Archie Fingher died after using brother’s name to enlist underage — his parents never knew the truth

Archie Fingher went to war aged 14 in search of adventure — a quest that led him to a prison camp where the worst atrocity of Australia’s military history would take place.

“Let me enlist, or I’ll run away and you’ll never know what happened to me.”

Aged just 14 and desperate for adventure, Archie Fingher could never have predicted how chillingly this emotional appeal to his parents would come true.

The teenager fudged his age and used his older brother’s name to go off to World War Two with his pals in their local gang.

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Five years later he was dead; one of almost 2,500 unarmed men, the majority Australians, who lost their lives in a desperate chain of events that culminated in the hideous Sandakan Death March — our nation’s worst military atrocity, yet a story that is little-remembered today.

Seeking adventure ... Archibald Fingher after enlisting at just 14 years old.

Archie’s parents, who reluctantly let him go, went to their own graves without ever discovering his fate.

“Uncle Archie has always been a big part of our family,” said his great-niece, Linda Clow. “My nan would talk about how awful it was not knowing what happened.”

In a bid to find the truth, seven members of the Clow family went to Borneo six years ago with historian Lynette Silver — Australia’s pre-eminent expert on Sandakan and a consultant to a new Anzac360 production telling the story in immersive virtual reality and 360-degree vision.

Hundreds of Aussies and Brits succumbed to disease, starvation and brutality in the notorious Sandakan prison camp, while more than a thousand were forced 250km across the rugged interior as an ever-weakening labour force in a series of “death marches”.

Only six survived, by escaping; the rest died from exhaustion, illness or at the hands of their guards in the final months of the war — and in some cases, murdered days after WWII officially ended.

‘A big part of our family’ ... great-nieces Linda Clow and Melanie Clow feel a great connection to Archie. Picture: Chris Kidd.

Fighting back tears, Hobart GP Dr Clow said the family at first thought he had been on the march, before “history detective” Mrs Silver was able to tell them he died of malaria in the camp.

“We were able to stand where we think his hut was, and walk where he walked,” she said. “And we were able to tell Nan what happened.”

They were also able to share the truth with Archie’s older brother Robert, whose identity Archie had “borrowed” to enlist. Ironically, Robert had been part of an Australian military unit preparing to rescue the Sandakan captives — a mission that never went ahead, due to what Mrs Silver says was bungled intelligence.

‘The Moonee Ponds Gang’ ... Archie, back right, enlisted with his mates. They were all older than him, but still underage. He is believed to have been the only one to go to Sandakan.

“Uncle Bob always felt guilty,” said Dr Clow, who believes the Sandakan story was at first covered up “because it was so horrific” — and as a result, remains relatively unknown compared to other wartime events.

She hailed the Anzac360 virtual reality film for bringing the story out, adding: “Hopefully this will get people talking about it.”

And the 45-year-old, whose three-year-old son is named Flynn Archie in honour of his great-great-uncle, said she will definitely show it to her grandmother, Archie’s sister.

“She will want to see it for sure.”

Just a boy ... Archie’s youth stands out in this photo taken at training camp before leaving Australia.

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See the new Anzac360 virtual reality films on Hellfire Pass and the Sandakan Death March by downloading the free Anzac360 app at the Apple Store, Google Play store or for your Oculus device.

It works best on phone, tablet or headset but can also be viewed on a desktop or laptop.