27. WW1 – Somme & Fromelles

The ‘Tragedy’, the ‘Waste’, and the ‘Futility’, of the ‘Great War’

Saluting their Service – Grahame Old

The Battle of the Somme

The Battle of the Somme took place between the 1st of July and the 18th of November 1916. The battle was fought by British and French forces against Germany. It took place on both banks of the River Somme in France. The battle epitomizes the horrors of warfare particularly in the First World War, and is remembered as one of the most tragic episodes in human history. Following a week of heavy allied bombardment over 100,000 British soldiers were sent ‘over the top’ to advance over 900 yards of open ground to attack the firmly entrenched German forces.

The 1st of July 1916 was a disaster for the British Army. It was a bright summer’s day, the sun well up, and falling from the east on the backs of the German defenders and into the faces of the British. Officers sounded their whistles, and their men scrambled up ladders to get out of the trenches and into No Man’s Land. As the soldiers advanced they were mown down by machine gun and rifle fire, whole battalions of young men marched to their death. On that day alone 19,240 British soldiers lost their lives; the total of 57,470 casualties was and remains the highest casualty rate suffered by the British army in a single day. Similar casualty rates were experienced by the French soldiers fighting alongside the British.

The Somme is one of the bloodiest battles in human history. Over the 5 month period of that battle total casualties are estimated to be; British 420,000, French 200,000 and German 500,000. A total of over a million young men, either killed or badly wounded and for what; the British Army had advanced a mere seven miles and the war continued for another two years. A German officer, Friedrich Steinbrecher later wrote: “Somme. The whole history of the world cannot contain a more ghastly word.”

Battle of Fromelles

On the 19th of July 1916, as British and French soldiers were falling at the Somme, further north near the town of Fromelles another disastrous attack was about to take place. Soldiers of the newly arrived 5th Australian Division, together with the British 61st Division, were ordered to attack strongly fortified German front line positions near the Aubers Ridge in French Flanders. The battle of Fromelles was a bloody initiation to warfare on the western front for the Australian soldiers. The attack was intended as a feint to hold German reserves from moving south to re-inforce the German army at the Somme. The feint was a disastrous failure. Australian and British soldiers assaulted over open ground in broad daylight and under direct observation and heavy fire from the German lines. Over 5,500 Australians became casualties. Almost 2,000 of them were killed in action or died of wounds and some 400 were captured. The British reported some 1500 casualties. No tactical advantage resulted from the action and Fromelles remains among the most tragic disasters in Australian military history.

Australia’s own famed 15th AIF Brigade Commander, Brigadier General Harold Edward (Pompey) Elliott had argued aggressively against the decision from British high command to attack the firmly entrenched enemy at Fromelles, he insisted that the plan was flawed and would result in a ‘bloody holocaust’, however he was overruled, and the attack took place. Fromelles was, as Elliott had predicted, a disaster and remains the worst 24 hrs in Australian military history. The AIF 5th Division lost 5,533 casualties, 1804 were from Elliott’s 15th Brigade. Loved by his soldiers, Pompey Elliott was ‘distraught’ he had predicted the result, tried to prevent it and now had to deal with the aftermath. He greeted survivors with ‘tears streaming down his face’.

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The Missing Soldiers at Fromelles – VC Corner Cemetery

Over two years after the battle, on the day of the Armistice, 11 November 1918, when the guns of the Western Front finally ceased firing, Australian official war correspondent, Charles Bean, wandered over the battlefield of Fromelles and observed the grisly aftermath of the battle: “We found the old No-Man’s-Land simply full of our dead”, he recorded, “the skulls and bones and torn uniforms were lying about everywhere”. Soon after the war these remains were gathered to construct VC Corner Cemetery, the only solely Australian war cemetery in France. It is also the only cemetery without headstones. There are no epitaphs to individual soldiers, simply a stone wall inscribed with the names of 1,299 Australians who died in battle nearby and who have no known graves. The unidentified remains of 410 are buried in mass graves under two grass plots in the cemetery. For nearly 80 years this sombre monument remained the only conspicuous reminder of the tragic events of Fromelles until, in July 1998, a new Park was dedicated at the site.

The Australian Memorial Park

Situated close to VC Corner Cemetery on a part of the old German front line which was briefly captured and held overnight by the 14th Australian Brigade on 19/20 July, the park includes the stark remains of four German block-houses. A bronze statue, titled ‘Cobbers’, by Australian sculptor Peter Corlett, depicts Sergeant Simon Fraser of the 57th Battalion in an enduring image of the aftermath of the battle, the rescue of the wounded.

Fromelles (Pheasant Wood) Military Cemetery

Until recent years, 1,335 Australian soldiers remained ‘missing’ from the Fromelles battle, having no known grave. Then in 2007, following persistent research by retired Melbourne teacher, Lambis Englezos, archaeological investigations began to uncover the remains of some 200 Australian and 50 British soldiers who were buried in a mass grave at Pheasant Wood by German troops in 1916. Between 30 January and 19 February 2010, the remains of 249 soldiers were reinterred with full military honours in Fromelles (Pheasant Wood) Military Cemetery, newly constructed by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Over 90 Australian soldiers were identified by name and more may still be identified. Identification of the bodies proved difficult, many of the objects that would identify them had decayed and disappeared over the last 90 years. DNA has been used to successfully identify a number of the soldiers, though sadly many remain unknown.

The Search Continues

On 19 July 2010, the 94th anniversary of the Battle of Fromelles the last of 203 Australian soldiers recovered from the excavation, were buried in a solemn ceremony with full military honours. Later that day, a private ceremony was held for families of identified soldiers to dedicate the named headstones within the cemetery. The Identification process continues to the present day, with a further 5 soldiers identified in 2023 and another 7 in 2024.

Collie Boys – WW1

563 ‘Collie Boys’ served during WW1, 133 Collie Boys were killed in action. 80 Collie soldiers are buried and identified in Cemetery Graves close to where they fell, the majority being in France, Belgium and in Turkey (Gallipoli). The cemeteries are meticulously cared for by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC). 53 Collie soldiers have no known grave.

                                                                          ‘Lest we Forget’

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Australian Infantry

Soldiers of the 53rd Australian Infantry Battalion waiting to don their equipment for the attack at Fromelles. Only three of these men survived the action and those three were badly wounded.

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