On this day the 25th day of April, we remember those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country and of the blooding of a great tradition long held between two hitherto young emerging nations.
'At the going down of the sun and in the morning we will remember them'
While Anzac Day is set to coincide with the anniversary of the landing in Gallipoli, the day itself is not meant to be a commemoration of the event, but rather the qualities that Australia established for itself there.
On Anzac Day, we recognise the courage, mate-ship, skill, and perseverance of those who have served, fought, and given their lives in the military.
On Anzac Day, we show love, honour and support for those who fought to enable freedom for people all over the world, but were not able to make it home.
Dawn Service.
The Dawn Service is one of the most revered and popular ceremonies that takes place on Anzac Day. The Dawn Service is thought to have originated in the military routine known as the “stand-to.” Opposing armies often attacked in the partial light of dusk and dawn. Ever vigilant, the Australian military made it a practice to wake the soldiers and prepare them at their posts with weapons before the other armies could strike.
The stand-to technique is still used by the Australian military to this day. The Dawn Service seeks to recapture those quiet moments in the near-darkness, when soldiers had an opportunity to bond and reflect. While the first Dawn Services were vigils performed only by veterans in complete silence, all Australians are encouraged to participate. Today, some services feature readings, hymns, and rifle volleys.
The Last Post.
Often heard at the Dawn Service and other memorials on Anzac Day, The Last Post is the tune that is played over a bugle to signify the end of the day, or the final post. The soldiers could then take their rest. At memorial services, this melody is played to suggest the last post as a metaphor. The soldiers who are being honoured can hear the tune and know that all duties have been completed, so he or she may finally rest in peace.
Memorial readings where well known poems such as “For the Fallen” and “In Flanders Fields,” help the community to honour and remember those who have served in the military, and better experience what they went through cause those in attendance to take a moment and really consider the roles our troops play in the greater context of Anzac Day.
Haunting verse such as,
“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.”
The Ode
The Ode comes from “For the Fallen”, a poem by the English poet and writer Laurence Binyon and was published in London in the Winnowing Fan; Poems of the Great War in 1914.
The verse, which became the League Ode, was already used in association with commemoration services in Australia in 1921.
With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children
England mourns for her dead across the sea,
Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit,
Fallen in the cause of the free.
Solemn the drums thrill: Death august and royal
Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres,
There is music in the midst of desolation
And glory that shines upon our tears.
They went with songs to the battle, they were young,
Straight of limb, true of eyes, steady and aglow,
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.
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.
They mingle not with their laughing comrades again,
They sit no more at familiar tables of home,
They have no lot in our labour of the daytime,
They sleep beyond England's foam.
But where our desires and hopes profound,
Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,
To the innermost heart of their own land they are known
As the stars are known to the night.
As the stars shall be bright when we are dust,
Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain,
As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,
To the end, to the end, they remain.
In those days with a lack of modern machinery horses by the thousand were used in battle for a variety of uses, transportation of equipment, pulling artillery, and of course the famous Light Horse regiments were to gain the highest respect in military circles to this day.
Perhaps we should also spare a little time for those trusty steeds who gave of their all to the cause.
The Waler
The Waler is an Australian breed of riding horses that developed from the horses that were brought to the Australian colonies in the 19th century. The name comes from their early breeding origins in New South Wales The Waler combined a variety of breeds; particularly the Thoroughbred, Arab, the Cape horse (from the Cape of Good Hope), Timor Pony and perhaps a little Clydesdale or Percheron.
It was originally considered only a "type" of horse and not a distinct breed. However, as a land race bred under the extreme climate and challenging working conditions of Australia, the Waler developed into a hardy horse with great endurance even when under extreme stress from lack of food and water. It was used as a stockman's horse and prized as a military remount. Walers were also used by bushrangers, troopers and exploration expeditions that traversed inland Australia, they were originally known as New South Walers.
The preferred Walers for cavalry duties were 15 to 16 hands high (152 to 163 cm)). Those over 16 hands were rejected for use in the South Australian Bushmen Corps. Unbroken horses, as well as those with grey and broken (spotted) coat colours were also rejected. The selected horses had to be of a good type that could carry sixteen or seventeen stone (102 to 108 kg) day after day.
The Walers carried the rider, saddle, saddle cloth, bridle, head collar, lead rope, a horseshoe case with one front and one hind shoe, nails, rations for the horse and rider, a bedroll, change of clothing, a rifle and about 90 rounds of .303 rifle ammunition.
The gaits of the Waler were considered ideal for a cavalry mount; it could maintain a fast walk and could progress directly to a steady, level canter without resorting to a trot which was noisy, liable to dislodge gear and resulted in soreness in the horse's back. The cavalry horse required docility, courage, speed, and athletic ability, as it carried the rider into battle.
The infantryman’s horse was used as a means of transport from one point to another, for example, from camp to a battle ground, where the horses were kept back from the fighting. Heavier animals were selected and used for draught and packhorse duties.
In Australia's two wars of the early 20th century—the Second Boer War and World War I—the Waler was the backbone of the Australian Light Horse mounted forces. It was especially suited to working in the harsh climate of the Sinai Peninsula and Palestine, where it proved superior to the camel as a means of transporting large bodies of troops.
During the Boer War, Australia dispatched 16,314 horses overseas for use by the Australian Infantry Forces.
In the First World War, 121,324 Walers were sent overseas to the allied armies in Africa, Europe, India and Palestine. Of these, 39,348 served with the First Australian Imperial Force, mainly in the Middle East, while 81,976 were sent to India.
Due to quarantine restrictions, only one Waler is known to have been returned to Australia; "Sandy", the mount of Major-General W.T. Bridges, an officer who died at Gallipoli in May 1915.
A poem by "Trooper Bluegum" sums up the men's sentiments and relationship with their horses:-
I don't think I could stand the thought of my old fancy hack
Just crawling round old Cairo with a 'Gyppo on his back.
Perhaps some English tourist out in Palestine may find
My broken-hearted Waler with a wooden plough behind.
No, I think I'd better shoot him and tell a little lie:--
"He floundered in a wombat hole and then lay down to die."
May be I'll get court-martialled; but I'm damned if I'm inclined
To go back to Australia and leave my horse behind.
From Australia in Palestine, 1919
Sources: Wikipedia. Images Wikipedia and John Munns
No comments:
Post a Comment