Australian soldiers at Fromelles. Of the men shown here, only three survived, all of whom were wounded. Wikipedia photo.

Today marks the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Fromelles, fought July 19-20, 1916, in northern France.  British and Australian forces began the battle to prevent the Germans from moving troops to the Battle of the Somme, which was being fought fifty miles away.  5533 Australians–90% of those fighting–were casualties, as were 1547 British (half of those fighting).