Hill 60 was not a natural hill, but a massive spoil heap created from the excavation of a nearby railway cutting in the Ypres Salient of Belgium. Its elevation made it a crucial observation post for the German Army.
: Soldiers worked in pairs on a wooden frame, using their legs to push a spade into the clay. This method was nearly silent, preventing German listeners from detecting their location. subtitle Beneath Hill 60
Today, the site of Hill 60 remains a memorial. Because many soldiers' bodies were never recovered from the collapsed tunnels, the ground is considered a cemetery—a silent reminder of the war fought beneath the earth. Hill 60 was not a natural hill, but
By 1917, the British planned a massive offensive at . The strategy involved planting 19 massive deep mines under German lines. The Australian 1st Tunnelling Company, led by Captain Oliver Woodward, was tasked with maintaining and defending two of the most critical mines—the "Hill 60" and "The Caterpillar"—against German counter-mining efforts. The Life of a Tunneller This method was nearly silent, preventing German listeners