The 57th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Formed in early 1916 for service during World War I, the battalion served on the Western Front until the end of the war, when it was disbanded. In 1921, it was re-raised as a part-time unit in Victoria, known as "The Merri Regiment". In 1930, the battalion was amalgamated with the 60th Battalion, to form the 57th/60th Battalion, which remained linked until it was disbanded in 1946, after having fought against the Japanese in New Guinea and Bougainville during World War II. History World War I The 57th Battalion was originally raised as a unit of the First Australian Imperial Force (AIF) in Egypt on 18 February 1916, as part of an expansion of the AIF that took place after the conclusion of the Gallipoli Campaign. This was achieved by joining half of the members of the veteran 5th Battalion with fresh recruits raised in Australia from north-east Victoria. With an authorised strength of 1,023 men, and under the command of Lieutenant Colonel James Stewart, together with the 58th, 59th and 60th Battalions, the 57th formed part of the 15th Brigade, which was assigned to the 5th Australian Division. After formation, the battalion undertook a period of intense training in Egypt. In mid-1916, the AIF's infantry divisions were sent to the Western Front, and the battalion arrived in France, landing in Marseilles, in June 1916. Initially, it was sent to a "nursery sector" in northern France to gain experience, but in July the 57th experienced its taste of the fighting when the 5th Division was committed to the Battle of Fromelles, which was the AIF's debut on the Western Front. The attack at Fromelles proved to be disastrous for the Australians who suffered over 5,000 casualties, and it was later described as "the worst 24 hours in Australia's entire history". The 57th, having been held back in reserve, suffered less than the rest of the 15th Brigade and, as a result, remained in the line for several days after the battle after the other units had been withdrawn. After Fromelles, the 57th spent the next two-and-a-half years in the trenches in France and Belgium, seeing action in many of the major battles fought by the Australians during this time. In 1917, the battalion joined the brief advance that the Allies undertook when the Germans withdrew to the Hindenburg Line.