This monument was erected in honor of the fallen soldiers of the Australian Second Division during the Battle of Mont Saint-Quentin.

The Australian Corps crossed the Somme River on the night of 31 August 1918 and attacked the German lines at Mont Saint-Quentin.

[1] The British Fourth Army's commander, General Henry Rawlinson, described the Australian advances of 31 August – 4 September as a great military achievement.

[2] In three days the Australians endured 3,000 casualties but ensured a general German withdrawal eastwards back to the Hindenburg Line.

[3] The original monument consisted of a pedestaled sculpture, created by Charles Web Gilbert, representing an Australian soldier thrusting his bayonet into a German eagle.