ANZAC Day 2013 National Ceremony

Today the Australian War Memorial hosted around 17,500 visitors for the ANZAC Day National Ceremony and a record crowd of around 35,000 for the Dawn Service.

“We are delighted with the attendances. ANZAC Day is Australia’s most important national occasion, marking the anniversary of the landing on Gallipoli in April 1915. But this anniversary also encourages all Australians to reflect upon the ongoing sacrifices that brave Australian men and women continue to make on our behalf,” said Dr Brendan Nelson, Director of the Australian War Memorial.

The veterans’ march was led by the Royal Australian Army Chaplains, commemorating 100 years of service, with the commemorative addressed delivered by Dr Nelson.

Corporal Ben Roberts-Smith VC MG joined the march as part of the National Service, marching alongside three children whose fathers, Sergeant Matthew Locke MG and Sergeant Blaine Diddams, lost their lives in Afghanistan.

“ANZAC Day is about coming together with loved ones, to remember those who are no longer with us and to honour those who have served or are still serving on our behalf,” said Dr Nelson.

At the end of the march, three military vehicles – two Australian Light Armoured Vehicles and a Bushmaster Infantry Mobility Vehicle - manned by serving personnel, drove onto the Parade Ground as a reminder of Australia’s ongoing involvement in present day conflicts.

The Memorial will be open following the conclusion of the National Service so that poppies can be placed on the Roll of Honour and Tomb of the Unknown Soldier for those that never returned. Photographs of Australian servicemen and women, accompanied by the names of iconic battlefields from over a century of conflicts, were projected onto the Memorial building during the Dawn Service and will again be projected tonight from 6pm to 11pm.