Russian AnzacsIvan Frederick Lowack Selman
| Alias | Eric Frederick Lorrie Selmen; Ivan Ivanovitch Selmen; Otto Selman; Leon Selman |
|---|---|
| Russian spelling | Иван Иванович Селман |
| Born | 1894 |
| Place | Mitava (Jelgava) or Riga, Latvia |
| Ethnic origin | Latvian / Russian? |
| Religion | Russian Orthodox |
| Residence before arrival at Australia | Studied for 2 years at a military college, St Petersburg |
| Arrived at Australia |
from from New Zealand (?) |
| Residence before enlistment | Sydney, Melbourne |
| Occupation | 1915, 1917 medical student |
| Naturalisation | Served as Russian subject |
| Residence after the war | Ballarat, Castlemain, Brisbane, Adelaide, Geelong, Melbourne, Tasmania |
Service #1 – Depot (New Zealand)
| Enlisted | 1914 (?) |
|---|---|
| Place of enlistment | Wellington, NZ |
| Unit | 1st NZ Mounted Rifles |
| Rank | Private |
| Discharged | 1915 MU |
Service #2
| Service number | 4240 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted | 30.12.1915 |
| Place of enlistment | Sydney |
| Unit | 17th Battalion |
| Rank | Private |
| Place | Egypt, England, 1916 |
| Final fate | RTA 31.08.1916 |
| Discharged | 30.12.1916 MU |
Service #3
| Service number | 7324 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted | 19.01.1917 |
| Place of enlistment | Gulgong, Victoria |
| Unit | 7th Battalion |
| Rank | Private |
| Place | England, 1917 |
| Final fate | RTA 22.07.1917 |
| Discharged | 4.06.1918 MU |
Materials
Digitised service records (NAA) (Selman Ivan Frederick Lowack)
Digitised Embarkation roll entry (AWM)
Alien registration (NAA) (Selman Ivan Leon)
I.F.L. Selman Military History (NAA)
Personal case file (NAA)
Blog article
Newspaper articles
Police court - Adelaide. - Express and Telegraph, Adelaide, 13 August 1920, p. 2.
From Russian Anzacs in Australian History:
Ivan Frederick Lowack Selman was another for whom the evidence pointed towards his being Russian, despite his name and his Latvian birthplace. When receiving his pension, in Australia, Selman gave his first names in the typically Russian form, Ivan Ivanovich; he was also Greek Orthodox and had studied for two years in a St Petersburg military college -- all reason enough to consider him Russian, too, and not Latvian, nor German.