The sacrifice and bravery of thousands of Australian diggers will be commemorated in Gunnedah on Saturday, to mark the centenary of the Battle of Fromelles – the first major battle fought by Australian troops on the Western Front.
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Among them to be remembered is Gunnedah farmer, Sergeant Alexander Waugh Panton, who at 21 years of age, was among the diggers to front heavy shelling and machine-gun fire on a disastrous assault on well-prepared German lines on July 19 and 20, 1916.
During that 24 hours, the Australian 5th Division, which included the 55th Battalion that Panton was assigned to, was ordered to attack strongly fortified German front line positions. It was intended primarily as a feint to draw German troops away from the Somme offensive then being pursued further to the south.
Fighting alongside the British, the troops suffered heavily at the hands of German machine-gunners after our forces assaulted over open ground in broad daylight.
Australia suffered more than 5500 casualties, almost 2000 were killed in action or died of wounds, and 400 were captured. The operation was described as a “complete failure,” and is believed to be the biggest loss by a single division in 24 hours during the entire Great War.
Panton, who farmed the property “Wandanong” at Basin Plains, played a pivotal role throughout the night of July 19-20. The young Sergeant had crossed no-man’s land at least a dozen times under heavy fire during the fearsome Fromelles battle, taking supplies to the line and leading carrying parties to bring back the wounded.
For his courage and devotion to duty, Panton was given special mention in despatches by the Commander in Chief, Sir Douglas Haig. His valiant efforts were also written about by Australian war historian Charles Bean.
Panton was promoted to Lieutenant and despite being wounded later in the war, continued to serve until the armistice was declared in 1919.
Born in Kempsey in 1894, Lieutenant Panton was raised by his mother Eva and two brothers and two sisters. His father died after a horse crushed him when Panton was just three years old.
Eva was a member of the well-known Waugh family that held various property and rural interests in the New England and North West. She farmed “Wandanong” at Basin Plains with her sons.
This week marks 100 years since the WW1 battles of Fromelles and Pozieres –also on the Somme. They were two of the deadliest in Australia's military history.
On Saturday, Gunnedah will pause to remember Panton and the thousands of soldiers who sacrificed their lives during the battles.
A memorial service for the Battle of Fromelles will be held at the Gunnedah Cenotaph at 11am.
At 12pm, the centenary of Anzac Park will be commemorated with a tree planting ceremony near the Water Tower Museum with representatives from council, the Gunnedah RSL Sub-Branch and the Historical Society.
It will replicate a similar ceremony held on June 25,1916 at the park, where Gunnedah honoured its WW1 servicemen by dedicating its first memorial.
