Julian Orlov was born in Moscow (or in Lodz) in a Jewish family of cotton manufacturers. He studied at Moscow University and was most likely a political escapee from Russia. He was in Egypt when the war broke out and joined the Zion Mule Corps of the British Army, serving as David Weinberg. He was wounded at Gallipoli, evacuated to Egypt and sailed to Australia. After working for three months on a farm he enlisted in the AIF in Newcastle.
He served with the 34th Battalion on the Western Front, attaining the rank of Sergeant. He was mentioned in despatches for conspicuous bravery and gallantry in a June 1917 offensive and was severely wounded in July 1917, probably at Messines, and returned to Australia.
After the war he married an Australian girl, Mary Bridget Macfarlane, and took up farming in the Bilambil Soldier Settlement, becoming an active member of local community and contributing scores of letters and articles to the local newspaper. He joined the 2nd AIF in WWII and served in a training battalion.
John William Blankenberg, a seaman from Latvia, enlisted in the AIF in Melbourne.
He served with the 24th Battalion on the Western Front. In March 1918 he was gassed, but rejoined his battalion and was awarded the Military Medal for bravery in the field during the attack on Ville-sur-Ancre in May 1918. His heroism was mentioned in Charles Bean’s official history of Australian participation in WWI. In October 1918 he was killed during the attack on the Hindenburg line.
Anthony Lind from Finland participated in the Boer War in the Cape Colony Cycle Corps; he naturalized in South Africa. Coming to Australia, he worked as a prospector in Western Australia.
Enlisting in the AIF he came to the Western Front with the 11th Battalion, but soon became sick and was repatriated to Australia.
After the war he lived in Linden, a remote part of Western Australia, working as a prospector.
George Ferber, a Jewish man from Melitopol, came to Australia from Harbin, where his family lived. In Australia he worked as a draper.
Enlisting in the AIF in Brisbane he was discharged five months later as medically unfit. A few months later he re-enlisted in Sydney, giving his occupation as a stockman, and was allocated to a Camel Regiment; he served in Egypt and Palestine.
After the war he left Australia for the USA, where he married and lived in Los Angeles.
Russian Anzacs