MINISTRY OF DEFENCE
News Release (PN_094_2009) issued by COI News Distribution Service
on 5 May 2009
Work to recover
the bodies of up to 400 WWI British and Australian soldiers began
today at Pheasant Wood, in the small village of Fromelles in France.
In a simple yet poignant ceremony Reverend Ray Jones from St.
George's Memorial Church in Ypres and Fromelles parish priest
Father Duprez blessed the site of the five mass burial pits,
before the turning of the first soil began.
Dignitaries from the UK, Australian and French governments were
present alongside representatives from the Commonwealth War Graves
Commission, which is overseeing the project on behalf of the UK
and Australian governments, and the team from Oxford Archaeology
which is undertaking the recovery operation. They were joined by
people from the local community, and those visiting Fromelles to
pay their respect to the fallen.
Quentin Davies, Defence Minister said:
"Today's ceremony marks the start of our programme to
see these brave soldiers laid to rest with the honour and respect
they deserve. Archaeologists will now embark on painstaking work
that will hopefully lead to the identification of the remains of
hundreds of British and Australian soldiers.
"I urge families whose relatives may have died here in 1916
to check the list of possible casualties and come forward if there
is a chance their grandfather or great-grandfather died at Fromelles."
His Excellency Mr David Ritchie Australian Ambassador to France, said:
"The United Kingdom and Australian governments are jointly
committed to honouring the ultimate sacrifice of these World War
One British and Australian soldiers. It is only through this
commitment that these men can finally be laid to rest."
By the end of the project in 2010 all bodies found will be
permanently laid to rest in individual graves at a new
Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery at Fromelles, the first to be
constructed in fifty years.
Admiral Sir Ian Garnett, Vice Chairman of the Commonwealth War
Graves Commission said:
"Today marks the beginning of the journey to afford many of
those killed at Fromelles with a fitting and dignified final place
of rest. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is honoured to be
managing the project on behalf of the UK and Australian
Governments, and the creation of the new cemetery will provide a
focus for pilgrimage and remembrance for years to come."
The process of recovering the bodies will last until September
2009. It is the hope of both governments that identification of
some of the fallen will be possible, and DNA extraction will be
taken from a small cross-section of remains to test for viability.
The lists of names of UK and Australian soldiers who are thought
might be recovered has been published, and families who believe
their relatives may have lost their lives at Fromelles are urged
to check the lists on http://www.cwgc.org/fromelles.
ENDS
Notes to Editors:
1. The Battle of Fromelles began 19 days after the opening of the
Somme campaign. It was the first major battle involving Australian
and British troops on the Western Front. The 5th Australian
Division suffered 5,533 casualties, of which 1,780 were killed,
and the 61st British Division suffered the loss of 1,547 men
killed, wounded or taken prisoner.
2. The existence of the mass graves was confirmed in 2008 and a
decision was made by the British and Australian governments to
conduct a full archaeological excavation of the site, with the
cost of the recovery operation shared equally.
3. The soldiers' remains will initially be stored in
temporary mortuary facilities and DNA samples will be extracted
from a small cross-section to determine the viability of a larger
testing programme, and the potential to match with surviving relatives.
4. By the end of the project in 2010 all the bodies will be
permanently laid to rest in individual graves at a new
Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery at Fromelles. Wherever it has
been possible to identify the remains, named graves will be provided.
5. Anyone believing they may be related to British soldiers
buried at Fromelles should contact the Historic Casualty Casework,
Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre, Service Personnel and
Veterans Agency, Imjin Barracks, Gloucester GL3 1HW, 01452 712612
extension 6303 or 7330 or email SPVA-JCCC-fromelles-GroupMailbox@spva.mod.uk.
6. The Australian Army has developed a working list of the First
Australian Imperial Forces soldiers it believes may be buried at
the site and is encouraging relatives to register their details.
Further information is available at http://www.defence.gov.au/fromelles
7. Images from the ceremony will be available on the Defence News
Imagery website, for current news purposes only. http://www.defencenewsimagery.mod.uk.
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8. For further information contact Peter Francis, Commonwealth
War Graves Commission, +44 (0) 1628 507163, +44 (0) 7766 255884 or peter.francis@cwgc.org