ANZAC Day - Lest We Forget

ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. In April 1905 before the landing on Gallipoli, the soldiers from Australia and New Zealand were grouped together under the abbreviation A & NZ Army Corps which was later modified to ANZAC.

If you remember from history class, The Gallipoli campaign was the World War I strategy designed to secure the Dardanelles so that Allied ships could pass through, capture Constantinople (Istanbul) and essentially knock the Ottoman Empire out of the war. 

At dawn on April 25, 1905, over 16,000 ANZAC landed on the western side of the Gallipoli peninsula.  For most of these young men it was the first time they had ever experienced combat and by evening over 2,000 had been killed or injured. 

ANZAC Day was first observed a year later to commemorate and honor the fallen.  Over the years it evolved and today all ANZAC’s from every war/conflict are honored.  April 25 is one of the most important days of the year in Australia and New Zealand with commemoration services beginning at dawn.

This morning on a ship in the middle of the South Pacific I had the honor to attend the ANZAC Wreath Ceremony. Based on the crowd size I would guess that every Australian and New Zealander on the ship attended. The opening line of the commemoration stated:

"We are assembled here to commemorate that immortal day when the youth of Australia and New Zealand by their deeds and sacrifice demonstrated to the world at Gallipoli that Australia and New Zealand where truly Nations,"

The ceremony continued with prayers, tributes and commemorations delivered by veterans and the children of veterans. There was the laying of the wreath followed by the National Anthems of New Zealand and Australia. It was a solemn and reverent ceremony.

It would be an over simplification to say that ANZAC Day is the equivalent of Veteran's Day or Memorial Day in the US but it is different in many ways. Back home, Memorial Day is a day of remembrance but it is also the "official start of summer" and the remembrance part is often overshadowed by the long weekend, beach trips and cookouts. Veteran's Day definitely carries more solemnity but unless you work for a government agency you typically don't even get the day off from work. Outside of Veteran's organizations and ceremonies held at war memorials many don't even recognize the day beyond a social media post.

This isn't to say that American's don't honor and appreciate our veterans, we certainly do. All nations recognize the sacrifice that selfless individuals make for their country though the visual and tangible expressions may be different. I'm grateful that I had an opportunity to learn about the importance of ANZAC from the Australians and New Zealanders that I've met on this trip. I've heard different perspectives on history and learned a lot.

I spent some time online reading up on ANZAC in an attempt to understand the importance of this day to Australians and New Zealanders. I found a quote that seems to express what I've observed today, It describes the Spirit of ANZAC as:

"a powerful driving sensation that can only be felt. It is a feeling that burns in the heart of every Australian and New Zealand countryman. A warm, tender, fiery, even melancholy ideal that nurtures intense patriotism in the innermost soul of everybody."

                                                                                                                        Arthur Bourke OAM