The Australian War Memorial Collection. Test site
Improvised wooden sign with 'Nach Fromelles' [To Fromelles] above an arrow stencilled in black paint.
This sign was found on the battlefield of Fromelles. Fromelles was the first major battle fought by Australian troops on the Western Front. Directed against a strong German position known as the Sugar Loaf salient, the attack was intended primarily as a feint to draw the Germans from the main Somme offensive, then being pursued further to the south. A seven-hour preparatory bombardment deprived the attack of any hope of surprise, and ultimately proved ineffective in subduing the well-entrenched defenders.
When the troops of the 5th Australian and 61st British Divisions attacked at 6 pm on 19 July 1916, they suffered heavy losses at the hands of German machine-gunners. Small sections of the German trenches were captured by the 8th and 14th Australian Brigades, but, without flanking support and subjected to fierce counter-attacks, they were forced to withdraw. By 8 am on 20 July the battle was over. The 5th Australian Division suffered 5,533 casualties, rendering it incapable of offensive action for many months; the 61st British Division suffered 1,547. German casualties were little more than 1,000. The attack was a complete and costly failure as the Germans realised within a few hours it was merely a feint, and made no impact whatsoever upon the progress of the Somme offensive.
Sign constructed from three wooden planks with back bracing and metal nails. 'Nach Fromelles' [to Fromelles] and an arrow are stencilled in black paint on the front. The nails are hammered half way in
Split wooden trench sign with a later wooden brace nailed to the back for additional support. Stencilled black paint on the front is: 'TRENCH N 92, BAY 12'. Sign found in British trenches from whic
German corkscrew barbed wire entanglement support. The support has four loops to carry strands of barbed wire. The lower 400mm, intended to be screwed into the ground, is shaped into a corkscrew. The
Hollow pressed metal kilometre marker with raised lettering, an arched top and a square body which widens at the base and sits on four feet. The front of the marker reads, 'NORD' above a frame with le
Two sections of barbed wire. The first is the British style, with two strands of wore with a circular profile twisted together with thinner strands twisted around one of the main wires to make barb. T
Wooden duckboard constructed with iron nails. The boards are nailed across three long sections of wood which may once have been painted in green and brown. There is additional bracing beneath the cros
