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<\/a>The location of the burial pits “before Pheasant Wood”, Fromelles<\/p><\/div>\n
As visitors to this web-site will be aware, the exhumation process has followed a long process commencing with Lambis Englezos, supported by Ward Selby and John Fielding, identifying that more than 160 Australian soldiers were not accounted for by burials of soldiers with known graves or burials of unknown soldiers.\u00a0 Their research led to confirmation that the Bavarian Regiment of the German Army issued instructions for the burial of up to 400 “English” soldiers “before Pheasant Wood” immediately following the battle.\u00a0 A German “death list” was provided by the Germans to the International Red Cross in November 1916\u00a0and in March 1917 identity discs were returned through the International Red Cross to the soldiers families.\u00a0 The German soldiers had removed the identity discs and buried the soldiers in 5\u00a0large pits.\u00a0 As the front-line area had been evacuated by civilians, by the time of the Armistice in November 1918, when the Allies were able to return to the area, the pits had\u00a0been filled in, overgrown and were no longer distinguishable.\u00a0 Subsequent inspections in 1919 and 1920 by the Australian War Graves Registration Section and the Australian Graves Services\u00a0were unable to locate the burial area, even though there were documentary records referring to them.<\/p>\n
Background to the battle and the battle tactics are\u00a0summarised in the Research area of this web site and may be accessed by clicking here<\/a><\/span>.\u00a0 The Australian Government Policy for Burial of War Dead is also in this Research area. Previous stories related to the “missing” Diggers of Fromelles can be viewed by entering the words “Pheasant Wood”, “Fromelles” or Fromelles missing” or “Fromelles dig” into the Search field in the top right corner of the screen.\u00a0 An alternative approach is to view the PAST NEWS and select the month of interest eg the Archaeological Dig is described in detail in the posts for\u00a0May 2008 or the stories of many of the “missing” Diggers were presented prior to the anniversary of the Battle in the posts for July 2008.\u00a0 All previous posts on this web-site (more than 220 posts) are still accessible in this way and form a significant resource for those wishing more detail related to Fromelles or other topics covered by the Families and Friends of the First AIF.<\/p>\n Currently, FFFAIF’s web manager and Secretary, Chris Munro, is in Fromelles, liaising with locals and dignitaries including the representatives of the Museum, the Fromelles & Weppes Terre de M\u00e9moire 14-18<\/em> and\u00a0 represented FFFAIF at the special service to mark the commencement of the exhumation on 5 May and will also represent FFFAIF at the commemoration of the 9 May 1915 Battle of Aubers in which there were 11,600 British and Indian casualties. With the assistance of the Secretary of the FWTM, Carole Laignel, this web-site will provide progress reports and photographs of developments at Fromelles as well as identifying many media reports.<\/p>\n Pheasant Wood, Fromelles, April 2008 [Chris Munro<\/p><\/div> The Pheasant Wood exhumation commences 5 May 2009 [Chris Munro and Carole Laignel<\/p><\/div>Follow the links below to see current media stories related to Fromelles.<\/p>\n war dead to be exhumed Fallen Scots WWI soldiers await a new burial Allies unite to put Fromelles fallen to rest<\/a><\/p>\n ABC Online – ?May 2, 2009? British war dead to be exhumed in France DNA tests to identify the fallen in Fromelles mass grave Work to begin on exhuming WWI diggers Fromelles site bans finders<\/a><\/p>\n Paola Totaro in Fromelles, France WWI war dead to be recovered from mass graves DEAD TO BE IDENTIFIED VIA DNA Fromelles dig ready to begin Exhumation of Australians begins at Fromelles Remains Of Hundreds Of Soldiers To Be Exhumed WWI Fromelles mystery to be unravelled<\/a> Unknown soldiers from Battle of Fromelles to be identified First World War mass grave to be excavated The corner of a foreign field where not one soldier lies, but 400 WWI battle grave recovery begins<\/a><\/p>\n BBC News<\/span>\u00a0–\u00a0?Tuesday, 5 May 2009<\/span><\/p>\n An operation to recover and identify the remains of about 400 British and Australian soldiers killed during a WWI battle in Northern France is to begin.