Anzac Day 2018 honours the fallen soldiers of
Australia and
New Zealand who have bravely given their lives in foreign conflict. But when is Anzac Day 2018 and how is it observed?
When is Anzac Day 2018?The annual public holiday observed in Australia and New Zealand is marked on April 25.
April 25 was the day the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (Anzac) troops entered battle in the First World War in the tragic Gallipoli campaign in Turkey in 1915.
Despite only being recognised as a federal commonwealth at the time, many volunteers sympathetic to the UK motherland bolstered the armies in the fight against the Ottoman Empire.
The Anzac troops were caught up for eight months in the one of the bloodiest conflicts in the history of warfare and their brave sacrifice is recognised every year.
Since the inception of Anzac Day, the holiday has come to encompass all Anzac troops who have perished in foreign lands – not just WW1.
Journalist Phillip, F. E. Schuler noted in 1916: “ANZAC! In April—a name unformed, undetermined; June—and the worth of a Nation and Dominion proved by the five letters—bound together, by the young army’s leader, Lieut.-General Sir W. Birdwood, in the inspired “Anzac”—Australian, New Zealand Army Corps.”
Alongside Australia and New Zeland, Anzac Day is also marked by expats living in Tonga, the Cook Islands, the Pitcairn Islands and Niue.
How is Anzac Day commemorated?Anzac Day celebrations always begin with a Dawn Service – a solemn military event of hymn, prayer and laying of the wreaths.
During the Dawn Service, which is often attended by members of the public, the Last Post is played followed by a minute of silence, the Reveille and the national anthems of Australia and New Zealand.
In many ways, the event is reminiscent of what happens outside the Cenotaph in London on Armistice Day.
This year Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will attend the Anzac Day Dawn Service in Wellington Arch in Hyde Park Corner, followed by a service at Westminster Abbey in London.
Between 300 to 400 participants will take part in a commemorative parade.
The 33-year-old prince previously attended the Anzac service in 2016 on the 101st anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign.
Elsewhere people will place the red poppy on graves and war memorials – a symbol of remembrance well known in the UK.
Meanwhile many households will use the opportunity to spend a quiet day enjoying traditional Anzac biscuits at home.
These delicious treats are based on the care packages soldiers received during the war and are crafted from rolled oats, sugar, flour, coconut, butter and other tasty ingredients.
Watching Anzac football is also a popular pastime during the public holiday and has been a recurring staple since 1995.
The overarching theme of Anzac Day is the saying ‘Lest We Forget’, which is always muttered after the reading of the Ode of Remembrance.
The poem written by Laurence Binyon in 1914 in England, reads: “They shall 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.”