lest we forget.
April, 2015 marked the 100th anniversary of the first landing of the Australian New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) at Gallipoli, Turkey during World War 1. Every year on this date Kiwi's and Australian's commemorate Anzac Day. Approximately 100,000 men left New Zealand to serve, only 82,000 returned. Anzac Day is a day similar to the US Memorial Day, except with less nationalism and more focus on the loss and pain of war. It is a solemn occasion, marked by Dawn Services and other such commemorations.
Anzac Day is a half-day off from work, with shops and other businesses closed til 1pm on the day. This year, with the holiday falling on a Saturday, the holiday has been Monday-ised, meaning that if a worker would have normally had Saturday off, they are given the Monday off instead. Employees who are scheduled to work on Anzac day and are not given the day off must be paid time-and-a-half and are to be given another day off in lieu.
Being a contract worker Seth does not get the day off, therefore last year we simply visited friends for brunch as they filled us in on the traditions and importance of Anzac Day over pikelets and porridge. This year it has been impossible to miss out on the Anzac Day events as they have far exceeded the day in honour of the 100 year anniversary.
My first taste of the gravity of WWI actually came during my visit to London last year, with the ceramic poppies surrounding the Tower of London as a mark of England's 100 year anniversary commemorations. It was heartbreaking to think about the symbolism behind each poppy, each one marking a member of the armed forces that passed during the war.
Poppies are a strong symbol of remembrance here. They were the first flowers to grow on the battlefields of Flanders, Belgium after WWI, covering the fresh graves with their brilliance. In the week leading up to Anzac Day the Returned Services' Association (RSA) holds an appeal in which people may donate to the RSA in return for a paper or felt poppy which can be pinned to the lapel.
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Marking 100 Years
At the start of this week the Pukeahu National War Memorial Park was unveiled here in Wellington. The space marks the sacrifice of both New Zealanders and Australians who have served. Each evening this week a spectacular light show lit up the space, showing photos of those who served alongside other imagery from the war and those who maintained the home front while the soldiers were abroad.
Seth and I ended up down at the Memorial quite unexpectedly a few evenings ago. After we were done watching the light show, I noticed a queue, so we did what any sane person would do, we stood in it.
We had no idea what the queue was for as there was no signage, but it seemed like a good thing to do. Once inside we were handed a card and instructed to wait in the Reading Room. Slowly but surely groups were filtered out based upon the colour of their card. As it turns out, we were inside Wellington's newest museum, which was actually the former Old Dominion Museum. A smiling docent led us through one of three exhibits which make up the larger Great War Exhibition. The second exhibit will be opening on Anzac Day, and the third, an immersive recreation of what soldiers experienced in the trenches, will be opening in August of this year.
At times I wish the exhibit would have provided more context, but overall I thought it was very well done. Not once did I feel that war was being romanticised or glorified, but it was not vilified either. It simply was. At the end of the exhibit you are left with a somber display featuring a gravestone, with an amputee veteran paying respects alongside his grandson. Others view this display quite differently, with Francis Cook for Scoop.co.nz critiquing "The exhibit ends quite happily with a veteran relaxing with, presumably, his grandson on ANZAC day."
This exhibit and another at Te Papa, Gallipoli: The Scale of our War will both be on display for the next four years so there is plenty of time to visit and draw your own conclusions.
Highlights of the museum were a trick diorama that switches between a lovely landscape scene and the same scene as it would have looked after the war and original tanks and vehicles from the war. There are also boxes peppered throughout the exhibit that allow visitors to safely experience the smells of warfare, including mustard and chlorine gas.
On Anzac-Eve a special parade took place in which original WWI vehicles traveled through Wellington along with costumed actors and pipe-bands. I was surprised to see the crowd burst into applause at the sight of each vehicle, though I have now come to understand that this is quite common and that during the actual Anzac Day parade tomorrow the veteran's themselves will be heavily applauded by spectators.
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The usual Anzac Day commemorations will take place tomorrow at war memorials across the country, beginning with a Dawn Service. This event includes the aforementioned veteran's parade where those who serve or have served will be honoured. From what I understand this is a very formal event.
Later in the day there are further, slightly less formal, ceremonies to mark the day. It is also common for morning breakfast shows and the news to feature Anzac Day footage, both here and abroad in Gallipoli.