<\/p>\n By Phil Mackie<\/p>\n http:\/\/news.bbc.co.uk\/2\/hi\/uk_news\/8032908.stm<\/a><\/p>\n Excavation of mass war grave begins<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n The Press Association<\/span><\/span><\/span>\u00a0–\u00a0?Tuesday, 5 May 2009<\/span><\/p>\n Teams of experts are due to begin excavating the biggest Great War grave discovered in decades.<\/p>\n Up to 400 First World War soldiers from Britain and Australia are thought to lie in eight pits in the French countryside, where they were buried by German forces after battle.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.google.com\/hostednews\/ukpress\/article\/ALeqM5g58ehRCKkeLWfkGmnH5oPkWgcSvA<\/a><\/p>\n Uncovering secrets from beyond the grave<\/a><\/p>\n AFP<\/span>\u00a0–\u00a0??Tuesday, 5 May 2009<\/span><\/p>\n FROMELLES, France (AFP) \u2014 The tools of his trade range from earthmovers and shovels to the finest brushes, surgical tweezers and dentists’ mirrors — and his job is to uncover secrets from beyond the grave.<\/a><\/p>\n http:\/\/www.google.com\/hostednews\/afp\/article\/ALeqM5jbJTpYw9sSnVYiiO9GCSe2MQPAvA<\/p>\n Caring for the remains of Fromelles fallen<\/a><\/p>\n BBC News<\/span>\u00a0–\u00a0??Tuesday, 5 May 2009<\/span><\/p>\n Five burial pits dating from WW1 have been identified near Fromelles in northern France after several years of research.<\/p>\n They are believed to contain the remains of between 250 and 400 British and Australian soldiers, buried behind German lines after the Battle of Fromelles in July 1916.<\/p>\n http:\/\/news.bbc.co.uk\/2\/hi\/europe\/8033007.stm<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0WWI mass graves to be opened<\/a><\/p>\n CNN — ??Tuesday, 5 May 2009<\/span><\/p>\n Wide green expanses of farmland outside a picturesque northern French village hide memories of a World War I battle in which thousands of British and Australian troops were killed or wounded on a single night.<\/p>\n http:\/\/edition.cnn.com\/2009\/WORLD\/europe\/05\/04\/wwi.graves\/?iref=mpstoryview<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Pheasant](\"http:\/\/fffaif.files.wordpress.com\/2009\/05\/pheasant-wood-april-2008-before-dig-chris-munro-dscn00631.jpg\" "\\"pheasant-wood-april-2008-before-dig-chris-munro-dscn00631\\"")
<\/a>![\"The](\"http:\/\/fffaif.files.wordpress.com\/2009\/05\/5th-may-2009-fromelles-ceremony-087.jpg\" "\\"5th-may-2009-fromelles-ceremony-087\\"")
<\/a>
\n<\/a>AFP – ?Apr 30, 2009?WWI Australian, British
\nPARIS (AFP) \u2014 Experts will Tuesday begin exhuming hundreds of British and Australian troops from a World War I mass grave in northern France, before laying …
\nhttp:\/\/www.google.com\/hostednews\/afp\/article\/ALeqM5id_7uU8aZ42v92ougfw6IWa5Bamw<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/a>Experts to begin recovering military men from Britain and Australia buried in Flanders mass grave 90 years ago.
\n01 May 2009 20:41 PM
\nhttp:\/\/news.stv.tv\/scotland\/93773-fallen-scots-wwi-soldiers-await-a-new-burial\/<\/a><\/p>\n
\nBy News Online’s Tim Leslie
\nPosted Sat May 2, 2009 10:08pm AEST
\nUpdated Sat May 2, 2009 10:34pm AEST
\nAn ambitious project to excavate and identify the remains of up to 400 Australian and British soldiers who died during Word War I is underway in northern France.
\nhttp:\/\/www.abc.net.au\/news\/stories\/2009\/05\/02\/2559166.htm<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/a>Archaeologists are to begin exhuming hundreds of British and Australian troops from a First World War mass grave in northern France, before laying the fallen soldiers permanently to rest in a new war cemetery.
\nTelegraph.co.uk – ?May 2, 2009?
\nhttp:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/news\/5258072\/British-war-dead-to-be-exhumed-in-France.html<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/a>Paola Totaro Europe Correspondent
\nAUTHORITIES will begin exhuming the remains of hundreds of Australian and British troops from a World War I mass grave in northern France on Tuesday, …
\nMay 3, 2009
\nhttp:\/\/www.brisbanetimes.com.au\/world\/dna-tests-to-identify-the-fallen-in-fromelles-mass-grave-20090502-aqsf.html<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/a>Belinda Tasker
\nMay 3, 2009
\nA massive operation is about to begin in France to recover and rebury the remains of 400 Australian and British World War I soldiers found in an unmarked mass grave.
