Scottish poppies & French remembrance.

The Australian War Memorial Museum in Canberra has, in its collections, a number of First World War trench signs and notice boards.  Perhaps the most interesting of these signs came from Peronne in Picardy which was captured by the Australian troops of the 14th and 15th Brigades on 2 September 1918 as part of the 2nd Division's assault on Mont St. Quentin.

Within days of the capture of Peronne a number of signs with Australian themed names appeared on the streets, painted on bits of old ammunition boxes.  These included Wallaby Lane, Wombat Road, Ding Bat Alley, Digger Road, Dinkum Alley and, perhaps most iconic of all, the Roo De Kanga, a classic example of the Australian sense of humour. 

Few towns in France, with the exception of Villers Breonneux, have retained the street names afforded to them by the Australian Imperial Force.  However, in 1998 the commune of Peronne restored the name Roo De Kanga to a stretch of the Rue de St Savour, by the Hotel de Ville, where the sign had hung briefly 80 years earlier.