Some Kiwis worry that the true meaning of Anzac Day has been lost in recent years, but even last year we noticed the reverence for the day and how strikingly different it felt from the strong nationalism that pervades national days of remembrance in the United States. There is also a distinct lack of partying, which is also common in the USA on both Veteran's and Memorial Day in the States. As an outsider looking in I maintain that Anzac Day is still a day of loss and remembrance.
Anzac Day is a half-day off from work, with shops and other businesses closed til 1pm on the day. This year, with the holiday falling on a Saturday, the holiday has been Monday-ised, meaning that if a worker would have normally had Saturday off, they are given the Monday off instead. Employees who are scheduled to work on Anzac day and are not given the day off must be paid time-and-a-half and are to be given another day off in lieu.
Being a contract worker Seth does not get the day off, therefore last year we simply visited friends for brunch as they filled us in on the traditions and importance of Anzac Day over pikelets and porridge. This year it has been impossible to miss out on the Anzac Day events as they have far exceeded the day in honour of the 100 year anniversary.
My first taste of the gravity of WWI actually came during my visit to London last year, with the ceramic poppies surrounding the Tower of London as a mark of England's 100 year anniversary commemorations. It was heartbreaking to think about the symbolism behind each poppy, each one marking a member of the armed forces that passed during the war.
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| Tower of London, 2014 |
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| Young boys collect donations for the RSA during a parade |
Marking 100 Years
At the start of this week the Pukeahu National War Memorial Park was unveiled here in Wellington. The space marks the sacrifice of both New Zealanders and Australians who have served. Each evening this week a spectacular light show lit up the space, showing photos of those who served alongside other imagery from the war and those who maintained the home front while the soldiers were abroad.
Seth and I ended up down at the Memorial quite unexpectedly a few evenings ago. After we were done watching the light show, I noticed a queue, so we did what any sane person would do, we stood in it.
We had no idea what the queue was for as there was no signage, but it seemed like a good thing to do. Once inside we were handed a card and instructed to wait in the Reading Room. Slowly but surely groups were filtered out based upon the colour of their card. As it turns out, we were inside Wellington's newest museum, which was actually the former Old Dominion Museum. A smiling docent led us through one of three exhibits which make up the larger Great War Exhibition. The second exhibit will be opening on Anzac Day, and the third, an immersive recreation of what soldiers experienced in the trenches, will be opening in August of this year.
At times I wish the exhibit would have provided more context, but overall I thought it was very well done. Not once did I feel that war was being romanticised or glorified, but it was not vilified either. It simply was. At the end of the exhibit you are left with a somber display featuring a gravestone, with an amputee veteran paying respects alongside his grandson. Others view this display quite differently, with Francis Cook for Scoop.co.nz critiquing "The exhibit ends quite happily with a veteran relaxing with, presumably, his grandson on ANZAC day."
This exhibit and another at Te Papa, Gallipoli: The Scale of our War will both be on display for the next four years so there is plenty of time to visit and draw your own conclusions.
Highlights of the museum were a trick diorama that switches between a lovely landscape scene and the same scene as it would have looked after the war and original tanks and vehicles from the war. There are also boxes peppered throughout the exhibit that allow visitors to safely experience the smells of warfare, including mustard and chlorine gas.
On Anzac-Eve a special parade took place in which original WWI vehicles traveled through Wellington along with costumed actors and pipe-bands. I was surprised to see the crowd burst into applause at the sight of each vehicle, though I have now come to understand that this is quite common and that during the actual Anzac Day parade tomorrow the veteran's themselves will be heavily applauded by spectators.
--------
The usual Anzac Day commemorations will take place tomorrow at war memorials across the country, beginning with a Dawn Service. This event includes the aforementioned veteran's parade where those who serve or have served will be honoured. From what I understand this is a very formal event.
Later in the day there are further, slightly less formal, ceremonies to mark the day. It is also common for morning breakfast shows and the news to feature Anzac Day footage, both here and abroad in Gallipoli.
Some Kiwis worry that the true meaning of Anzac Day has been lost in recent years, but even last year we noticed the reverence for the day and how strikingly different it felt from the strong nationalism that pervades national days of remembrance in the United States. There is also a distinct lack of partying, which is also common in the USA on both Veteran's and Memorial Day in the States. As an outsider looking in I maintain that Anzac Day is still a day of loss and remembrance.
