The following is a commentary of frequently asked questions:

Anzac Day

Anzac Day commemorates the landing of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) on the Gallipoli peninsula on 25 April 1915. On the same day, just hours before the landing, the Royal Australian Navy’s submarine HMAS AE2 entered the Dardanelles. By that evening, AE2 had become the first vessel in more than 800 years to breach the strait and reach the Sea of Marmara.
Today, we acknowledge the courage and sacrifice of our current and former service men and women who have served and died in all conflicts, and our allies who have served alongside them.
Defence encourages all Australians to reflect on the contribution made by all of our past and present service personnel who have displayed great courage, discipline and self-sacrifice in choosing a life of service to their country.

Gallipoli campaign

The landing at Anzac Cove on Sunday, 25 April 1915 was part of the amphibious invasion of the Gallipoli Peninsula by the forces of the British Empire, which began the land phase of the Gallipoli campaign of the First World War.
The assault troops, mostly from the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC), landed in the early morning hours on the western (Aegean Sea) side of the peninsula.
In the darkness, the assault formations became mixed up, but the troops gradually made their way inland, under increasing opposition from the Ottoman defenders.
Not long after coming ashore, the ANZAC plans were discarded, and the companies and battalions were thrown into battle piecemeal and received mixed orders. Some advanced to their designated objectives, while others were diverted to other areas and ordered to dig in along defensive ridge lines.
Although they failed to achieve their objectives, by nightfall the ANZACs had formed a beachhead, albeit much smaller than intended.
When evacuation was deemed impracticable, the ANZAC divisions stayed. The exact number of the day’s casualties is not known.
Since 1916, the anniversary of the landings on 25 April has been commemorated as Anzac Day, becoming one of the most important commemorative dates for Australia and New Zealand. The anniversary is also commemorated in Turkey and the United Kingdom.

Anzac Day History and Traditions

ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.
The Australian and New Zealand troops, together with British, Indian, Newfoundland and French forces, met fierce resistance from the Turkish defenders.
What had been planned as a bold strike to knock Turkey (now pronounced Tur-key-YAY) out of the war quickly became a stalemate and the campaign dragged on for eight months.
At the end of 1915 the allied forces were evacuated after both sides had suffered heavy casualties and endured great hardships.
On 25 April 1916, the first anniversary of the landing was observed in Australia, New Zealand and England and by troops in Egypt. That year, 25 April was officially named ‘Anzac Day’ by the Acting Australian Prime Minister, George Pearce.
By 1927, all Australian States and Territories held Anzac Day ceremonies and had designated Anzac Day as a public holiday.
In the ensuing decades, World War II veterans, returned personnel from the conflicts in Malaya, Indonesia, Korea and Vietnam, as well as veterans from allied countries and peacekeepers joined the parades.
While no Australian veterans of the Gallipoli campaign are still with us, Australians across the nation and all around the world gather on Anzac Day to remember our fallen service personnel. Commemorative services are held at dawn, the time of the original landing and later in the day with the traditional parade.
The ANZACs courage, endurance and mateship forged a spirit and legend that lives on today and it is this that we remember and honour on this anniversary.
The mutual respect that Australia and Türkiye (now pronounced Tur-key-YAY) developed on the battlefield in 1915 has developed into bonds of friendship and goodwill.

Battle of Fromelles

The Battle of Fromelles, from 19-20 July 1916, was the first major action fought by Australians on the Western Front.
It is known as Australia’s bloodiest 24 hours. In less than 24 hours, the 5th Australian Division had 5,533 casualties, of which 1,917 were killed.
It was believed that up to 400 Australian and British soldiers lay at Pheasant Wood where they were buried by German forces following the battle.
The group burial at Pheasant Wood was confirmed during excavations in May 2008.
A full archaeological excavation of the site commenced in May 2009 with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission overseeing the work on behalf of both the Australian and British Governments.
Re-interment of the remains of 250 Australian and British soldiers in the new Commonwealth War Cemetery at Fromelles, known as the Fromelles (Pheasant Wood) Military Cemetery, was completed on 20 July 2010.
One hundred and eighty of the 250 sets of remains recovered from the Pheasant Wood mass grave have now been identified through the efforts of Unrecovered War Casualties

The Ode (For the Fallen)

The Ode recited at Anzac Day commemorations is the fourth stanza of Laurence Binyon’s For the Fallen, first published in the London Times in 1914:

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old; Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning

Villers-Bretonneux

The Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux was a successful Australian counter-attack fought against Imperial German forces on the Somme in April 1918.
The German capture of Villers-Bretonneux at dawn on 24 April was delivered in the final throes of an offensive that had commenced so successfully for the Germans on 21 March 1918.
Early in April the first German attack towards Villers-Bretonneux had been thwarted, but the British defenders had little answer to the German advance, and on 24 April 1918, the village fell to the enemy.
Two Australian brigades, the 13th of the 4th Division, and the 15th of the 5th Division, carried out a highly successful counter-attack that ejected the Germans from the township.

