Military History Tours          On Tour - Our Other ANZAC Day Tour 27 April 2013

This morning was again cool but clear. We headed through Peronne onto Mont St Quentin to visit the 2 Division memorial and view the site where the Australians took this feature in an action described by one British General as 'the finest achievement of the war'.

After some considerable pressure, the historians succumbed so coffee was had in a nearby McDonalds. Judging by where it was built, this Maccas trades courtesy of AIF 2 Div!

We stopped by at Maissemy - a German War Cemetery, next. This surprised all however provided another perspective of the total cost of this war. We learned that the French law prohibited the growing of flowers in such cemeteries and the contrasts were stark.

From here we moved further west to Bellenglise and the site of the memorial to 4th Division. Close to here we had our boxed picnic lunch (salad and a bread roll - very French) at Riqueval. After our bite we inspected the adjoining St Quentin Canal where Australian forces breached the Hindenburg line in September 1918.

Back on the bus we arrived at Montbrehain, site of the final Australian battle of WW1 and the most easterly final resting place of Australian Soldiers in the nearby high tree cemetery.

Before return to the hotel we also visited the American War Cemetery at Bony. It too provided contrast to ours.

This has been our last day on the Somme. Tomorrow trip 1 returns to Paris while trip 2 moves North into Flanders and Ieper.