The night air was surprisingly mild as we left our beds at 2.30am on Anzac Day to drive the 90 kilometers to Villers-Bretonneux.
Traffic restrictions were in place to prepare for the numbers expected to attend the dawn service, which meant we parked our cars in the village and walked the two kilometers out of town to the Australian National Memorial and War Cemetary which sits on the high point of the landscape. As we walked through village there were a few residents standing on their front steps in their pyjamas offering a welcoming 'bonjour' as we passed by.
It was eerie walking along the unlit country road, the distant lights of the Australian Memorial our guiding beacon and I don't think any of our group will ever forget the feeling as we arrived at that sacred place. When we arrive we are flanked on both sides by rows of white head stones detailing the epitaphs of men who didn't come home. Our arrival felt like a pilgrimage and that we were being 'welcomed' by these rows of young diggers who forever lie in this now green and beautiful corner of northern France. On this Easter Monday morning we were also welcomed by Australian service men and women distributing the commemorative order of service and small pins. So strange to hear so many Australian voices.
With the moon low in the south-east sky, at 5.30am the flood lights dimmed and the ceremony began with the bugler's call to stand to arms - to remember and to honour.
The ceremony was elegantly MC'd by our Canberra friend Chris Appleton and moving commemorative address made by Foreign Minister, Kevin Rudd (who had stopped to say hello to us as he arrived), As the sky lightened behind the great monument, the temperature dipped and all that could be heard were birds trilling in the distance. It was impossible not to think of what these young lives would have been like if they had lived.
Then the first rays of sun shone over the monument.
There were hymns and prayers and the ceremony concluded with official wreath laying and of course, the Ode of Remembrance, Last Post and a minute's silence.
My thoughts then were with my grandfather, Roland George, and his three brothers. Four sons, men of the Australian Imperial Forces, fighting a war in this corner of France 93 years ago. Miraculously four sons returned alive.
On 29 July 1915, Roland George travelled to Toowoomba, Queensland and enlisted in the 5th Light Horse Regiment of the AIF. On 4 October 1915 His Majesty's Australian Transport ship Mashobra took Roly and several hundred young recruits from a wharf in Sydney to Cairo, Egypt. During the first half of 1916 he was in Maadi with the 13th Field Artillery Brigade - 49th Battalion.
Many Australian troops returned from the disastrous Gallipoli campaign to Egypt where another three infantry divisions were raised, the 3rd, 4th and 5th. And from March 1916 the infantry units were transferred from Egypt to Europe for service on the Western Front. Itwas with the 5th Division, 14th Field Artillery Brigade, 55th Battalion that Roly embarked for Marsailles, France and then north to the Western Front.
This is what the Australian War Memorial says about the 55th Battalion:
The 55th Battalion was raised in Egypt in 1916 as part of the 'doubling' of the AIF. Half of its recruits were Gallipoli veterans and the other half, fresh reinforcements from Australia. Reflecting the composition of the 3rd, the 55th was predominantly composed of men from New South Wales. The battalion became part of the 14th Brigade of the 5th Australian Division.
Arriving in France on 30 June 1916, the battalion entered the frontline trenches for the first time on 12 July and fought its first major battle at Fromelles a week later. The battle was a disaster, resulting in heavy casualties across the division. Although in reserve, the 55th was quickly committed to the attack and eventually played a critical role, forming the rearguard for the 14th Brigade's withdrawal. Despite its grievous losses the 5th Division continued to man the front in the Fromelles sector for a further two months.
After a freezing winter manning trenches in the Somme Valley, in early 1917 the 55th Battalion participated in the advance that followed the German retreat to the Hindenburg Line. It was spared the assault but did, however, defend gains made during the second battle of Bullecourt. Later in the year, the AIF's focus of operations switched to the Ypres sector in Belgium. The 55th's major battle here was at Polygon Wood on 26 September.
With the collapse of Russia in October 1917, a major German offensive on the Western Front was expected in early 1918. This came in late March and the 5th Division moved to defend the sector around Corbie. The 14th Brigade took up positions to the north of Villers-Bretoneux and held these even when the village fell, threatening their flanks.
Once the German offensive had been defeated, the Allies launched their own offensive in August 1918. The 14th Brigade did not play a major role in these operations until late in the month, but its actions were critical to the capture of Perrone, which fell on 2 September. The 55th fought its last major battle of the war, St Quentin Canal, between 29 September and 2 October 1918.
The battalion was resting out of the line when the Armstice was declared on 11 November. The progressive return of troops to Australia for discharge resulted in the 55th merging with the 53rd battalion on 10 March 1919, and the combined 53rd/55th Battalion, in turn, disbanded on 11 April.
From Weymouth, England the Royal Mail Steamer Orontes set out and my great grandmother Mary was advised on 12 June 1919 that Roly would be returning to Australia. The Orontes delivered him safely back to Australian shores on the first day of July 1919.
The National Anthems of both countries were sung and the ceremony was over. It was wonderful to sing enthusiastically the rousing La Marseillaise. In a touching gesture the village of Villers-Bretonneux provided and served breakfast of coffee and croissants.
Together, in the early dawn, alongside the heavily dew-laden fields we slowly walked back to the village. We gathered in a cafe and discussed the experience we had had. Unanimously, we felt privileged to have attended, to have paid our respects and to have remembered.
