Hot topic: Anzac Day

TKI Hot Topic for March 2008

On 25 April, thousands of New Zealanders will attend dawn services around the country to mark the 92nd anniversary of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) soldiers landing at Gallipoli in 1915.

Over 7000 New Zealand soldiers were wounded at Gallipoli and 2,721 were killed. The Australian army also suffered heavy casualties: 26,111 were injured and 8,141 were killed. This is the first of many ceremonies held on Anzac Day to remember those who have served and died in war.

The first Anzac Day took place on 25 April 1916. As time went on, the ceremony of remembrance was extended to the soldiers of World War II (WWII), and it now honours all New Zealanders and Australians who have served in a military campaign.

Many New Zealanders will also travel to Gallipoli to mark the occasion, along with the Turkish people who lost family and friends in the same campaign. Below is information about Anzac Day, and links to a range of resources on TKI which students and teachers can use to find out more.

Poppies

Poppy Day is held on the Friday before Anzac Day. The proceeds from the poppies go to the Royal New Zealand Returned and Services’ Association (RSA) to support returned servicemen and women and their dependants.

The red poppy – or Flanders poppy – is an international symbol of remembrance for those killed on the battlefield. Its symbolism dates back to Napoleonic times, but its association with WWI and WWII is mainly due to the poem “In Flanders Fields”, written by Canadian medical officer Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae during WWI.

The first New Zealand Poppy Day was held in 1922. The ship carrying the poppies from France arrived in New Zealand too late for Armistice Day in November, when Poppy Day is celebrated by the rest of the world. So, New Zealand held Poppy Day on the Friday before Anzac Day instead, and it has been celebrated on that day ever since.

Linking both sides

As well as New Zealanders and Australians, the Turkish people who also lost friends and family, will commemorate this event.

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was a Turkish wartime leader who later became President and Prime Minister of Turkey. He made the following statement as a tribute to the Anzacs who died in Gallipoli:

Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives,

You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country.

Therefore rest in peace.

There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side here in this country of ours.

You, the mothers, who sent their sons from far away countries, wipe away your tears; your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace.

After having lost their lives on this land, they have become our sons as well.

Anzac Memorial 1934

The Dawn Service

The Dawn Service is timed to coincide with the initial landings at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915. It is also significant for veterans, echoing the routine dawn "stand-to" of their war service.

The service begins with a pre-dawn procession of returned servicemen and women to the local war memorial.

The service is moving and powerful. One of the most well-known aspects of the service is the reading of the last verse of Laurence Binyon's "For the Fallen":

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 We will remember them.

The Last Post is then played, followed by a minute's silence and Reveille. Listen to "The Last Post".

The Anzac Parade

The Dawn Service is followed by another ceremony later that morning, the Anzac Parade. This also begins with a march. Returned service personnel march to the local war memorial for the laying of wreaths and formal speeches. At the end of the day, the ceremony of the ‘Retreat’ is performed in Wellington.

For information on Anzac Day commemorations in your area, contact your local council.

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Resources on TKI

Anzac Day: A Guide for New Zealanders
Launched on 18 April 2005 to mark the 90th anniversary of the Gallipoli landings, this website includes information on the significance of Anzac Day, how it is commemorated today and a virtual guide of the Gallipoli peninsula featuring stunning interactive panoramas. It also includes searchable records of all New Zealanders who died at Gallipoli.
http://www.anzac.govt.nz

Matapihi – Showcase: New Zealanders at War
This Matapihi showcase is a selection of digitised images and paintings about New Zealanders at war from various New Zealand archives, galleries, libraries, and museums. Click on the images to enlarge them. Additional links are included so that you can explore the topic further.
http://tinyurl.com/yw3baj

New Zealand's Army: Ngati Tumatauenga
Find out about New Zealand's army – past, present, and future. Read about current operations, find out about the doctrine of the army, and discover New Zealand's military past at the army museum.
http://www.army.mil.nz

Returned Services Association – Remembrance
These pages on the RSA website give a full history of Anzac Day, Poppy Day, and Armistice Day as well as information about the Unknown Warrior.
http://www.rsa.org.nz/remem/index.html

Anzac Day

The Anzacs
This page from the NZHistory website explains the origin and meaning of the word ANZAC – an acronym for Australia and New Zealand Army Corps. It also includes a link to information about Gallipoli.
http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/Gallery/Anzac/ANZACes.htm

The History of Poppy Day
Find out about the Anzac Poppy – its origins and its changing designs. This page explains how New Zealand became the only country to use the poppy as a symbol of the RSA and its endeavours to care for war veterans as well as remember those who never returned.
http://www.rsa.org.nz/remem/poppy_hist.html

Lice 'n' Latrines: New Zealanders at Gallipoli
In this level 5 unit, intended for years 9–10, students use a variety of web-based resources to inquire into past events at Gallipoli, and discover why this is such a significant place for many New Zealanders.
http://www.tki.org.nz/r/socialscience/curriculum/SSOL/gallipoli/index_e.php

ANZAC Discoveries
This is an online resource from Brainways, designed as a learning adventure for students to discover why it is important to "remember" on Anzac Day. Created and trialled by New Zealand teachers, it has activities based around Howard Gardner's Multiple Intelligences, with topics including Anzac biscuits, ceremonies, Gallipoli, poppies, songs, and poems.
http://www.brainways.co.nz/Anzac/default.htm

ANZAC Biscuits
This web page provides the history behind the creation of ANZAC biscuits. The recipe is included, and there are links to more information about the history of the ANZACs. This is a suitable resource for primary and secondary level.
http://www.anzacday.org.au/history/ww1/anecdotes/bikkies.html

Gallipoli

Gallipoli WebQuest: A Parcel for a Gallipoli Soldier
In this webquest, students learn about being a soldier at Gallipoli in WW I. They find out how they lived, survived or died, and the impact this had on their families in New Zealand.
http://socialstudies.unitecnology.ac.nz/gallipoli_webquest/index.htm

Bitter Medicine
This article describes the conditions under which medical staff worked at Gallipoli during WW I.
http://www.anzacday.org.au/miscellaneous/medicine.html

Battle at Gallipoli, 1915
This "EyeWitness to History" website provides a description of the Battle at Gallipoli in 1915. A soldier tells of his experiences of the assault.
http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/gallipoli.htm

People

Not Only a Hero – The Donkey
The story of Jack Simpson, a brave young Australian soldier at Gallipoli who helped to save many wounded men by carrying them on his back, or on the back of a donkey which he commandeered for the job.
http://www.anzacday.org.au/spirit/hero/chp05.html

National War Memorial – Tomb of the Unknown Warrior
In 2004, the body of an unknown warrior was returned to New Zealand for burial in the new Tomb of the Unknown Warrior in Wellington. This website gives background to the project, information, media releases, sound files, and images relating to the event.
http://www.unknownwarrior.govt.nz/unknown/index.html

Bernard Cyril Freyberg (1889–1963)
Read a biography of Bernard Cyril Freyberg – New Zealand dentist, military leader, and governor general. This web page includes a sound file of a speech given by Freyberg at a parliamentary farewell to him as Governor General in 1952.
http://www.dnzb.govt.nz/dnzb/Essay_Body.asp?PersonEssay=5F14&QuickSearch=true

Charles Hazlitt Upham (1908–1994)
Charles Hazlitt Upham was a New Zealand farmer, soldier, and prisoner of war. He is best known for his gallantry in WW II. This web page features a sound file of Upham talking about his 1941 Victoria Cross award.
http://www.dnzb.govt.nz/dnzb/Essay_Body.asp?PersonEssay=5U2&QuickSearch=true