Stephen Featherstone, from the Central Coast, met Johnson Beharry VC at the iconic Menin Gate Memorial in Ypres, Belgium, during a Mat McLachlan Battlefield Tour commemorating the 110th anniversaries of the Battles of Fromelles and Pozières.
Beharry is the first living recipient of the Victoria Cross in more than 30 years. The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration for gallantry in the British and Commonwealth armed forces and has been awarded fewer than 1,400 times since its introduction in 1856.
As a young private serving with the 1st Battalion, Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment in Iraq in 2004, Beharry carried out two extraordinary acts of bravery. Despite suffering catastrophic head injuries after his armoured vehicle was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade, he managed to drive his crew to safety before collapsing. He received the Victoria Cross from Queen Elizabeth II in 2005.
The meeting took place on the eve of the 99th anniversary of the unveiling of the Menin Gate Memorial, which bears the names of more than 54,000 Commonwealth soldiers who died in the Ypres Salient during World War I and have no known grave. The memorial is renowned for its nightly Last Post ceremony, held every evening at 8pm.
Stephen's journey also coincided with commemorations marking the 110th anniversary of the Battle of Fromelles, Australia's bloodiest 24 hours of the war, where about 5,500 Australian soldiers became casualties in a single night.
During the tour, Stephen attended the rededication of Private Roy Leslie Martin, a 20-year-old from Cobar, NSW, who was killed at Fromelles in 1916.
After lying in a mass grave for more than a century, Martin was recently identified through DNA analysis and historical research and was finally laid to rest beneath a named headstone.
Adding to the significance of the tour, the group travelled with Melbourne researcher Lambis Englezos, whose work led to the discovery of the "Lost Diggers of Fromelles" mass grave at Pheasant Wood in 2008, one of Australia's most important war-grave discoveries.
The tour also explored key Anzac sites across the Western Front, including Pozières, Hill 60, Talbot House, General Sir John Monash's headquarters at Château de Bertangles, preserved trenches, museums and Commonwealth War Graves cemeteries.
Led by expert historians, the tours give visitors a unique insight into the sacrifice and legacy of the Anzacs while preserving the stories of those who served.
Next year marks the centenary of the Menin Gate Memorial, with Mat McLachlan Battlefield Tours planning a special Western Front Explorer tour to coincide with the milestone.
