Improvised sign, 'CENTRE WAY' : Pozieres, France

Notice board constructed from four wooden planks and stencilled with black stencilled lettering 'CENTRE WAY R.4.a.9.1 DURING DAYLIGHT NO MOVEMENT OF TROOPS IN LARGER PARTIES OF 4 IS ALLOWED N OF CENTRE WAY DUMP. PARTIES NOT EXCEEDING 4 MUST MOVE AT 500 YDS. INTERVAL'

Pozieres, a small village in the Somme valley in France, was the scene of bitter and costly fighting for the 1st, 2nd and 4th Australian Divisions in mid 1916.

The village was initially captured by the 1st Division on 23 July 1916. They clung to their gains, despite almost continuous artillery fire and repeated German counter-attacks, but suffered heavily. By the time it was relieved on 27 July the division had suffered 5,285 casualties.

The 2nd Division took over from the 1st and mounted two further attacks. The first, on 29 July, was a costly failure; the second, on 2 August, resulted in the seizure of further German positions beyond the village. Again, the Australians suffered heavily from retaliatory bombardments. They were relieved on 6 August, having suffered 6,848 casualties.

The 4th Division was next into the line at Pozieres. It too endured a massive artillery bombardment, and defeated a German counter-attack on 7 August; this was the last attempt by the Germans to retake Pozieres in 1916.

This sign was for the Centre Way, a communication trench north east of Pozieres that headed towards the Old German (OG) Lines. The Centre Way was constructed by the 2nd Pioneer Battalion during 1916. It was dug so that traffic that previously travelled over an open road could instead proceed to the front line under cover. Despite this, the sign indicates the dangers the soldiers faced from enemy fire or bombardment during the day, only allowing four soldiers or less through at a time.

The construction of the trench was pushed through so it was ready for an attack by the 6th Brigade on 4 August 1916. Centre Way started from Gun Trench and connected with the 'Y' in the cemetery at Pozieres. This sign was placed in the Centre Way after the Australians left the area and was collected in May 1917 by CEW Bean on the advice of the poet laureate, John Masefield, for the Australian War Records Section (AWRS). It is believed to be the first item collected by Bean in France for the AWRS.

Bean notes in his diary on 10 May 1917 "Masefield insists on Australia having her full rights in Pozieres & will do our men full justice in the book he is commissioned to write. He spotted the old Centre Way, near O.G.1 with the old notice Centre Way IN. It was exactly as I remembered it - the board was wreathed in Signal wires. Masefield said "You ought to have that!" & cut the wires, and I carried the board down to Pozieres for a place in our National Museum." (AWM38 3DRL 606/78/1).