ANZAC Day: Commemorating Courage and Sacrifice

1. ANZAC DAY April 25

3. What is ANZAC? ANZAC = Australia and New Zealand Army Corps

4. What is ANZAC DAY? • On 25 April 1915 Australia and New Zealand were at war. Along with the Allies the ANZACs were fighting against the Central Powers. • In response to a request for help from Russia, which was being battered by the Turks in the Caucasus, the Allies decided to begin a campaign which they hoped would distract Turkey from their attack on Russia. • The plan was for the Allies to attack and take the Gallipoli Peninsula, on Turkey's Aegean coast, from which point the Allies believed they could take control of the Dardanelles - a 67 kilometer (42 mile) strait which connects the Aegean Sea with the Sea of Marmara - and lay siege to Turkey's main city, Istanbul (then Constantinople). • As part of the larger British Empire contingent the ANZACs were brought in from training in Egypt to participate. The ANZACs comprised the 1st Australian Division and the composite New Zealand and Australian Division. On 25 April 1915, the ANZACs landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula.

5. WHAT WENT WRONG? • Instead of finding the flat beach they expected, they found they had been landed at an incorrect position and faced steep cliffs and constant barrages of enemy fire and shelling. Around 20,000 soldiers landed on the beach over the next two days to face a well organized, well armed, large Turkish force determined to defend their country. Thousands of Australian and New Zealand men died in the hours and days that followed the landing at that beach. The beach would eventually come to be known as Anzac Cove. • What followed the landing at Gallipoli is a story of courage and endurance, of death, and despair, of poor leadership from London, and unsuccessful strategies. The ANZACs and the Turks dug in - literally - digging kilometers of trenches, and pinned down each other's forces with sniper fire and shelling. Pinned down with their backs to the water the ANZACs were unable to make much headway against the home-country force. • While political leaders argued weather the campaign should be continued, the Australian and New Zealand soldiers died in battle, from sniper fire and shelling, and those that lived suffered from a range of ailments due to their dreadful living conditions - typhus, lice, gangrene, lack of fresh water, poor quality food, and poor sanitary conditions all took their toll.  

6. The Withdrawal • Eventually it was decided that the Allied troops would be withdrawn from the Peninsula; the attempt to control the Dardanelles had failed. The ANZACs were evacuated and returned to the Middle East and the Western Front where they were involved in other battles. • The Gallipoli campaign was an enormous failure, a failure bought at the cost of an enormous number of lives, and the failure led to the resignation of senior politicians in London. Thousands of Australian and New Zealand soldiers had died, and thousands of other Allied troops from France and Britain also died. • An ANZAC commemorative location has been built at Gallipoli in conjunction with both the Australian and New Zealand governments and with the approval of the Turkish government.

7. Simpson and his Donkey Of the many examples of sheer courage, the most remembered must be that of "Simpson and his Donkey". Jack (John) Simpson Kirkpatrick, was born in 1892 and learned all about donkeys on the sands of South Shields (England) as a boy. In Perth on 23rd August 1914, Jack was accepted and chosen as a field ambulance stretcher bearer. He joined the 3rd Field Ambulance at Blackboy Hill camp, 35 km east of Perth on the same day. During his twenty-four days of donkey trips, Simpson single handedly rescued around three hundred wounded soldiers by bringing them down Monash Valley on the backs of donkeys. On the morning of 19 May, 42 000 Turkish soldiers launched an all-out attack against the 17 356 strong Anzac line, in attempt to drive the invaders back into the sea. The Turks were caught out in the open and lost 3 000 men with 10 000 wounded in repeated attacks over open ground. The Anzacs lost only 168 men. Jack had just collected a casualty and was coming back down Monash Valley when he was hit and killed by a machine gun bullet in the back. He was buried amongst great gloom by the soldiers who had much admired his bravery, and his grave was marked with a simple wooden cross. He become one of Australia’s most famous, and best-loved military heroes.

8. Simpson and his donkey

9. ANZAC BISCUTS (COOKIES) • There are a few theories on the origins of ANZAC biscuits, but it is certain that they came about during the First World War, around 1914/15. • Some say that they started as biscuits made by the Troops in the trenches with provisions they had at hand to relieve the boredom of their battle rations. And some say they came about due to resourceful of the women on the "home front" in an endeavour to make a treat for their loved ones that would survive the long journey by post to the war front. • There is even the suggestion that they originated from Scottish Oatmeal Cakes which is entirely possible. Whatever the origin, they have won the hearts of all Aussies the globe over as the pseudo National Biscuit.

