| Places | |
|---|---|
| Accession Number | RELAWM00511 |
| Collection type | Heraldry |
| Object type | Heraldry |
| Location | Main Bld: First World War Gallery: Western Front 1917: Spring Advance |
| Place made | Australia, United Kingdom |
| Conflict |
First World War, 1914-1918 |
Part of a damaged shield from 18 Pounder Gun destroyed on 15 April 1917 : 43 Battery Australian Field Artillery
Description
Shrapnel damaged part of a metal gun shield from an 18 Pounder Gun. This part of the shield has a circular hole in the middle and has apparently been bent by the force of an explosion. The edges have been torn by shrapnel in two places and there are also two shrapnel holes.
History / Summary
This section of shield is from an 18 Pounder Gun of 43 Battery, Australian Field Artillery, which was destroyed on the Ecoust-Vracourt road near Lagnicourt by German counter-battery fire on 15 April 1917. During the engagement, two of the unit's three officers, Major Pybus and Lieutenant Clarke, were killed. Of its forty men, twelve were killed including four `number ones' and a further eight were wounded. Three of its five guns and several ammunition dumps were destroyed.