Australian Embassy and Mission to the EU

Belgium-Luxembourg

Embassy address: Rue Guimardstraat 6-8, 1040 Brussels - Telephone: +32 (0) 2 286 0500 - Fax: +32 (0) 2 231 07 88

Events - Commemorations - News

► Poppy crosses from Tasmania to Australian Digger's graves in Belgium

A group of primary school children from Newtown,Tasmania, made and signed 209 small wooden crosses bearing a red poppy and the inscription 'Australia remembers' and to be placed on the graves of World War One Australian Diggers buried at Bethleem Farm East Cemetery and Bethleem Farm West Cemetery, in Belgium. Indeed, both these cemeteries commemorate servicemen from the Australian Infantry, A.I.F, who died as a result of enemy action during, or following, the Battle of Messines in 1917.

On Remembrance Day, the Australian Ambassador, HE Dr Brendan Nelson, together with Major General Brian Dawson of Australian Defence, paid his respect to all Australian Diggers buried in both cemeteries. The Ambassador placed a cross made by the children of Newtown on the grave of Private William Henry Whelan from North Hobart and laid a wreath, as per the children's request. The ceremony included laying poppy crosses on other Australian Diggers' graves.

Private William was 27 years of age when he was killed in action on 16 December 1917 and is commemorated at Bethleem Farm West Cemetery. Private Whelan has a plaque on the Soldiers Memorial Avenue and is also commemorated on the Hobart Town Hall Honour Roll.

The school children worked with Tasmania war historian Peter Pickering who coordinated this pilot project to connect Australian students with World War One soldiers.

► Australian WWI soldier - Re-interment ceremony at Prowse Point 22 July

The Australian Minister for Veterans' Affairs and Minister for Defence Personnel, the Hon Alan Griffin MP, announced on 28 June that the remains of an Australian World War I soldier who fought in the Battle of Messines have now been identified.

A combined picture of historical, anthropological and DNA evidence helped establish the identity of the soldier as 1983 Private Alan James Mather of Inverell, NSW.

Private Mather was discovered at Ploegsteert, Belgium, in 2008. His remains were recovered along with a significant amount of equipment, clothing and badges that enabled him to be identified as an Australian infantry soldier. Although a corroded identification disc was also recovered, forensic investigation failed to provide identification details.

Members of the Australian Army buried Private Mather with full military honours with his comrades at the Prowse Point Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery in Ploegsteert, Belgium on Thursday 22 July 2010.

The Australian Chief of Army, the Australian Ambassador and members of Private Alan Mather’s family attended the ceremony.

The Battle of Messines in Belgium was the scene of heavy fighting during 1917, opening with the detonation of 19 British mines underneath the German’s forward trenches, including the mine at Hill 60. The Battle was viewed, at the time, as one of the first major victories of the British forces during WW1.

After the war Private Mather was listed as missing with more than 6,000 other Australian soldiers on the Menin Gate Memorial in Ypres, Belgium.

► "Charleroi à l'heure australienne": Exhibition, 22 October-23 November 2008

On the occasion of the 90th anniversary of Armistice Day, the Council of the Mayor and aldermen of Charleroi has taken the initiative to rekindle an unknown aspect of its history: the staying in the Charleroi region of Australian troops at the end of 1918 until autumn 1919.

In that context, the Tourism Centre presented the exhibition "Charleroi à l'heure australienne" (Charleroi at Australian time).

This exhibition that aimed at being both entertaining and didactic gave the visitors the opportunity to go back to that period of Charleroi’s history with reconstitutions, testimonies and rare documents about Charleroi at the time of the Great War. But most of all, it told about the story of a friendship between two countries. For example, visitors could find out how civilians from Charleroi who could speak English were wearing on the chest a little white button so that they could be identified by the Australian troops.