Australian Graves Detachment 1919

[Peter Woodger]

Hi

I have examined the burials concentrated by the Australian Graves Detachment, in 1919, into 4 cemeteries. The figures below deduct any burials made during the war or post 1919.

Adelaide 861

Crucifix Corner 568

Heath 1600

Villers-Bretonneux 1200

After the Australians left in mid August 1919 British units, working in the north east of the area, made concentrations into three cemeteries.

Dernancourt CCE 410

Beacon 659

Dive Copse 115

These were not concentrations from long distances but were of men who died in the immediate area. The dates of death of the Australians concentrated to these7 cemeteries range from late March to late August 1918.

French troops cleared the battlefields to the south and east of the Australian area. Commonwealth bodies were buried in French cemeteries. Soon after this the French allowed NOK to have bodies repatriated to their home cemeteries and again exhumed those that remained in small cemeteries and concentrated them to large French National cemeteries. The Commonwealth bodies in these small cemeteries were concentrated to larger IWGC cemeteries or in certain cases where there were a substantial number of burials the cemetery was retained as an IWGC cemetery.

One source of bodies for the 1919 concentration was small cemeteries that were for economic or practical reasons not viable. These do not include concentrations from ex French cemeteries as discussed above nor do they include later decisions to concentrate such as Dury Hospital which was not concentrated to Villers-Bretonneux until 1927. I can trace a total of 46 cemeteries, containing a total of 1573 burials, which were concentrated to the 7 cemeteries studied. There are some burials from other small cemeteries where the total moved can not be ascertained but I would not expect the total to rise above 1600.

Another source of bodies is registered burials that were made outside of registered cemeteries. These body numbers are marked in blue crayon in the map squares of the body density maps. The total of these numbers in the area to be searched comes to 1977.

An unknown number of these 1977 bodies would not be found due to the grave being destroyed by later fighting or the cross being removed and the site not therefore discovered. These numbers should be exceeded by the number of bodies buried by comrades but not registered, accidental inhumations and bodies that were never buried.

I would therefore not expect to get an accurate match if I add the number of bodies ex Cemetery to the number ex body density maps and subtract this from the number of concentrated bodies. I am however surprised to see that there are 1426 more bodies buried than my 2 sources of bodies would lead me to expect.

The problem is not the area of search. If we look north of the lower reaches of the Ancre and south and east of the boundary between the Australians and the French very few blue figures would be added.

I have identified 46 cemeteries that were concentrated, were there more? I have studied the White Cross Atlas and the body density maps, which have some cemeteries marked, but find only one cemetery there that is not either extant or on my list of 46. There was a CCE at Villers-Bretonneux, does anyone know how big it was and where it went?

When looking at service records I find men who were exhumed from “Austral” cemetery. The body density map shows Austral at 62D N 29 c 2 3. From the context I believe this to be another name for Blangny-Tronville Australian Cemetery. Does anyone know if this is correct or not?

Unless we find some missing cemeteries then I can only conclude that the number of unregistered burials plus unburied bodies was much greater than I expected.

Peter

[judy7007]

Peter

I find this an interesting topic and was wondering if you could help with a question. I am doing a bit of research into Canadian Cemetery No 2 which is within the Vimy National Park and see there are 19 Australians buried there. I could only find 6 in the data base but possibly missed someone. There are a large number of unidentified casualties in this cemetery as so many were brought there after the Armistice. Three of the identified Australians were discovered and reburied in 1931 and three more in 1955. One of the casualties reburied in 1955 was found near Fromelles and another near Bapaume.

I am wondering what were/are the criteria for choosing a cemetery for relocation?

Many thanks

Judy

[Peter Woodger]

Judy

There is no magic rule about where bodies found very late were buried and there were changes as time passed but overall it was a much more structured exercise than many think.

In 1919 certain cemeteries already in existence had more burials added from clearances and concentrations. Many of the cemeteries chosen at this time were a distance from the road and the extra graves were made to connect the cemetery to the road. All my examples will be on the Somme but Ancre British and Euston Road fall into this class. Other existing cemeteries lay in areas where it was possible to procure extra land without destroying the farmer’s ability to work the surrounding land. I would put Connaught, Mill Road and Lonsdale in this class.

There were areas where no cemeteries existed but many bodies would need to be recovered from the area so cemeteries were started from scratch. Adanac and Delville wood are good examples.

After the initial clearances bodies continued to be found in quite large numbers. For quite some years these continued to be buried locally. Some were buried in the spaces vacated by unknown Frenchmen who had been buried by the British but removed to mass graves by the French. Ovillers and AIF Grass Lane are examples. Some concentration cemeteries were further expanded and these can be identified by no longer being symmetrical. Again Ovillers is an example as is Adanac and AIF Grass Lane. Some had extra burials added on the end of rows, Bouzincourt Ridge, or rows added onto plots, Delville Wood.

As bodies were still being found on the Somme two very large cemeteries were used. Serre Road 2 went from under 500 to over 7,000 between 1926 and 1932 and the extension to London cemetery continued after WW2.

Once London extension was complete all bodies found on the Somme were taken to Terlincthun on the Channel coast for burial but about 20 years ago this policy was changed and now space is found in a local cemetery for the relatively small numbers of bodies found today.

Peter

[judy7007]

Many thanks Peter for such an informative and helpful reply

Judy

[Ken Lees]

I have just found this post whilst searching for other information about Villers Bretonneux cemeteries. 

 

An interesting study and analysis. 

 

Are the body density maps publicly available for this area? 

 

Ken 

[Guest]

Hi Peter - this may assist with "Austral Cemetery"  - last few sentences. Captain Philip Sewell’s medical orderly, Cpl C F Donnelly spoke in glowing terms of his superior officer:
‘Re the death and burial of Captain P B Sewell, the following particulars are correct and may be relied upon. I was his Field Orderly, afterwards his First Aid Corporal. On the night of 24-  4-18 about 9.30 pm we moved off from the forest near Villers Bretonneux, we were going forward to a counter-attack, Captain Sewell was in the rear of the Battalion, with his First Aid men, and 12 Amb. bearers. When we arrived at Cachy which was 500 yards from where we were to establish an Aid Post, we came under very heavy shell and MG fire. We moved forward about 350 yards when the shell fire was deafening and blinding, we were within a few hundred yards of the enemy, here Captain Sewell ordered his men into a small trench, while he himself, alone, went forward to HQ 150 yards away to find our exact position. After waiting for about two hours for his return, I went forward myself and found that he had never reached HQ. His body was found three days later, about 200 yards to the left, at the bottom of a large shell hole. Some think that he had misjudged his direction a little, but we who knew him intimately believed that he had heard the cry of wounded for help, many of whom were lying about, and had gone over to bandage them up. This is the most probable cause of his being out of the line, for he was fearless and would go and do anything for the wounded. Never was man more liked and respected than he, nor was man ever missed by those who knew him. He had been shot through the throat by a machine gun, his death had been instantaneous. There was a smile upon his face, and no sign of any struggling. His body was carried back about three miles and buried in a Military Cemetery known as Le Petit Blangy Caberet Cemetery, now named the Austral Cemetery, but its former name is the official one. His grave number is 958. It is situated on the Amiens-Villers Bretonneux Road, about 4 miles from Villers Bretonneux. Name on board outside Austral Cemetery.’  Source:  https://gnet.geelongcollege.vic.edu.au/wiki/Print.aspx?Page=SEWELL-Philip-Beauchamp-1893-1918