A fallen First World War aviator from the Australian Flying Corps now rests with his identity restored after lying for more than a century in an unnamed grave.
Lieutenant Charles Henry Martin, 23, a Sopwith F.1 Camel fighter pilot from 4 Squadron, Australian Flying Corps, died when his aircraft was presumably hit by a single round of anti-aircraft fire during an offensive patrol over German lines west of Lille on February 17, 1918.
His aircraft, Camel B5207, had been flying in formation with three other aircraft when it suddenly plummeted downwards, its wings folding back as the aircraft disintegrated. No clouds of anti-aircraft were seen, and the event was so remarkable it was later mentioned in the Official history of Australia in the War of 1914-1918.
Lieutenant Martin's body was recovered by German troops, and he was given an honourable battlefield burial near the wreckage of his aircraft about 400 yards south of the village of Prémesques.
His personal effects, including his identity discs, were recovered by the Germans and forwarded to his family in Port Melbourne, Victoria, via the Red Cross. However, by the time his remains were recovered by a war graves unit after the armistice, there was no grave marker or identifying items left on his body, other than the insignia and tunic that identified him as an officer of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF).
Nameless, Lieutenant Martin was reinterred within an Imperial, later Commonwealth, War Grave at the Rue-David Military Cemetery in Fleubaix as an unknown Australian officer. A century passed, but the desire to return his name to him remained.
'It takes a special kind of person, a special kind of bravery, to master fear and to master the art of combat flying.'
Lieutenant Martin's AIF records contain the letters from family pleading to officials for updates. Via the Red Cross, the family also received descriptions of his crash from pilots who flew on patrol with him that day.
Unfortunately, no grave was found by the military authorities. They had presumed Lieutenant Martin was buried in a German cemetery. The lone grave at Prémesques had been discovered and the body moved, but owing to the immensity of the war graves task, the link was not made.
Perhaps the saddest and most poignant item that remained was a letter, dated February 18, 1918, from German infantry officer Lieutenant Waldemar Karstens. In a translated version of the letter, he tells the family how Lieutenant Martin's aircraft had fallen the day before.
"The body will be buried here and respectfully cared for, the same as if he were a soldier of ours," Lieutenant Karstens wrote.
"We take great pain in the loss of your dear son."
The grave of the unknown Australian officer at Fleurbaix remained an enigma, as burials within Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) cemeteries cannot be disturbed for investigating teams to acquire DNA. Assiduous and painstaking desk research must be used to build a case for identity.
Aaron Pegram, manager of Unrecovered War Graves - Army (UWC-A), said the case for identification of Lieutenant Martin was based on a review raised by CWGC following the identification of a number of candidates for the remains.
"Initially, there were five candidates for the identity - Lieutenant Martin and four AIF infantry officers," Dr Pegram said.
"However, the infantry officers fell on the front line, and Prémesques had remained well behind the front line. There was no evidence that the Germans would bury frontline casualties so far away from the front, and Lieutenant Martin's body was well documented as being laid to rest on his own a few hundred yards from the village."
'The body will be buried here and respectfully cared for, the same as if he were a soldier of ours.'
The case for Lieutenant Martin was strengthened by German archival records.
"The German regiment responsible for burying Charles made detailed notes in their unit records, including a sketch of the gravesite in relation to Prémesques," Dr Pegram said.
"At the war's end, the regiment's unit records ended up in Belgium and are now held by the Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and Military History in Brussels.
"These documents were crucial in helping us identify Lieutenant Martin as the unknown officer."
UWC-A investigated the case and made identification of Lieutenant Martin to Australian coronial standards. After more than a century of being missing in action, Lieutenant Martin had finally been identified. CWGC have now cut a new headstone, and the descendants of Lieutenant Martin will gather on April 24 to dedicate the new stone to their treasured ancestor.
Head of Corps Australian Army Aviation Brigadier Andrew Thomas said the remembrance of Lieutenant Martin had much to offer contemporary Army aviators.
"We have a history we can be proud of," Brigadier Thomas said.
"The genesis of the Australian Army Aviation Corps was founded during the infancy of powered flight."
Brigadier Thomas said the aircraft of that time were largely made of wood, wire and canvas, yet these machines were thrown into desperate air battles and against defended ground targets flown skilfully by pilots who were writing the first rules of battlefield aviation.
"It takes a special kind of person, a special kind of bravery, to master fear and to master the art of combat flying," Brigadier Thomas said.
"This is a quality that continues in the Australian Army to this day."