− The Australians adopted a pincer movement with Glasgow’s 50th (SA), 51st (WA) and 52nd (SA, WA and TAS) Battalions and the 49th (Qld) Battalion in reserve, to sweep past Villers-Bretonneux to the south. Victorians from the 57th, 59th and 60th Battalions and the 58th in reserve were to attack from the north.

− During the night of 24 April, the 13th Brigade faced intense machine-gun fighting in Bois d’Aquenne before they could proceed. The two brigades then linked up east of the village to encircle the Germans.

− Australian effort to retake Villers-Bretonneux was achieved at dawn on 25 April 1918, through the fierce fighting of the Australians from the east, and from the British troops coming in from the north and west.

− The counter-attack cost nearly 1500 Australian casualties, but the action restored stability to this area of the battlefield and added to the reputation of Australians on the Western Front.

Commemorative Service

The Service on Anzac Day has become a solemn Australian and New Zealand tradition.
The Commemorative Service observed on Anzac Day has its origins in an operational routine, which is still observed by the Australian Army today. The half-light of dawn has historically became one of the most favoured times for enemy attacks. Soldiers in defensive positions were therefore woken up in the dark, before dawn, to be alert and manning their weapons. This was, and still is, known as “stand-to.” It was also repeated at sunset.

After the First World War, returned soldiers sought the comradeship they felt in those quiet, peaceful moments before dawn. With symbolic links to the dawn landing at Gallipoli, a dawn stand-to or dawn ceremony became a common form of Anzac Day remembrance during the 1920s; the first official Commemorative Service was held at the Sydney Cenotaph in 1927.

We will remember them.

Lest we forget.

The Last Post

The Last Post is one of a number of bugle calls in military tradition, which mark the phases of the day.
Where Reveille signalled the start of a soldier’s day, the Last Post signalled its end.
Historically, the Last Post was sounded when the duty officer started his evening rounds to check that the sentry posts were manned and to send off-duty soldiers to bed. The duty officer would be accompanied by one or more musicians.
As the party proceeded from post to post, a drum was played, telling off-duty soldiers that it was time to rest.
When they had completed their rounds and reached the last post, another bugle call, the Last Post, was sounded to signal that the night sentries were alert at their posts and gave one last warning to any soldiers still at large that it was time to retire for the evening.

The significance of silence

Australian journalist Edward Honey has been credited with developing the idea of observing a remembrance silence. In a letter to The Evening News on 8 May 1919, he appealed for a five-minute silence on 11 November 1919, the anniversary of the Armistice that ended World War I. Across the nation, silence is now observed for a minute.

Reveille

The Reveille originated in medieval times and was played to wake soldiers at dawn.
In major ceremonies the Last Post is normally followed by Rouse, except at the Commemorative Service where Reveille is played.
Reveille is rarely used because of its length.

Rouse

The Rouse was historically used as the signal for soldiers to rise.
Today it is closely associated with the Last Post at all military funerals and service of dedication and remembrance.
The Rouse is played on the completion of one minute’s silence, after the Last Post has been sounded.

The bugle call is lively and uplifting, designed to rouse soldiers’ spirits for another day of military activity.

Laurel and Rosemary

Just as wild poppies came to symbolise those who fell on the Western Front in France, laurel and rosemary have long been associated with Anzac Day.
Both plants grow wild on the Gallipoli Peninsula and also have deeper overtones.
Laurel was a symbol of honour and acclaim for both the ancient Greeks and Romans.

Red Poppies

Red poppies and/or sprigs of rosemary are often worn as signs of remembrance. Red poppies were among the first plants to spring up in the devastated battlefields of northern France and Belgium.
Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, a Canadian surgeon who deployed to France in World War I, first described the red poppy, the Flanders’ poppy, as the flower of

remembrance. He had spent 17 days treating wounded men and was particularly affected by the death of his friend, Lieutenant Alexis Helmer.

In Flanders’ Fields

Venting his anguish, Lieutenant Colonel McCrae composed a poem but tossed it away. However, his poem was retrieved by another officer and was sent to publications in England. Punch published it on 8 December 1915.
Lieutenant Colonel McCrae’s In Flanders’ Fields to this day remains one of the most memorable war poems ever written and is a lasting legacy of the terrible battle at Ypres in the spring of 1915.

In Flanders’ Fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved, and were loved, and now we lie, In Flanders’ Fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw the torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders’ Fields.

Lieutenant Colonel McCrae was wounded in May 1918 and died three days later.

In November 1918, Lieutenant Colonel McCrae’s poem inspired the YMCA to initiate the idea of selling artificial poppies to raise money to help needy soldiers and their families.
After the poppy was adopted as the emblem of the British Legion, the red poppy has been accepted as the emblem of remembrance.
The Returned Sailors and Soldiers Imperial League of Australia and returned soldiers organisations of allied countries have passed resolutions at their international conventions to recognise the poppy of Flanders’ Fields as the international memorial flower to be worn on 11 November, the anniversary of Armistice Day.
On and around 11 November each year, the RSL sells millions of red cloth poppies to Australians, with proceeds going to welfare.

Anzac Biscuits

During World War I, a long-life biscuit was created to endure the long journey to Australian soldiers serving overseas. After the landing of Australian and New Zealand soldiers at Gallipoli, these biscuits became known as Anzac biscuits.