\nhttp:\/\/news.theage.com.au\/breaking-news-world\/work-to-begin-on-exhuming-wwi-diggers-20090503-ar25.html<\/a><\/p>\n
\nMay 4, 2009
\nTHE two amateur historians who located an unmarked mass grave containing 400 Australian and British World War I soldiers have been banned from the site on the eve of work to exhume the bodies.
\nhttp:\/\/www.brisbanetimes.com.au\/world\/fromelles-site-bans-finders-20090503-arfu.html<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/a>Telegraph.co.uk –
\nPreparations are under way for the start of a huge operation to recover hundreds of First World War British and Australian war dead from a mass grave in France.
\nLast Updated: 10:22AM BST 04 May 2009
\nhttp:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/news\/uknews\/5271681\/WWI-war-dead-to-be-recovered-from-mass-graves.html<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/a>War dead to be exhumed
\nFROMELLES (France) – FORENSIC experts gathered on Monday in a muddy field in northern France ahead of a solemn operation to exhume hundreds of fallen Australian and British soldiers from a World War I mass grave.
\nhttp:\/\/www.straitstimes.com\/Breaking%2BNews\/Tech%2Band%2BScience\/Story\/STIStory_372354.html<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/a>Print May 05, 2009
\nArticle from: The Australian
\nFORENSIC experts gathered yesterday in a muddy field in northern France before a solemn operation to exhume hundreds of fallen Australian and British soldiers from a World War I mass grave.
\nhttp:\/\/www.theaustralian.news.com.au\/story\/0,25197,25430225-26040,00.html<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/a>Paola Totaro, Fromelles
\nMay 5, 2009
\nA HUGE exercise has begun to exhume an unmarked mass grave containing about 400 Australian and British World War I soldiers buried after the battle of Fromelles in 1916.
\nhttp:\/\/www.theage.com.au\/national\/exhumation-of-australians-begins-at-fromelles-20090505-asrs.html<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/a>Sky News 8:56pm UK, Monday May 04, 2009
\nAn operation is due to begin to recover the remains of up to 400 British and Australian World War One soldiers from a mass grave site in France.
\nhttp:\/\/news.sky.com\/skynews\/Home\/UK-News\/Remains-Of-Hundreds-Of-WW1-Soldiers-To-Be-Recovered-From-Mass-Grave-Site-Near-Fromelles-In-France\/Article\/200905115274701<\/a><\/p>\n
\nBrisbane Times – ?May 5, 2009 – 7:39AM
\nBelinda Tasker
\nThe mystery surrounding the identity of 400 Australian and British World War I soldiers found in a mass grave in France could finally start unravelling as work begins on recovering their remains.
\nhttp:\/\/news.brisbanetimes.com.au\/breaking-news-world\/wwi-fromelles-mystery-to-be-unravelled-20090505-asw1.html<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/a>From The Times May 5, 2009
\nKaya Burgess in Fromelles
\nNearly 93 years after Joseph Henry Humphries was killed by German machineguns in the First World War, his family hope that his body may have been found \u2014 in a mass grave in a foreign field.
\nhttp:\/\/www.timesonline.co.uk\/tol\/news\/world\/europe\/article6221422.ece<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/a>Independent ?
\nBy John Lichfield in Paris
\nTuesday, 5 May 2009
\nA forensics expert removes a piece of fabric from the site in Fromelles
\nArchaeologists will today begin to excavate, and possibly identify, the remains of 400 Australian and British soldiers who were buried in one of the largest mass graves ever found on the battlefields of the First World War.
\nhttp:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/world\/europe\/first-world-war-mass-grave-to-be-excavated-1678996.html<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/span><\/a>Scotsman – Published Date: 05 May 2009
\nBy MARTYN McLAUGHLIN
\nTHEY were sent on an almost impossible mission and fell in their thousands, only for their deeds to remain largely forgotten.
\nNow \u2013 more than nine decades after one of the First World War’s least documented slaughters \u2013 the bodies of hundreds of British and Australian war dead are to be recovered from a mass grave in northern France.
\nhttp:\/\/news.scotsman.com\/uk\/The-corner-of-a-foreign.5233351.jp<\/a><\/p>\n