10. ANZAC BISCUITS (COOKIES) Recipe Ingredients • 1 cup plain flour • 1 cup rolled oats (regular oatmeal) uncooked • 1 cup desiccated coconut • 1 cup brown sugar • 1/2 cup butter • 2 tbsp golden syrup (or honey) • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda • 2 tbsp boiling water Method Combine the flour (sifted), oats, coconut and sugar in a bowl. Melt the butter and Golden Syrup (or honey) in a saucepan over a low heat.. Mix the bicarbonate of soda with the water and add to the butter and Golden Syrup. Pour the liquids into the dry ingredients and mix well. Spoon dollops of mixture, about the size of a walnut shell, onto a greased tin leaving as much space again between dollops to allow for spreading. Bake in a moderate oven, 180C / 350F, for 15-20 minutes. Cool on a wire rack and seal in airtight containers. Tips • The American tablespoon is a little smaller than the British tablespoon, so be generous with your Golden Syrup (or Honey) and Water. • If you have any thoughts of keeping the biscuits for any length of time I suggest you keep them in a padlocked container! • For a little variety you may wish to add 2 teaspoons of ginger spice or even Wattle Seeds, a recent addition but don't ask me where to get them.

11. Early Commemorations • The date, 25 April, was officially named ANZAC Day in 1916; in that year it was marked by a wide variety of ceremonies and services in Australia, a march through London, and a sports day in the Australian camp in Egypt. In London, over 2,000 Australian and New Zealand troops marched through the streets of the city. A London newspaper headline dubbed them "The knights of Gallipoli". Marches were held all over Australia in 1916. Wounded soldiers from Gallipoli attended the Sydney march in convoys of cars, attended by nurses. For the remaining years of the war, ANZAC Day was used as an occasion for patriotic rallies and recruiting campaigns, and parades of serving members of the AIF were held in most cities. • During the 1920s, ANZAC Day became established as a national day of commemoration for the 60,000 Australians who died during the war. By the mid-1930s all the rituals we today associate with the day - dawn vigils, marches, memorial services, reunions, sly two-up games - were firmly established as part of ANZAC Day culture. • With the coming of the Second World War, ANZAC Day became a day on which to commemorate the lives of Australians lost in that war as well, and in subsequent years the meaning of the day has been further broadened to include Australians killed in all the military operations in which Australia has been involved. • ANZAC Day was first commemorated at the Australian War Memorial in 1942, but due to government orders preventing large public gatherings in case of Japanese air attack, it was a small affair and was neither a march nor a memorial service. ANZAC Day has been annually commemorated at the Australian War Memorial ever since.

12. What it means today • Australians recognise 25 April as an occasion of national commemoration. Commemorative services are held at dawn, the time of the original landing, across the nation. Later in the day ex-servicemen and women meet and join in marches through the major cities and many smaller centres. Almost every town has a commemorative service of some kind. It is a day when Australians reflect on the many different meanings of war. • Each year the commemorations follow a pattern that is familiar to each generation of Australians. A typical ANZAC Day service contains the following features: introduction, hymn, prayer, an address, laying of wreaths, recitation, "The last post", a period of silence, "The rouse" or "The reveille", and the National Anthem. At the Australian War Memorial, following events such as the ANZAC Day and Remembrance Day services, families often place red poppies beside the names of relatives on the Memorial's Roll of Honor.

13. Two - up • Two-up is Australia’s national gambling game. It involves 2 or 3 coins being tossed into the air and surrounding players betting upon the result. ANZAC day is the only day it is legal to play two up within Australia. • To stage a game required a quiet spot, with a flat area big enough for an 18- or 20-foot radius circle clearly etched in the dirt. This was done with twine, with two loops, one at each end, using bayonets to mark the circle. Australian Soldiers playing two-up, Ypres, 1917

14. Two – up rules (abbreviated) • The boxeror manager of the game sat with his coins, kips, string and money tray in the place where he could view the whole ring clearly. • The ringie, who was usually a friend who volunteered, ran the centre of the ring. • When the game was about to commence, there would be a number of people around and outside the circle. The boxer would call and ask for a spinner. • The kipwould then hold two or three pennies, depending on the game. (Some of the kips were smooth, with no ridges in the wood. It was illegal for anyone to use their fingers two toss the coins. Kips often had “lips” on the various kips for right or left handed spinners who were not adept at using the smooth kip. • It was the ringie’s job to ensure that the coins were tossed at least 10 feet into the air, and that they spun well and were not “feathered” in any way. If the coins didn't satisfy these specifications in his opinion, he would call “ foul toss ” and catch one of the coins. • The ringie would place the coins tail up on the kip. The call “come in spinner ” was made from the box. The spinner then tossed the coins. All pennies (whether two or three) had to fall within the circle. If one fell outside or on the circle, it was declared void by the ringie. The spinner then had another turn. • While this was happening, side bets were allowed around the ring. There were two distinct types of betting: • betting that the spinner would toss heads or tails • other tail betters would bet 3/1 that heads would not be tossed twice. • In all cases, the bets were held in front of the tail better, who covered them in every instance before the boxer called “come in spinner”. • The spinner had the right to continue spinning while ever he tossed heads.

15. Prayer for the fallen They do not grow 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. Lest we forget.

16. Submitted by Aaron Kemp • I am an Australian exchange student (actually an exchange RA) at Washington State University. I come from the University of New England in Armidale New South Wales about 5 hours drive from Sydney. • This bulletin board is designed to commemorate ANZAC and some of the traditions and history that goes with it. • If you have any questions or feedback I would love to hear it. Email: kempy_01@yahoo.com.au