The Western Australian public is invited to reflect on the extraordinary life of Arthur Leggett on Saturday May 10.
There will be a military-led procession from the Parliament House precinct, down St Georges Terrace, flanked by a gun carriage and the WA army band.
The march will conclude at St George’s Cathedral where a State Funeral service will be held to honour WA’s oldest surviving ex-prisoner of war.
Mr Leggett spent much of his time in his later years with students at Mt Lawley Senior High School and in a fitting tribute the school’s choir will be involved in the State Funeral service.
Further details will be announced as arrangements are worked through with his family.
Mr Leggett sadly passed away on Sunday April 6, surrounded by family. He was born on September 8, 1918 and bravely fought in the Second World War.
Mr Leggett was trained as a signaller, responsible for crucial communications between companies and battalion headquarters. He served in the Middle East, fighting in Libya, Greece, and Crete, enduring the punishing extremes of desert warfare, and never wavering in his duties.
In 1941, at the age of 22 Mr Leggett was captured following the Battle of Crete, transported by ship to Germany where he was imprisoned along with other Allied soldiers in a German prisoner of war camp, before being marched 800 kilometres across mountainous terrain without food or water as the German army attempted to keep the POWs ahead of the advancing Allies.
After nearly four years of imprisonment, Mr Leggett was liberated by U.S. forces and returned home, where he raised a loving family and selflessly dedicated the rest of his life to ensuring that the sacrifices of his fellow veterans would be remembered for generations to come.
Mr Leggett served with distinction as President of the Ex-Prisoners of War Association of WA for 29 years and was present for the Battle of Crete memorial dedication ceremony in May last year.
Mr Leggett is survived by his two daughters, six grandchildren and thirteen great grandchildren.
“This is a gift from Arthur Leggett’s family to the State as they share a very personal moment of grief,” Premier Roger Cook said.
“It is a fitting tribute to a man who was not only responsible for acts of personal bravery, but a man who gave so much to his community.
“The service and accompanying procession through the city will be an opportunity for Western Australians to pay their respects to a man who protected the way of life we all hold dear.
“I’m so pleased we are able to honour Arthur Leggett’s life with the send-off he deserves – which for many Western Australians will be unlike anything they have seen in their lifetime.”
