Today Is A Very Special Day ... Lest We Forget.

"The tumult and the shouting dies,
The Captains and the the Kings depart.
Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice
A humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet
Lest we forget. Lest we forget." ~ Bradley

April 25th is known as ANZAC Day here in Australia.  It's the day our whole nation stops to remember and mark the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australia and New Zealand.

The ANZACs - Australian and New Zealander Army Corps - landed at Gallipoli on April 25th, back in 1915, and so began an eight month military campaign that failed to achieve any of its objectives.  At the end of that campaign, the troops were evacuated with over 8,000 Australian soldiers killed during the long battle.  April 25th became the day that our country stops to remember the sacrifices made by all Australians who served and died in all wars and conflicts.

It's not very often that an Australian Prime Minister attends an Anzac Day commemoration here in Townsville.  They usually do their bit in our nation's capital, Canberra or over at Gallipoli.  Today however our current Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, was here in Townsville to attend the Dawn Service.

Townsville is a garrison city, home to one of Australia's largest defence communities.  The relocation of 3rd Battalion Royal Australian Regiment to our city this year meant that the three original infantry battalions would be parading together on ANZAC Day  for the first time in 60 years.  Obviously that is quite an historic occasion, and the Prime Minister needed to be a part of it.

Just to close the post today, I'm adding a heart rendering version of one of our most well-known Aussie songs.  It's Eric Bogle's 'And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda', which I think is the very best version.  Interestingly the song is used in a presentation made for students at a Canadian high school.  While there are certainly some images of Australian soldiers and the Gallipoli campaign, there are many images of Canadian armed forces members.  This just proves that no matter where you are in the world, the evocative lyrics of Eric's song still resonate.  We honour our veterans, but all their sacrifices are futile if we never learn the lessons that war teaches us all.

Last year's post:  Lest We Forget

Lest We Forget ... On This Anzac Day 2012.

Today is the day we mark the anniversary of the landing on Gallipoli in 1915.  At dawn, on April 25th, Australian and New Zealand troops, as part of the Allied forces, landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey during World War 1.  

They met fierce resistance on that day and during the ensuing battle, which lasted for eight very long months, thousands of lives were lost.  It was the first ever major military action fought by Aussie and New Zealand troops, and they suffered a merciless defeat.  So why do we commemorate a campaign that failed its military objectives?  Because the actions of those very young soldiers left a lasting legacy and helped shaped our identity as a young nation.   It was a defining moment in our country's history when our nation was still very young and finding its place in the world.

The soliders, known as ANZACS, took great pride in that name, and the qualities of courage, mateship and sacrifice that were displayed during the long dark days of the Gallipoli campaign gave rise to something that has helped defined Aussies and New Zealanders ever since.   It's what we refer to as the spirit of the 'Diggers'. 

Now, on ANZAC Day, we hold ceremonies all over our country to acknowledge not only the service of those original ANZACs, but all those who have served in all wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations since then. 

 Source: Townsville Daily Bulletin

In cities and towns all over our nation, we mark this special day in two ways.  There's a commemorative service, held at dawn, which was the time of the original Gallipoli landing.  Wreaths are laid and there's a period of two minutes' silence that follows.  At the end of this time a lone bugler plays 'The Last Post', and then the service ends with the 'Reveille'. 

Later in the day,  there's a march through the city or town streets for all servicemen and women, watched by family and community members. 

Of course, here in our garrison city, we have a lot of families with loved ones serving right now over in Afghanistan.  My own particular school has a large number of Defence Force families as part of our school community.  Yesterday during our Anzac Day liturgy there were a number of Defence Force personnel, mums and dads of our students, who were there to be honoured and to honour all those who serve our country.   It was a very poignant moment watching them stand on the stage, at attention and saluting while the Last Post was played.   It was only last year that three of our own Townsville-based soldiers were killed in action.

Here's a link to a newspaper story about the Dawn Service held this morning at our city's Anzac Park, and a reminder about the sacrifices that are still being made by families today.


Garrison town turns out in thousands to remember fallen Diggers