| Accession Number | E05960 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Black & white - Film original negative panorama |
| Maker |
Jackson, Cyril James |
| Place made | Belgium: Flanders, West-Vlaanderen, Messines |
| Date made | February-August 1919 |
| Conflict |
Period 1910-1919 First World War, 1914-1918 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
View of the ruins of the town of Messines and Hill 63. In the background (centre) are the ...
Description
View of the ruins of the town of Messines and Hill 63. In the background (centre) are the shattered bricks of the town's church. In 1917 the area was subject to heavy artillery during the Battle of Messines, part of a successful strategy to force the Germans to retreat from the Belgian coast. The II Anzac Corps took place in this battle in which, on 7 July, nineteen large mines that had been placed in tunnels under the German front line were detonated shattering the German defences and forcing them to pull back. Adolf Hitler, at the time a German Army corporal, was one of the German soldiers who sheltered in the cellars of the destroyed church during the fighting. This panorama is one of a series taken by the Australian War Records Section with a 'Cirkut' camera. This image is only available as a digital print.