GEORGE Eccleston went from Adaminaby in the Snowy Mountains of NSW to fight at the Battle of Messines in 1917, part of the forces that detonated 19 mines under the German front lines.
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It was, to that time, the biggest man-made explosion in the world.
The Battle of Messines was the first time the 3rd Australian Division saw service on the Western Front.
In the battle, George was felled when he took gunshot wounds to the abdomen and shoulder.
As the Germans approached George lay motionless and was presumed dead.
Bleeding profusely, he crawled away in the darkness and made his way back toward the Australian lines.
He spent three days and three nights in hiding before he was discovered by his comrades.
George’s picture is one of nearly 1000 Faces of Anzacs featured in a national commemoration by Fairfax Media to mark the centenary of the Gallipoli landing in WWI.
The Faces of Anzacs tribute wall contains profiles contributed by hundreds of readers around the country and internationally and compiled by Fairfax’s regional, community and agricultural mastheads.
The wall, searchable by name and location, honours Diggers who served in the Great War; those who returned and those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
