Written by Joseph Russo in April, 2010

‘Anzac day is more than just a public holiday. It’s more than getting up early, going to a dawn service and then heading to the pub for a beer and a game of 2-up.

Anzac Day is also more than just remembering those lives lost at Gallipoli. Today’s Anzacs are defending our nation against global terrorism with all of the distinction of their forefathers who scaled the cliffs of Gallipoli 94 years ago, and stopped the Japanese at Milne Bay in 1942.

The History of Anzac Day

The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) landing at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915 gave us the date and name of Anzac Day. News of the landing saw an outpouring of national pride, and it became clear that its anniversary was the appropriate day for commemoration.

Anzac Day was first observed on 25 April 1916, as people came together to honour those lost at Gallipoli. In Australia, some state governments organised events to commemorate the occasion—but the Commonwealth did not. Acting Prime Minister Senator George Pearce viewed Gallipoli as a failure, and believed that a later battle might prove ‘more worthy of remembering’. He clearly misjudged the importance of this day to the people.

Anzac Day during war time was especially important for the bereaved. With so many killed, the pain was palpable. Anzac Day was a moment to recognise and acknowledge the sacrifice with memorial services and simple acts of remembrance, such as women tying ribbons onto the gates of wharves where they last saw their sons, brothers or husbands alive.

Anzac Day was a fixture by the war’s end. Politicians (some of whom had served, or lost loved ones and friends) forged bonds with the Returned Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Imperial League of Australia (now the Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL)), which assumed responsibility for the day. Rituals such as dawn services and the Anzac Day march were developed, and gradually the families of the dead became quite marginalised. While all people were encouraged to remember, the day was in many ways for ex-servicemen to honour their dead.

By the late 1920s, Anzac Day was a public holiday in every state and territory. In the 1930s, there was rhetoric about the need to pass the ‘Anzac spirit’ down to the next generation. This was partly politically motivated, as there was a feeling that people needed steeling for another war.

During the Second World War, the ‘sons of the Anzacs’ were welcomed, and the day now honoured veterans of all wars. But despite a greater number of veterans, by the 1960s its popularity had waned, and many wondered if Anzac Day could survive.

The resurgence started in the 1980s and 1990s. The RSL had been slow to welcome ‘others’—notably those who did not serve overseas, including most ex-servicewomen, and veterans of the ‘small’ wars. With a younger leadership, it has relaxed the rules to be more inclusive. Governments have reinforced the day’s significance with commemorative programs that reach out to the community. Anzac Day has evolved into a day for Australians to honour our war dead and veterans, and incidentally to show support for serving members of the Australian Defence Force. Dawn services have become a popular event. Time will tell whether, as veteran numbers dwindle, the Anzac Day march will continue in its present form.

The Dawn service

The first commemorative event of Anzac Day is the dawn service at 4.30 am. This is coincidentally about the time the men of the ANZAC approached the beach at Gallipoli. However, the origin is the traditional ‘stand-to’, in which troops would be woken so that by the first rays of dawn they were in position and alert, in case of an enemy attack in the eerie half-light. It is a ritual and a moment remembered by many veterans.

The first dawn service was in 1923 at Albany in Western Australia. It was conducted by the Reverend Arthur White, Rector of St John’s Church, and formerly a padre with the 44th Battalion on the Western Front. The dawn service caught on, and the first official dawn service at Sydney’s Cenotaph occurred four years later. The simple ceremony was for veterans to assemble before dawn to ‘stand-to’ and for two minutes of silence. Nowadays, all are welcome, and the dawn service has grown in popularity and in meaning for the community.

History of the ‘gunfire breakfast’, held after the dawn service on Anzac Day

Many communities follow the dawn service with a ‘traditional’ gunfire breakfast.

‘Gunfire’ is a British tradition and was the usual term for the early cup of tea served out to troops in the morning before going on first parade, whenever possible. In the War (WWI) recruits in training always had ‘gunfire’ supplied to them, the work before breakfast being found particularly trying. The morning gun in a garrison town suggested the name probably.

The ‘gunfire breakfast’ seems to have evolved from the above, and comprises whatever is available at the time—it could be ‘coffee and rum’ or ‘stew, sausage and bread’, or even ‘bacon and eggs’ (which is served by the War Memorial for their ‘gunfire breakfast’ on Anzac Day).

Anzac Day march

From cities to small towns, the march has long been the centrepiece of Anzac Day. Marches were held during the Great War, and became popular with veterans in the 1920s, to honour lost friends and publicly express comradeship. The RSL organises the marches. While it was traditional for veterans who saw active service, it was later relaxed to include those who served in Australia in the armed services or ‘land armies’, during WWII. It has been relaxed further, with some encouragement or acceptance of children, grandchildren and even great-grandchildren marching, to assist aged veterans or to represent those no longer with us.

Follow-on and Two-up

The march may be followed by reunions and lunches put on by local establishments. This is also the one day that the traditional Australian gambling game of ‘two-up’, or ‘swy’, may be legally played at venues. Bets are placed on how two pennies thrown into the air will fall. The ‘ringer’ (in charge) will explain rules and betting procedures. Any persons of legal gambling age are welcome to participate.

Wearing medals

Only the person awarded or issued medals may claim those medals as his or her own. This is enshrined in law. He or she wears the medals on their left breast. Others (those who did not earn the medals) may honour the service of a relative by wearing medals on the right breast. Some veterans may be seen wearing medals on both breasts—their own on the left, and a relative’s on the right.

Wearing rosemary

Rosemary is an emblem of remembrance. It is traditional on Anzac Day to wear a sprig of rosemary pinned to a coat lapel or to the breast (it does not matter which side, but left seems most common), or held in place by medals. Rosemary has particular significance for Australians on Anzac Day as it grows wild on the Gallipoli peninsular.

Laying a wreath or flowers

A wreath or a small bunch of flowers is traditionally laid on memorials or graves in memory of the dead. They might contain laurel, a traditional symbol of honour, and rosemary, or they may be native or other flowers. In recent years, it has also become popular to lay a wreath of red poppies—formerly associated with Remembrance Day, 11 November. Any of these wreaths or flowers is acceptable as a gesture of remembrance.

The Ode

The Ode comes from the fourth stanza of the poem ‘For the Fallen’ by the English poet and writer, Laurence Binyon. It was published in London in The Winnowing Fan: Poems of the Great War in 1914. It was used in association with commemorative services in Australia by 1921.

The Ode

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

At the Anzac Day ceremony, an invited speaker often recites The Ode and upon his or her completion of the recitation, those present repeat the last words ‘We will remember them’. After a short pause this is followed by ‘Lest we forget’.

The Last Post

This is one of a number of bugle calls in military tradition to mark phases of the day. Traditionally, it marked the ending of a day. The Last Post was incorporated into funeral and memorial services as a final farewell, and symbolises that the duty of the dead is over and that they can now rest in peace. On Anzac Day, it is followed by one or two minutes of silence, then a second bugle call, Reveille (also known as The Rouse).

We will remember them

Lest we forget’

Original document can be seen at: www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/anzac/relevance.htm kindly produced by the Parliament of Australia.