Australian Army First World War Military Medal recipient. Attended Gordon Public School, New South Wales and served four years in the senior cadets before joining the part time 19th Australian Infantry Battalion, Citizen Military Forces. He was a carter living in Paddington, Sydney, when he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 28 July 1915. Hughes was appointed to the 3rd Australian Infantry Battalion as a private and was allotted service number 3318. He embarked from Sydney, New South Wales, on board HMAT A14 Euripides on 2 November 1915 for Egypt where on 16 February 1916 was taken on strength of the newly formed 53rd Battalion of the newly formed 5th Australian Division. Volunteers were called to form the artillery regiments of the 5th Division and Hughes transferred to the artillery on 26 March. He embarked on the Ionian on 7 June which arrived eight days later at Marseilles, France. He served with the 25th Field Artillery Brigade before transferring to the 5th Division Trench Mortar Battery on 21 January 1917 and to the Australian Corps Heavy Trench Mortar Battery on 16 February 1918. He was wounded in action on 10 April 1918 in Northern France during the Battle of the Lys which is when the battery was involved in a firefight with advancing German infantry. Hughes was evacuated and fourteen days later it was announced in Routine Orders that he had been awarded the Military Medal for bravery in the field. The award was confirmed in the London Gazette on 6 August. He re-joined his unit on 26 April, was appointed temporary bombardier on 1 August and transferred to the 3rd Australian Field Brigade on 23 August. He was appointed bombardier on 10 January 1919 and embarked at Southampton, England for Australia on 6 July. Hughes was discharged in New South Wales on 20 October 1919. He was residing in Ryde in the Sydney Metropolitan area when he died at Concord Repatriation General Hospital.