Tuesday, March28, 2017 stanthorpeborderpost.com.au LOCAL LIFE LIFE 9 Australian lives lost during Bullecourt Granite Belt soldiers battle

Peter McLady Australian history: “With this bloody disaster BULLECOURT is another began a struggle to which Granite Belt community rich Lone Pine, Verdun, and in Australian military Passchendaele alone are history. The name is applied comparable: a battle which to two battles, unrelieved in raged to and fro for five their horror, that cost weeks, over a few square LEST WE FORGETl Slouch Hat Memorial at Bullecourt, France. PHOTOS: CONTRIBUTED Australian forces dearly. miles of ground, ceaseless, After the Australian unrelieved in its horror, The Australians found the German wire. occupation of Bapaume in unsurpassed in the quantity themselves cut off from their “In all that day’s great March 1917, AIF military and degree of the human rear by enemy shellfire and battle, the only objectives operations focused on the agony, the sacrifice, the machine gun fire. reached and finally held areas to the east and gallantry displayed; a battle In the face of counter were those of the Canadians north-east of the town. whose fury is unsurpassed attacking by the Germans, in the extreme north, and of The German forces had in the history of war. the Australians had no the 6th Australian Brigade taken up position in the “Bullecourt represents for choice but to retreat through in the extreme south,” Mr heavily fortified Hindenburg Australians a greater sum of the heavy fire back to their Bean wrote. Line. sorrow and honour than any starting lines. The 1st Division AIF This consisted of virtually other place in the world.” Nearly 1200 Australian arrived in support on May 4 impregnable underground On April 9, 1917, it was soldiers were taken prisoner, and, when the fighting garrisons where the soldiers planned that 12 British tanks the largest number in any across the front had died were protected from would break down the battle of the war. down, Bullecourt became the artillery fire and all types of German barbed wire at The battle lasted 10 hours focus of an epic struggle. weather. Bullecourt, ahead of an and, in that time, the 4th Despite enduring an As added protection, many infantry advance. Brigade – which had sent enemy bombardment villages ahead of the line 3000 officers and men into described by the Australians were fortified and battle – suffered 2339 as “perhaps worse than garrisoned. As at casualties. Pozieres” and numerous The Australian 2nd and The 12th Brigade had 2000 German counter attacks, the 5th divisions advanced Pozieres, men actually engaged and Australians held their against the fortified villages ❝results suffered 950 casualties. captured section of the where, unlike the mud of One of the casualties was Hindenburg Line. Flanders and The Somme, strategically Private Edwin Hindmarsh, of By May 10, with both the the fighting took place important were Lyra, south of Stanthorpe. AIF 1st and 2nd Divisions across unscarred open He was killed by shrapnel exhausted, the 5th Division fields. clutched for by while the 15th Battalion was was brought into the The German outposts impossible tactics waiting to go over for the fighting. were captured, but at the attack at Bullecourt. The Second Battle of cost of many Australian —Charles Bean Edwin Hindmarsh has no Bullecourt, although casualties. known grave but is originally planned to involve The Australian troops The next day the 4th Jean and Denise Letaille Museum at Bullecourt. remembered with honour on one Australian Division, had then advanced upon Division AIF was ordered to the wall of the Australian by now drawn in three Bullecourt, a village that prepare for immediate National Memorial at divisions. The Germans formed part of the attack. Despite protests by the tanks were delayed by “By 7am the hulks of Villers-Bretonneux. undertook their final and Hindenburg Line. the Australian commanders, bad weather so the tanks were burning all over Private Albert Jolly, of most carefully planned Bullecourt became the Generals Birdwood and Australian troops withdrew the battlefield.” Thulimbah, was also in the attempt to recapture scene of two great battles White, the attack went and the attack was Despite the failure of the 15th Battalion. Bullecourt at dawn on May fought by the AIF in April ahead and the Australian rescheduled for dawn on tank attack and a lack of He was severely wounded 15. They were driven back by and May 1917. troops took up position out April 11. This time four tanks supporting artillery, some in the leg at Bullecourt and the Australian 14th Brigade. In his book, To the Last in the snow on the night of reached the battlefield on Australian troops fought was captured as a prisoner The fighting continued Ridge, Sergeant Walter April 10. time but none reached the their way to the Hindenburg of war. Albert died of his until May 17, when the Downing describes why There they waited in vain enemy wire before the Line and, for a time, wounds in hospital on April German army decided to Bullecourt held such a for the tanks to arrive. advancing Australian occupied part of the 21 and was buried in withdraw from Bullecourt. prominent place in As Charles Bean wrote, infantry. trenches. Hamburg, Germany. Four Australian divisions He was only 18 years old. fought in the two battles of The Second Battle of Bullecourt and suffered a Bullecourt was much better total of 10,000 casualties: planned and was part of a 3000 in the first battle and major British attack across a 7000 in the second. 25km front, the widest Some 2250 Australian attack undertaken by the soldiers who died at British at that time. Bullecourt have no known The 2nd Division AIF was grave. Apart from the given the task of capturing terrible losses, Mr Bean the German positions that described an important ran through Bullecourt as indirect effect. well as some villages “Bullecourt, more than beyond. any other battle, shook the The attack began at confidence of Australian 3.45am on May 3, with the soldiers in the capacity of 6th Brigade taking part of the British command; the their objective in the errors, especially on April 10 Hindenburg Line within an and 11 were obvious to hour. The 5th Brigade did almost everyone. not fare as well. “As at Pozieres, results It failed to take its first strategically important were objective and was caught by clutched for by impossible Australian Digger Memorial at Bullecourt. intense machine-gun fire at tactics,” he said.