Anzac Day -April 25

 

Anzac Day is a National Day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and suffering of all those who have served

 Observed on 25 April each year, Anzac Day was originally to honour the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who fought at Gallipoli against the Ottomon Empire during WW I 

Anzac Day marks the anniversary of the first campaign that led to major casualties for Australian and New Zealand forces during the First World War.When war broke out in 1914, Australia and New Zealand had been Dominions of the British Empire for 13 and 7 years respectively

In 1915, Australian and New Zealand soldiers formed part of an Alliedexpedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli Peninsula to open the way to the Black Sea for the Allied navies

The objective was to capture Constantinople, the capital of the Ottomon Empire, which was an ally of Germany during the war. 

The ANZAC force landed at Gallipoli on 25 April, meeting fierce resistance from the Ottoman Army commanded by Mustafa Kemal(later known as Atatürk)

 What had been planned as a bold strike to knock the Ottomans out of the war quickly became a stalemate, and the campaign dragged on for eight months

 At the end of 1915, the Allied forces were evacuated after both sides had suffered heavy casualties and endured great hardships

The Allied casualities included 21,255 from the UK, an estimated 10,000 dead soldiers from France, 8,709 from Australia, 2,721 from New Zealand, and 1,358 from British India

 News of the landing at Gallipoli made a profound impact on Australians and New Zealanders at home and 25 April quickly became the day on which they remembered the sacrifice of those who had died in the war

The date 25 April was officially named Anzac Day in 1916; in that year it was marked by a wide variety of ceremonies and services in Australia and New Zealand, including a commemorative march through London involving Australian and New Zealand troops

Anzac Day was gazetted as a public holiday in New Zealand in 1920, through the Anzac Day Act

In Australia at the 1921 State Premiers' Conference, it was decided that Anzac Day would be observed on 25 April each year