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ANZAC Day 2012: commemoration of Gallipoli and veterans of conflict

 

ANZAC Day is commemorated on April 25 each year. It is the anniversary of the landing on Gallipoli in 1915 – the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces during the First World War. However, it is the also a day to remember all Australians and Kiwis who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peace-keeping operations. Ceremonies are held in towns and cities across the nation to acknowledge the service of all veterans and existing soldiers. In Canberra, the ceremonies are held at the Australian War Memorial. The Commemorative Ceremony for Torres Strait Islanders  is also held on ANZAC Day after the dawn service at the First Nations memorial plaque.

ANZAC is the acronym for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. The soldiers of the corps were known as ANZACs. The spirit of the ANZACs was courage and friendship (which is referred to as mateship). Australia had only been a federal Commonwealth for 13 years before war commenced in 1914. In 1915 the ANZACs were to capture the Gallipoli peninsula in Turkey to open the Dardanelles for the ships of the British and allied forces. At the time, Istanbul was called Constantinople and Turkey was the Ottoman Empire which was an ally of Germany. They landed at Gallipoli on April 25 and defended the peninsula for eight months. Over 8,000 Australian soldiers lost their lives. Although the campaign failed due to the strength of the Turkish forces, it left an important legacy of remembrance.

An annual ceremony is also held at Gallipoli in which thousands of Australians and New Zealanders travel to Turkey for the commemorations. The site is now known as ANZAC Cove.

ANZAC Day was first commemorated at the Australian War Memorial in 1942. Each year there are two services: (1) the dawn service from 5:00-6:00am to mark the time of the original landing in Gallipoli; and (2) the national ceremony from 10:15-12:00 noon to honour the day with a marching parade of soldiers and service-people.

The dawn service at 5:00am represents the “stand-to” in which soldiers took up their defensive positions in the battlefields, especially on landing at Gallipoli. Dawn services across the country are presented by a chaplain, but not the presence of dignitaries. It is a simple, informal service that follows a military routine of respect and honour. It used to be only for veterans, but now the public are permitted to attend. It is marked by a period of two-minute silence, after which a lone bugler plays The Last Post, and concludes with Reveille (the call to wake up).

The national ceremony at the Australian War Memorial (and in other cities) commences at 10:15am and is televised across the nation. It is a formal ceremony that takes place in the presence of the prime minister and governor-general (the Queen of England’s representative). This year the prime minister, Julia Gillard, and governor-general, Quentin Bryce, delivered speeches at the Gallipoli services. It includes hymns, prayers, speeches, wreath-laying, a bugle playing The Last Post, a two-minute silence, the bugle playing Reveille, and the playing of the Australian national anthem. It includes a march by Australian veterans of wars and peace-keeping missions. After the official march, the public can place a single red poppy beside the War Memorial’s Roll of Honour (a wall plaque that lists the names of all Australian soldiers killed in all wars) or on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.





MARTINA NICOLLSis an international aid and development consultant, and the authorof:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom(2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).
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