Why Is There an Australian Memorial at Villers-Bretonneux, France?

Villers-Bretonneux Australian National Memorial

Answer: Near the sites of several of the notable victories of Australian forces in France, Villers-Bretonneux is the principal memorial to the Australians who served and died on the Western Front in the Great War.

On 21 March 1918, after massing forces for one last offensive on the Western Front, the German Army staged a stunning breakthrough of the British lines in the St. Quentin area near Péronne, France. Their intention was to drive a wedge between the British Empire and French forces on the Western Front and capture key ports. The British were forced back across the old Somme battlefields of 1916. To the south, French divisions also fell back and reinforcements were rushed in. The Australian Corps, north of the German breakthrough, was ordered south to assist British and Canadian forces. Over the next month the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Australian Divisions fought at a number of locations in the area of the Ancre and Somme rivers. One of the key battles was by the 5th Division at Villers-Bretonneux on 24–25 April 1918.

Villers-Bretonneux was a key position, sitting on a plateau overlooking the lower area of the Somme, Avre, and Noye rivers. On 4 April, the Germans reached Monument Wood, on the edge of Villers- Bretonneux. Among those facing the enemy were Australians of the 9th Brigade. When it looked as if the shattered village might fall, troops of its 36th Battalion charged and the Germans at Monument Wood retreated. The line in this sector was then secured for the time being.

The Fighting in the Area Depicted at the Memorial's
Monash Centre Museum

On 17–18 April, after battles elsewhere, the Germans again began focusing on Villers-Bretonneux. German artillery lobbed mustard gas shells into the woods and gullies behind the township, inflicting over 1,000 casualties on Australian and British forces. Over the next few days, British divisions took over this sector, but at dawn on 24 April the Germans again attacked strongly and in spite of intense fighting, Villers-Bretonneux fell. That day, British and German tank crews engaged in the first-ever tank duel—one of the German tanks, Mephisto, was later captured and is a prized exhibit at the Queensland Museum, a unique tangible link to this historic battle. British commanders planned an immediate counterattack as they needed to recapture Villers-Bretonneux before the Germans could complete their defensive works. The 13th and 15th Brigades, making up two-thirds of the 5th Australian Division, were given the task. The brigade commanders, Brigadier Generals William Glasgow and Harold "Pompey" Elliott, ordered to attack the village frontally in daylight, refused. It most likely would have failed and the casualty count would have been high. As Glasgow declared, "If God Almighty gave the order, we couldn't do it by daylight."

Many doubted the counterattack could succeed. One infantryman wrote that it was "an almost impossible proposition." The Australian official historian, Charles Bean, who was nearby, scrawled in his diary: "I don't believe they have a chance." The 13th Brigade assembled for the main assault to start at 10 P.M., earlier than Glasgow wanted. The Germans spotted his troops assembling and began firing from the heights. As the Australians advanced, they came under heavy machine gun fire from woodlands. Sergeant Charlie Stokes, 51st Battalion, urged his platoon commander, Lieutenant C.W.K. Sadlier, to deviate from the plan and enter the wood to disable the machine guns. They destroyed six machine-gun posts in quick succession, enabling the advance to continue. For their initiative, leadership and gallantry, Stokes was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal and Sadlier the Victoria Cross. On the other side of Villers-Bretonneux, to the north, the 15th Brigade also advanced.

Villers-Bretonneux After the April Battles

The troops pushed hard to move past the village and, in a classic pincer movement, link up with the 13th Brigade to encircle the village and trap German troops holding it. In the darkness and confusion of battle, the 13th Brigade was not able to reach its final objective, pulling back slightly to consolidate. This meant the village was not completely encircled and some German troops managed to escape. After daylight, the Australians pushed on and filled the gap, encircling and liberating the village. It never again, during World War I, fell into enemy hands.

The capture of Villers-Bretonneux with such speed and finesse astounded troops on both sides. It was another shattering blow to the Germans, whose last great offensive faltered. A British observer described it as "perhaps the greatest individual feat of the war" up to that time. The cost to Australia was some 2,500 men killed or wounded. On 4 July the Australian Corps with a little American help would capture the village of Hamel, just north of Villers-Bretonneux in General Monash's tactical masterpiece. In August they would launch their component of the successful Battle of Amiens from the sector.

Australian Soldiers and a British Tank, 8 August 1918

At the conclusion of the First World War, the Australian Government approved the erection of a National Memorial at Villers-Bretonneux to commemorate the deeds of the Australian Imperial Forces on the Western Front.

Owing principally to the financial situation during the depression years, the construction of the memorial was delayed. The memorial was eventually dedicated on 8 August 1938 by King George VI of England, in the presence of the queen, the president of France, Monsieur Albert Le Brun, Australia's deputy prime minister Sir Earl Page and General Lord Birdwood, commander of operations at Gallipoli. The memorial consists of a great central tower flanked by wing walls carrying panels commemorating the 10,772 Australian casualties who died in France and who have no known grave.

The Villers-Bretonneux area again became a battlefield during the Second World War, and the memorial was extensively damaged. The two stone pavilions situated at the end of each wing of the structure were hit by shellfire and some of their columns were broken. The walls, inscribed with the names of fallen Australian soldiers were very pitted and some obliterated. 

(From the Australian Office of War Graves)