The Battle of Fromelles is the first occasion on which the First Australian Imperial Force (AIF) saw action on the Western Front.
The Battle of Fromelles is widely regarded as a disaster for the Allies. It resulted from a plan to divert German attention from the Somme, but historians estimate that 5,500 Australians and 2,000 British troops were killed or wounded.

In Fromelles is the VC Corner Australian Cemetery and Memorial. There are no headstones in the cemetery, two large concrete crosses marking where 400 soldiers are buried.
A 1998 sculpture by Peter Corlett of Sergeant Simon Fraser, 57th Battalion, (a farmer from Byaduk, Victoria), rescuing a wounded compatriot from no man's land after the battle is prominent.

A 2008 replica of the sculpture made by Corlett is in the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Victoria.

© CDT Nord/Fanny Fouquet

© JM Bailleul

On Monday 19 July 2010, a special commemorative event will be held in Fromelles, to mark the completion of the archaeological excavation and reinterment of 250 British and Australian soldiers, who died at the Battle of Fromelles in July 1916. This event will take place in Fromelles (Pheasant Wood) Military Cemetery, which is currently being built by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Interest in attending this event is likely to be high, but because of the size of the cemetery site, space will be very limited. A small viewing area, to allow members of the public to watch the ceremony, is envisaged, but details have yet to be confirmed.
More information : Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC)