The nation paused at 11 am today for Remembrance Day to mark the 102nd anniversary of the Armistice that ended the First World War on 11 November 1918.
The national ceremony to commemorate Remembrance Day at the Austrlaian War Memorial was broadcast live across Australia by the ABC and streamed online.
The ceremony was closed to the public and delivered in a revised format, with about 200 people, including the Governor General of The Commonwealth of Australia, His Excellency General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd), and the Prime Minister of Australia, the Honourable Scott Morrison MP, in attendance.
Between 1914 and 1918 a newly federated Australia sent 414,000 of their citizens to face the horrors of modern industrialised war. By 1918, almost 62,000 Australians lay dead among the mud and destruction of the trenches in Europe, the sands of Sinai, Palestine and Syria.
On this day each year, people around the globe observe a minute’s silence in memory of those who have died or suffered in war and on peacekeeping and humanitarian operations, a tradition the Australian War Memorial continued at its National Ceremony in Canberra this morning.
The Commemorative Address was delivered by Corporal Daniel Keighran VC.
A moving Last Post Ceremony will be held this afternoon at the Australian War Memorial honouring the Unknown Australian Soldier, whose tomb rests in the Hall of Memory.
To allow the general public an opportunity to pay tribute to the sacrifice of our defence personnel, the Australian War Memorial’s Commemorative Area and Hall of Memory will also be open from 5.30 – 7pm following the Last Post Ceremony. For visitor information, visit awm.gov.au/werememberthem.
In addition to encouraging Australians to pause for one minute’s silence at 11am on 11 November, the Australian War Memorial website has also promoted ways people can commemorate from home, work or school.
Thousands of people have continued to leave virtual messages of support on the Memorial’s interactive poppy wall.
Visit www.awm.gov.au/werememberthem.
