ANZAC Day 2011 Gallipoli

The Fact’s

All the Australian and New Zealand soldiers who when to Gallipoli where Volunteer’s, they when to Gallipoli, under the rule of the British Empire, but they come home to two countries that never again would be told what to do by England.

ANZAC Day is held on the 25^th April as that the day the Australian and New Zealand soldier’s first step foot on the Gallipoli Peninsula in 1915, over eight thousand one hundred and fifty Australian’s and two thousand seven hundred and thirty New Zealander’s died at Gallipoli and thousands where wounded .

At Gallipoli Eleven Victoria Cross were awarded, Seven of them where award to Australian who took and held Lone Pine, five of them where award for courage on the one day, 9^th August 1915.

The first dawn service for ANZAC Day was in 1923 and first official Dawn Service was held at the Sydney Cenotaph in 1927, and they been held ever since.

Many other countries also fought at Gallipoli and all under the rule of the British Empire.

This ANZAC Day, for the first time in my life, I will not be standing on Aussie ground.

This year I will be thousands of miles away at Gallipoli in Turkey.

This year Ross and I will be with thousands of other Aussie at ANZAC Cove for the Dawn Service,

We will walk where the legend of the Australian Digger was born,

We will see the place where Australia and New Zealand Soldiers for the first time become ANZAC’s, and where we become a country in our own right,

We will see the Graves of those who never made it home,

We will walk on the beaches where so much ANZAC blood was spilt.

All my life I have hear stories about Gallipoli, it always been part of who, we are as Aussie. When I started to write this blog, I wanted to know more, I when to a my friend Ian, who some of you know, and ask him where I could read about Gallipoli and what when on, most of the fact above came from page he sent me, but one thing stood out on every page, ”Courage”, the courage of the men, who fought and never gave up and how they stood by each other in time of need and how the Aussie Spirit was born out of war, but that spirit still live with us today.

I have found this blog very hard to write and I don’t know why, as every year I write about ANZAC Day and those who where lost fighting for our Freedom, so why is it so different this year.

I’ve never before found it hard to say what I felt, I’ve always had strong feelings about our War died and those who have fought for our country, I’ve never before had trouble having my say about how we treat our Soldiers and Vet’s or what should be done for them.

All I can put it down to is this year; I will be standing on what once was a battlefield, just the thought of being where so many ANZAC lost their lives move me to tears, so many young men were lost, and thousands where hurt or disable, so many families lives where change forever.

Ross and I leave Australia on the 10^th of April, we are going to see Nikki in Georgia and then on to Turkey on the 20^th, I am taking red poppies from Australia with me, if any one would like one lay at the dawn service, please let me know, I’m very willing to do that for you, I’m sorry I can’t look for graves of family, I wish I could but we just won’t have the time.

“Lest We Forget”

That we are Free,

Because of what they did for this country,

May they always R.I.P, knowing that we care.

S.M. Mac Arthur ©

A tribute to the memory of the ANZACs
by M. Kemal Atatürk, 1934
(Founder of the Turkish Republic in 1923)

THE ANZAC MEMORIAL

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.

“Lest we forget”