Australian Soldiers Identified Decades After Death

Topic: History

Friday, 7 August 2026, at 10:30 pm

A soldier who fought with the 39th Infantry Battalion on the Kokoda Track has been identified.

In short:

Two Australian soldiers have been identified after their deaths in 1918 and 1942.

Both soldiers were in graves marked 'unknown Australian' until the Australian Army identified them.

What's next?

Headstones with the soldiers' names will be installed.

The stories of two Australian soldiers who died in different wars are now known.

Both soldiers died on the same date and were in 'Unknown Australian' graves.

The men have been identified, one over a century after his death.

Private Archibald Hanley was killed in the Battle of Amiens in France on August 8, 1918.

Archibald Hanley is seen with his brother, John Hanley.

He was not identified for over a century and was in the Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery.

Twenty-four years later, Lieutenant Hercules William Crawford was killed in the Battle of Kokoda.

He went missing on the Kokoda Track near Pirivi on August 8, 1942.

Lieutenant Hercules Crawford of the 39th Battalion CMF is seen in a photo.

The Australian Army's Unrecovered War Casualties team identified the men after a long investigation.

Veterans' Affairs Minister Matt Keogh said the identification of the soldiers is important.

The identification shows Australia's commitment to remembering its soldiers.

Over 30,000 Australian soldiers from World War I and II are still not found. With new DNA technology, families are trying to find their ancestors' graves.

The soldiers' headstones will have their names, ranks, and unit details.

Chief of Army Lieutenant General Susan Coyle said the identification gives answers to the soldiers' families.

The identification shows that time does not stop the effort to find and honor the missing soldiers.

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