – Aron’s uncle, who was besides calved successful Bedzin– enlisted successful 1942, serving successful New Guinea with various attraction units.

Grave of Private Gelbart of the Palestine Labour Corps, Phaleron War Cemetery. Photo Jim Claven 2016

Staff Sergeant Boris Segal – the son of the erstwhile Imperial Russian Army soldier Solis – joined up astatine Portland successful 1940 aged 21. He would service successful some the Middle East and New Guinea campaigns, serving with some the 2/2 Australian General Hospital and AIF 9th Division Headquarters. He would bring location an astonishing postulation of photographs documenting beingness successful British Mandate-era Palestine.

Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre, photographed by Boris Segal, c1940. Aron Segal Collection.

Aron’s two Anzac relatives who would beryllium killed successful the war would dice successful distant battlefields serving the caller state that they had made home. Lance Sergeant Abraham Beth-Halevy had been calved successful Kalish successful Imperial Russia (now Poland) successful 1913 and was Aron’s mother’s fiancé. Enlisting successful 1942, helium was serving with the 2/12th Battalion when helium was killed successful enactment during the vital conflict of Shaggy Ridge successful New Guinea successful January 1944. He is buried successful Lae War Cemetery. Major Zelman Schwartz was a elder aesculapian serviceman who commanded the 2/4th Australian General Hospital successful the Middle East. He had besides been calved successful Imperial Russia, arriving successful Australia successful 1902. The 42-year-old Zelman was surviving successful Malvern when helium joined the Australian Army Medical Corps successful 1940. He was killed on with galore staff and patients successful a daylight German bombing raid connected the intelligibly marked infirmary connected 10 April 1941. He is buried astatine the Tobruk Cemetery. I retrieve Tobruk veteran Gil Easton telling maine of his being successful the infirmary when it was bombed.

The harm to the Tobruk religion reveals the ταξινόμηση of aerial onslaught that killed Major Zelman Schwartz. Gil Easton Collection SLV.

The Jewish volunteers who served during the Gallipoli campaign, astir whom I wrote before, besides came to Lemnos. Just arsenic their comrades successful the Second World War successful Greece did, they performed vital engineering and supply functions successful support of the campaign. They service arsenic a reminder that the Allied campaigns successful Greece during some world wars progressive work unit from astir the globe.

These connections would stretch backmost to Australia and connected to different Anzac campaigns. The work of the Segal clan should beryllium remembered.

*Jim Claven OAM is simply a trained historian, freelance writer and published author; his books see Lemnos & Gallipoli Revealed, From Imbros Over The Sea and Grecian Adventure—he is the Associate Producer of the documentary connected the 1941 Greek campaign, Anzac The Greek Chapter.