Achiet-le-Grand during WW1
The particularity of Achiet cemetery is that it contains 36 aviators including the 8th & 10 victory of the red baron
The Architecture : Lutyens Cemetery Architect in France - G. H Goldsmith
Simple axial layout with an entrance pergola off the village lane leading to the great war Stone and Cross. "pergolas appear in only four of lutyens cemeteries Achiet-le-Grand, Albert communal cemetery extension, Bagneux British cemetery and Douchy les Ayette British cemetery"
Achiet cemetery casualties ( it will take some time to download the page )Some of the men have their name linked to more details, photos or to other web sites.
Lots of information on the men buried in Achiet cemetery were forwarded to me by Ken & Pam Linge "The creators of the missing project database" for Thiepval visitor centre.Patricia & David Shackleton, also participate to the research
Special information: Edward Ashdown Unusual casualty
New zealand soldier:
Other New zealand website sources:
Percy Buckner killed on the 25th August 1918
Australian soldier: Arthur Thomas Farr February 1917
Achiet-le-Grand was occupied by the 7th Bedfords on 17 March 1917, lost on 25 March 1918 after a defence by the 1st/6th Manchesters, and recaptured on 23 August 1918. From April 1917 to March 1918, the village was occupied by the 45th and 49th Casualty Clearing Stations. Achiet station was an allied railhead.
The communal cemetery and extension were used by Commonwealth medical units from April 1917 to March 1918.
The extension was also used by the Germans to a small extent in March and April 1918, and again by Commonwealth troops in August 1918.
After the Armistice Plot III and most of Plot IV were made when 645 graves, mainly of 1916 and March and August 1918, were brought in from the battlefields round Achiet and from other burialgrounds.
The COMMUNAL CEMETERY contains four Commonwealth burials of the First World War.
The EXTENSION contains 1,424 Commonwealth burials and commemorations of the First World War.
200 of the burials are unidentified but there are special memorials to eight casualties known or believed to be buried among them.
Other special memorials commemorate ten casualties buried in other cemeteries whose graves could not be found.
There are also 42 German war graves in the extension.
The extension was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens.
Source: CWGC data base
