Windmill Memorial
Windmill Memorial
4.5
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4.5
19 reviews
Excellent
11
Very good
7
Average
0
Poor
0
Terrible
1
Dimitris L
Sydney, Australia50,924 contributions
Sept 2019
The Windmill Memorial commemorates the fierce battles that took place during World War I in this area. It marks the high price paid by all those who sacrificed their lives. Inn particular it commemorates the fallen Australian soldiers who, according to historians, fell here "more thickly" than in any other theatre of war. Worth visiting
Written 31 August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TheGlassHouse
Adelaide, Australia81 contributions
Oct 2018
We stopped at this memorial because our guide suggested it. This was a German stronghold during WW1 and gave the Germans an amazing 360-degree view. It is a tribute to the Tank personal. It was worth the visit because across the road behind the main monument is the remembrance site for all of the fallen animals of the war; horses, donkeys, mules, dogs and even pigeons. Over 9 million of these creatures died, from both sides, during this war and they didn't volunteer for service. No Australian animals went home. This is a fairly new memorial and it is a lovely spot to visit. Purple Poppies are the flower of remembrance for them.
Written 19 November 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Habari2
Toowoomba, Australia62 contributions
Sept 2019 • Couples
More information needed on the reason for this site is required. I have heard that this is ground bought privately?. The intentions are good and I am assuming the crosses indicate the numbers killed. I note the etchings in the ground and assume those are where the trenches were?
Written 4 September 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Will D
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia90 contributions
May 2019
The Windmill site above the village of Pozieres in the Somme region of France is a very special place for Australians. In 6 weeks of fighting betwen late July and early September 1916, we had 23,000 casualties of which nearly 7,000 died and 5,000 remain in the soil today. This is sacred ground and now we have this absolutely atrocious, tacky, kitsch memorial to the animals who died in the war. I must say the intension of very valid, a wonderful idea, and certainly timely, but NOT here.
Written 21 August 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Peter A
Sydney, Australia182 contributions
May 2019 • Couples
The devastation and losses of WWI come to life for Australians at Pozieres and the Windmill. Charles Bean who wrote:"The Windmill site which is owned by the Australian War Memorial marks a ridge more densely sown with Australian sacrifice than any other spot on earth."
The sun was shining but it was cold and the wind was blowing which all seemed completely apt for such a solemn place. There are well maintained cemeteries throughout northern France and Belgium and much credit must be given to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and its continued work. Pozieres was a disaster in respect to casualties for the Australians and New Zealanders on the western front in 1916. A visit is highly recommended.
The sun was shining but it was cold and the wind was blowing which all seemed completely apt for such a solemn place. There are well maintained cemeteries throughout northern France and Belgium and much credit must be given to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and its continued work. Pozieres was a disaster in respect to casualties for the Australians and New Zealanders on the western front in 1916. A visit is highly recommended.
Written 4 June 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Steve L
Greater Adelaide, Australia97 contributions
Sept 2018 • Friends
There are at least two excellent animals in war memorials that I am aware of. This is not one of them. One is in London, the other, 'Agony' is on the Menin Road in Belgium. Yes there probably should be more - but not here.
The Windmill site is uniquely Australian, it is a site of poignant national significance and the DNA of 23,000 men who became casualties in this vicinity in five weeks in 1916 is infused in the very soil. 5,000 of them died and the remains of most of them are still in the ground hereabouts.
The "Animals in War" cause is noble. This execution is not.
The suffering of animals in war is generic (ie not related to one specific country, place or date). No matter which way the proponents cast the numbers its relevance to this particular place is not on the scale. Exactly what significance other than a completely contrived case, makes this site more significant than any other?
Presumably because Australian interests are involved, they have chosen to hijack this site.
The sentiment is fine but the location and execution is a travesty. A properly executed memorial would look something like the "Agony" statue near the Menin Road in Belgium . Photographs are replete with the carcasses of hundreds of dead animals.
The execution of this memorial looks an assemblage of stuff from a garden nursery. Do it properly or not at all. It's awful. There is no other way of saying it.
Can you imagine this being allowed to happen at Thiepval, Beaumont Hamel, Messines, Vimy Ridge, Meuse Argonne or Verdun?
The Windmill site is uniquely Australian, it is a site of poignant national significance and the DNA of 23,000 men who became casualties in this vicinity in five weeks in 1916 is infused in the very soil. 5,000 of them died and the remains of most of them are still in the ground hereabouts.
The "Animals in War" cause is noble. This execution is not.
The suffering of animals in war is generic (ie not related to one specific country, place or date). No matter which way the proponents cast the numbers its relevance to this particular place is not on the scale. Exactly what significance other than a completely contrived case, makes this site more significant than any other?
Presumably because Australian interests are involved, they have chosen to hijack this site.
The sentiment is fine but the location and execution is a travesty. A properly executed memorial would look something like the "Agony" statue near the Menin Road in Belgium . Photographs are replete with the carcasses of hundreds of dead animals.
The execution of this memorial looks an assemblage of stuff from a garden nursery. Do it properly or not at all. It's awful. There is no other way of saying it.
Can you imagine this being allowed to happen at Thiepval, Beaumont Hamel, Messines, Vimy Ridge, Meuse Argonne or Verdun?
Written 22 September 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Relax518754
1 contribution
Jun 2018 • Friends
The Windmill is such an important part of the story of Pozieres and the Australian efforts in WW1. To stand there and ponder whilst viewing the land around is an honour, however....
The animal memorial right next to it is a travesty. A lovely idea but executed in the style of someone who has splashed out at the sale of the local gardening centre.
A plastic St Francis of Assisi? Come on!
The animal memorial right next to it is a travesty. A lovely idea but executed in the style of someone who has splashed out at the sale of the local gardening centre.
A plastic St Francis of Assisi? Come on!
Written 12 August 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TassieDevil2
Smithton, Australia17 contributions
Aug 2018 • Solo
Visited the Windmill Memorial last week and as with all the places significant in the Australian contributions on the Western Front the actual memorial is understated, peaceful & reverent to our soldiers.
As for the obviously unofficial animal memorial next door it mars the Windmill site. It is cheap, tacky and just bloody awful. It should be dismantled immediately.
An animal memorial needs to be official and not taken into the hands of whoever decides to visit the local garden centre to buy whatever statues are available and erect them in a paddock that is accessed through a break in a hedge around an official site. Whoever has erected this needs to remove it immediately and start again and not hijack a site significant to Australia.
As for the obviously unofficial animal memorial next door it mars the Windmill site. It is cheap, tacky and just bloody awful. It should be dismantled immediately.
An animal memorial needs to be official and not taken into the hands of whoever decides to visit the local garden centre to buy whatever statues are available and erect them in a paddock that is accessed through a break in a hedge around an official site. Whoever has erected this needs to remove it immediately and start again and not hijack a site significant to Australia.
Written 20 August 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Skip-011
Brisbane, Australia6 contributions
Nov 2019 • Family
Work in progress. Site of great cultural and historical significance. Worth a visit to understand first hand the heartache the Australians suffered in winning the war. Donations welcome to get the memorial built.
Written 25 November 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Adventurers049
Brisbane, Australia3,450 contributions
Jul 2019 • Couples
This is a small memorial to the Australians.
Just behind it is a very nice memorial to the animals that were killed during WW1. Don't miss it.
Just behind it is a very nice memorial to the animals that were killed during WW1. Don't miss it.
Written 12 July 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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