Mont Saint Quentin overlooks the Somme River

Somme River

The Somme is a river in Picardy, northern France. The name Somme comes from a Celtic word meaning tranquility. The department Somme was named after this river....

 in the region of Picardie

Picardie

Picardy is one of the 27 regions of France. It is located in the northern part of France.-History:The historical province of Picardy stretched from north of Noyon to Calais, via the whole of the Somme department and the north of the Aisne department...

 approximately 1.5 kilometres north of the town of Péronne, Somme

Péronne, Somme

Péronne is a commune of the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.It is close to where the Battles of the Somme took place during World War I...

, France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. The hill is about 100 metres high but as it is situated in a bend of the river it dominates the whole position and is of strategic significance. During World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, it was a key to the German

German Empire

The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...

 defence of the Somme line and was the last German stronghold. Its location made it an ideal observation point, and strategically, the hill's defences guarded the north and western approaches to the town of Péronne. It was the site of the Battle of Mont Saint-Quentin from 31 August to 2 September 1918.

The Australian Second Division has a war memorial on the road from Bapaume to Péronne. It is the only one of the five Australian division memorials initiated by members of the division. The base was erected in 1925. It has bronze bas-reliefs by May Butler-George of men hauling and pushing a gun and of men advancing with bayoneted rifles and hand-grenades. It had on its top an Australian soldier thrusting his bayonet through a German eagle. The sculptor was Charles Web Gilbert

Charles Web Gilbert

Charles Marsh Web Gilbert was a self-taught Australian sculptor renowned both within Australia and abroad.Gilbert was born near Maryborough, Victoria. His father died when he was two months old, and his mother was left with three young children. Gilbert received a state school education but began...

. However, in 1940, German soldiers smashed the memorial. A replacement statue by Stanley Hammond of a thoughtful Australian soldier looking down was erected in 1971.

External links

• Google satellite map hybrid of the area