Traffic restrictions were in place to prepare for the numbers expected to attend the dawn service, which meant we parked our cars in the village and walked the two kilometers out of town to the Australian National Memorial and War Cemetary which sits on the high point of the landscape. As we walked through village there were a few residents standing on their front steps in their pyjamas offering a welcoming 'bonjour' as we passed by.
It was eerie walking along the unlit country road, the distant lights of the Australian Memorial our guiding beacon and I don't think any of our group will ever forget the feeling as we arrived at that sacred place. When we arrive we are flanked on both sides by rows of white head stones detailing the epitaphs of men who didn't come home. Our arrival felt like a pilgrimage and that we were being 'welcomed' by these rows of young diggers who forever lie in this now green and beautiful corner of northern France. On this Easter Monday morning we were also welcomed by Australian service men and women distributing the commemorative order of service and small pins. So strange to hear so many Australian voices.
With the moon low in the south-east sky, at 5.30am the flood lights dimmed and the ceremony began with the bugler's call to stand to arms - to remember and to honour.
The ceremony was elegantly MC'd by our Canberra friend Chris Appleton and moving commemorative address made by Foreign Minister, Kevin Rudd (who had stopped to say hello to us as he arrived), As the sky lightened behind the great monument, the temperature dipped and all that could be heard were birds trilling in the distance. It was impossible not to think of what these young lives would have been like if they had lived.
Then the first rays of sun shone over the monument.
There were hymns and prayers and the ceremony concluded with official wreath laying and of course, the Ode of Remembrance, Last Post and a minute's silence.
My thoughts then were with my grandfather, Roland George, and his three brothers. Four sons, men of the Australian Imperial Forces, fighting a war in this corner of France 93 years ago. Miraculously four sons returned alive.
On 29 July 1915, Roland George travelled to Toowoomba, Queensland and enlisted in the 5th Light Horse Regiment of the AIF. On 4 October 1915 His Majesty's Australian Transport ship Mashobra took Roly and several hundred young recruits from a wharf in Sydney to Cairo, Egypt. During the first half of 1916 he was in Maadi with the 13th Field Artillery Brigade - 49th Battalion.
Many Australian troops returned from the disastrous Gallipoli campaign to Egypt where another three infantry divisions were raised, the 3rd, 4th and 5th. And from March 1916 the infantry units were transferred from Egypt to Europe for service on the Western Front. Itwas with the 5th Division, 14th Field Artillery Brigade, 55th Battalion that Roly embarked for Marsailles, France and then north to the Western Front.
This is what the Australian War Memorial says about the 55th Battalion:
The 55th Battalion was raised in Egypt in 1916 as part of the 'doubling' of the AIF. Half of its recruits were Gallipoli veterans and the other half, fresh reinforcements from Australia. Reflecting the composition of the 3rd, the 55th was predominantly composed of men from New South Wales. The battalion became part of the 14th Brigade of the 5th Australian Division.
Arriving in France on 30 June 1916, the battalion entered the frontline trenches for the first time on 12 July and fought its first major battle at Fromelles a week later. The battle was a disaster, resulting in heavy casualties across the division. Although in reserve, the 55th was quickly committed to the attack and eventually played a critical role, forming the rearguard for the 14th Brigade's withdrawal. Despite its grievous losses the 5th Division continued to man the front in the Fromelles sector for a further two months.
After a freezing winter manning trenches in the Somme Valley, in early 1917 the 55th Battalion participated in the advance that followed the German retreat to the Hindenburg Line. It was spared the assault but did, however, defend gains made during the second battle of Bullecourt. Later in the year, the AIF's focus of operations switched to the Ypres sector in Belgium. The 55th's major battle here was at Polygon Wood on 26 September.
With the collapse of Russia in October 1917, a major German offensive on the Western Front was expected in early 1918. This came in late March and the 5th Division moved to defend the sector around Corbie. The 14th Brigade took up positions to the north of Villers-Bretoneux and held these even when the village fell, threatening their flanks.
Once the German offensive had been defeated, the Allies launched their own offensive in August 1918. The 14th Brigade did not play a major role in these operations until late in the month, but its actions were critical to the capture of Perrone, which fell on 2 September. The 55th fought its last major battle of the war, St Quentin Canal, between 29 September and 2 October 1918.
The battalion was resting out of the line when the Armstice was declared on 11 November. The progressive return of troops to Australia for discharge resulted in the 55th merging with the 53rd battalion on 10 March 1919, and the combined 53rd/55th Battalion, in turn, disbanded on 11 April.
From Weymouth, England the Royal Mail Steamer Orontes set out and my great grandmother Mary was advised on 12 June 1919 that Roly would be returning to Australia. The Orontes delivered him safely back to Australian shores on the first day of July 1919.
The National Anthems of both countries were sung and the ceremony was over. It was wonderful to sing enthusiastically the rousing La Marseillaise. In a touching gesture the village of Villers-Bretonneux provided and served breakfast of coffee and croissants.
Together, in the early dawn, alongside the heavily dew-laden fields we slowly walked back to the village. We gathered in a cafe and discussed the experience we had had. Unanimously, we felt privileged to have attended, to have paid our respects and to have remembered.
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| Australian National Memorial Villers-Bretonneux |
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| Arriving at the memorial visitors are flanked by white headstones |
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| ANZAC Day 2011 wreaths |
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| Looking over the green fields of France to the village of Villers-Bretonneux |
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| As E has spent Anzac Day in hospital, we returned later in the week. |
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| "They rest in peace, while over them all Australia’s tower keeps watch and ward" |
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