The Australian National Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux is the main

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or works of a ...

to Australian military personnel killed on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. It is located on the Route Villiers-Bretonneux (D 23), between the towns of Fouilloy and

Villers-Bretonneux Villers-Bretonneux () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Villers-Bretonneux is situated some 19 km due east of Amiens, on the D1029 road and the A29 motorway. Villers-Bretonneux border ...

, in the

Somme département Somme (; pcd, Sonme) is a department of France, located in the north of the country and named after the Somme river. It is part of the Hauts-de-France region. It had a population of 570,559 in 2019.France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The memorial lists 10,773 names of soldiers of the Australian Imperial Force with no known grave who were killed between 1916, when Australian forces arrived in France and Belgium, and the end of the war. The location was chosen to commemorate the role played by Australian soldiers in the Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux (24–27 April 1918). Designed by Sir

Edwin Lutyens Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens ( ; 29 March 1869 – 1 January 1944) was an English architect known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era. He designed many English country houses, war memori ...

, the memorial consists of a tower within the Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery, which also includes a

Cross of Sacrifice The Cross of Sacrifice is a Commonwealth war memorial designed in 1918 by Sir Reginald Blomfield for the Imperial War Graves Commission (now the Commonwealth War Graves Commission). It is present in Commonwealth war cemeteries containing 40 or ...

. The tower is surrounded by walls and panels on which the names of the missing dead are listed. The main inscription is in both French and English, on either side of the entrance to the tower. The memorial and cemetery are maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

History of the memorial

Following the war, the commander of the Australian Corps, Lieutenant General Sir Talbot Hobbs chose the sites of several Australian memorials in Europe and proposed that a memorial to all of the Australian dead on the Western Front be built in France, in the Villers-Bretonneux area. The proposal was approved by the Australian government – still led by wartime Prime Minister

Billy Hughes William Morris Hughes (25 September 1862 – 28 October 1952) was an Australian politician who served as the seventh prime minister of Australia, in office from 1915 to 1923. He is best known for leading the country during World War I, but ...

– in 1923. A competition to design the memorial was held in 1925. It was open only to Australian veterans and their parents; their entries were required to use only stone quarried in Australia. The competition was won by the Melbourne architect William Lucas. In 1929, the French government gave its approval to the project. The

Scullin government Scullin may refer to: In places: * Scullin, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Division of Scullin, an electorate in the Australian House of Representatives People with the surname Scullin: * James Scullin (1876–1953), Prime Mi ...

suspended the project in 1930, due to the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

and the projected cost, as well as dissatisfaction with aesthetic elements of Lucas's design.''The Memorial to the Missing of the Somme'' ( Gavin Stamp, 2007), p. 94 Following a 1935 visit to Australia by the head of the Imperial War Graves Commission, Sir

Fabian Ware Major-General Sir Fabian Arthur Goulstone Ware (17 June 186928 April 1949) was a British educator, journalist, and the founder of the Imperial War Graves Commission (IWGC), now the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC). He also served as D ...

, a cheaper design was sought, using French stone, from Sir Edwin Lutyens. Construction of the memorial took place in 1936 and 1937. It was unveiled on 22 July 1938 by

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

, whose words were broadcast directly to Australia. Other dignitaries present included the French President Albert Lebrun, who also gave a speech, and the Australian deputy prime minister Earle Page. Accompanying the King was his wife

Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elisabeth or Elizabeth the Queen may refer to: Queens regnant * Elizabeth I (1533–1603; ), Queen of England and Ireland * Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022 ...

, whose brother was killed at the Battle of Loos. This memorial was the last of the great memorials to the missing of World War I to be built, and the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

broke out just over a year after its unveiling.Villers–Bretonneux, Australian National Memorial
Australians on the Western Front 1914–1918, Department of Veterans' Affairs and Board of Studies NSW – accessed 31 December 2009 During the unveiling ceremony, the King closed his speech with the words: "They rest in peace, while over them all Australia's tower keeps watch and ward." Every year on 25 April, an Anzac Day Dawn Service is conducted at the memorial by the Australian Government Department of Veterans' Affairs. The service commences at 5.30am and is followed by community services in Villers-Bretonneux and Bullecourt. The cemetery originally included 60 hornbeam trees, planted in 1928. These were removed in 2009 as they reached the end of their lives, and were replaced by new trees as part of plans for the centenary commemorations in 2018. The

Sir John Monash Centre The Sir John Monash Centre is a museum and interpretive centre that commemorates Australian servicemen and women who served on the Western Front during the First World War. The centre, located near the village of Villers-Bretonneux (Somme) in nor ...

, an interpretive centre behind the Villers–Bretonneux Australian National Memorial, opened in April 2018.

Notable Commemoratees

*Private Thomas Cooke – New Zealand-born Australian Army VC recipient. File:Villers-Bretonneux mémorial australien (entrée cimetière pavillon Sud) 2.jpg, Southern entrance pavilion to the cemetery File:Villers-Bretonneux Australian National Memorial 1.JPG, The

Stone of Remembrance The Stone of Remembrance is a standardised design for war memorials that was designed in 1917 by the British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens for the Imperial War Graves Commission (IWGC). It was designed to commemorate the dead of World War I, to b ...

at the cemetery entrance File:Villers-Bretonneux mémorial australien (croix et tour en automne) 1.jpg, The

and the tower in October 2007 File:Villers-Bretonneux Australian National Memorial 2.JPG, The Cross of Sacrifice and the tower in May 2014The original hornbeam trees planted in 1928 were removed in 2009. File:Villers-Bretonneux Australian National Memorial 7.JPG, Shelter forming the left wing of the memorial File:Villers-Bretonneux mémorial australien (coquelicot et noms) 1.jpg, Some of the 11,000 names of the missing dead on the memorial File:Villers-Bretonneux Australian National Memorial 6.JPG, The inscriptions in English and French either side of the memorial tower entrance File:Australian War Memorial in France VILLERS BRETONNEUX MILITARY CEMETERY IMG 3020.JPG, Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery viewed from the top of the tower in July 2008 File:AWM Cemetery Villers-Bretoneux 2012.jpg, Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery viewed from the top of the tower in April 2012 File:Australian Memorial - Sir John Monash Center.jpg, View of the Sir John Monash Center, looking towards the tower at the Villiers-Bretonneux Australian War Memorial, photographed in 2019

Footnotes and references

External links

Commonwealth War Graves Commission details of the Villers–Bretonneux MemorialVillers–Bretonneux, Australian National Memorial
– history and description of the memorial and pictures of the unveiling ceremony and of details of the memorial (Department of Veteran Affairs, Australia)
British-Pathé Newsreel report that includes the unveiling of the memorial
unveiling is at 2:14 to 2:51 (

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)
''Australian National War Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, France''
(William Lucas, 1930, Argonaut Press) – book by Lucas on his rejected plans for the memorial (catalogue entry from the National Library of Australia)
Anzac Day Dawn Service at the Australian National Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux
{{DEFAULTSORT:Villers-Bretonneux Australian National Memorial Australian military memorials Commonwealth War Graves Commission memorials World War I memorials in France Buildings and structures completed in 1938 Monuments and memorials in Somme (department) Australia–France relations Works of Edwin Lutyens in France War memorials by Edwin Lutyens Australian diaspora in Europe