31 July 2008
Fromelles Diggers To Be Given Individual Burials
Minister for Defence Science and Personnel, the Hon Warren Snowdon MP, announces that the Australian and British Governments will seek to have the remains of their World War I soldiers, buried in mass graves near Fromelles, exhumed and given individual burials with military honours.
The announcement follows the limited excavation of the Pheasant Wood site in May this year, when the Glasgow University Archaeological Research Division (GUARD) confirmed that human remains were present and assessed their condition, number and nationality.
Planning work will begin immediately, and subject to the approval of French authorities and with the support of the people of Fromelles, a timeframe for the recovery of remains will be announced later this year. Future work, including the significant task of preparing a war cemetery, will be undertaken under the auspices of Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
More: Fromelles Diggers To Be Given Individual Burials
The Minister for Defence Science and Personnel, the Hon Warren Snowdon MP, announces that Australian World War I soldiers, buried in mass graves near Fromelles in 1916, will be exhumed and given individual burials with military honours.