Digger

The nickname ‘digger’ has been attributed to the number of ex-gold diggers who served in the early Army units and also to the trench digging activities of the Australian soldiers during World War I.

Rising Sun Badge

The Rising Sun badge is worn by all members of the Australian Army. It represents Army’s history, values and people, both past and present.
The original design from 1902, which was created and produced in haste, was modified in 1904. This badge carried a scroll, inscribed with AUSTRALIAN COMMONWEALTH MILITARY FORCES and it was worn throughout both World Wars.
In 1991 a new design was produced with the inscription on the scroll, THE AUSTRALIAN ARMY.

Slouch Hat

The slouch hat was adopted into Australian military service in 1885 and was first worn overseas in the Boer War.
Slouch hats are typically made from rabbit-fur felt or wool felt and are worn today by the Army and Air Force, but only the Army continues to wear it with its side turned up.
The word ‘slouch’ refers to the sloping brim.
While the slouch hat is commonly believed to be uniquely Australian, similar styles have been worn by other countries, including the United States, New Zealand, India and Germany.

Parade Ground

After a battle, when retreat was sounded and the unit had reassembled to call the roll and count the dead, a hollow square was formed.
The dead were placed within the square and no-one used the area as a thoroughfare.
Today, the parade ground represents this square and hence, a unit’s dead.
It is deemed to be hallowed ground, soaked with the blood of our fallen and the area is as such respected by all.

Saluting

Traces of the origin of saluting can be seen in the conventional exchange of this courtesy between officers and enlisted personnel today.
Saluting with an open hand indicates friendly intentions and can be traced back to the Stone Age, when this form of salute indicated to people that both were unarmed; the hand being raised to indicate that it was clear of any object that could be used to injure the other.
The hand carried to the head in salute has also descended to us from the Middle Ages and is a further indication of friendship between people. The present-day salute is a symbol of greeting, of mutual respect, trust and confidence, initiated by the junior in rank, but with no loss of dignity on either side.

Medals

Defence honours and awards recognises the service of Australian Defence Force members.
An honour is an award or appointment made within an Order (e.g. The Order of Australia).
Medals are awarded to recognise service on specific campaigns and long service.
The custom of wearing medals on the left breast can be traced back to the time of the Crusades, when Knights wore their badge of honour near the heart. Also, the left side was the side that was covered by the shield which was held on the left arm protecting both the heart and the badge of honour.

Family members who wear their relative’s medals during Anzac Day marches are to wear them on the right.

Victoria Cross

The Victoria Cross is the highest military award for bravery in war and conflict. First instituted in 1856, the Imperial Victoria Cross recognised acts of gallantry in action by members of all ranks of the armed services. It has long stood as the pre-eminent award for valour, and that status has been retained within Australia’s honours system.
The Victoria Cross for Australia was established on 15 January 1991. It is awarded for the most conscious gallantry, or for a daring or pre-eminent act of valour or self-sacrifice, or for extreme devotion to duty in the face of the enemy.
Ninety-six Australians have been awarded the Imperial Victoria Cross.
- Mr Keith Payne VC AM, who received the decoration in 1969 for his actions during the Vietnam War, is the last living Australian recipient under the Imperial honours system.
- A further six Australians have received the Victoria Cross for Australia – four for actions in Afghanistan, and two as retrospective award for acts of extraordinary bravery during the Second World War and the Vietnam War.
The first recipient of the Victoria Cross for Australia, within the Australian Honours system was Trooper Mark Donaldson, a Special Forces soldier who braved enemy fire to save the life of an interpreter caught in a Taliban ambush in Afghanistan.

ANZAC or Anzac?

Historically, ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) was an acronym devised by Major General William Birdwood’s staff in Cairo in early 1915. It was used for registering correspondence for the new corps and a rubber stamp was cut using the letters A.N.Z.A.C.
Australia’s Official War Historian of the Gallipoli campaign, Charles Bean, ascribed the origin of the acronym to a British Officer of the Army Service Corps, Lieutenant AT White. Another British Officer, Major CM Wagstaff, suggested running the letters together – ANZAC – as a code word for the corps.
After the landing at Gallipoli, General Birdwood requested that the position held by the Australians and New Zealanders on the peninsula be called ‘Anzac’ to distinguish it from the British position at Relles. Permission was also sought to name the little bay, where the majority of the corps had come ashore on 25 April 1915, ‘Anzac Cove.’ The letters now were upper and lower case, indicating that the original acronym had already found a use beyond that of a military code word or corps designation. Not surprisingly, the word was soon applied to the men of the corps who became ANZACs. There is substantial documentary evidence such as diaries and letters from those soldiers showing that they used the term in upper and lower case.
Protection of Word ‘Anzac’ Regulations were made in 1921 under the War Precautions Act Repeal Act 1920 to protect the word ‘Anzac,’ and any word which resembles it, from inappropriate use.
DVA provides guidelines on the use of word Anzac. There is no rule or law that indicates how the word ‘Anzac’ should be capitalised. Defence will follow DVA protocol and use ‘ANZAC’ when referencing the ANZAC Corps itself and ‘Anzac’ in all other ci