Anzac Day 2023: Aussies flock to dawn services to remember fallen diggers of World War 1

Australians have gathered at moving Anzac Day dawn services across the country to pay tribute to fallen servicemen and women as a ceremony in New Zealand is kicked off with an emotional haka.

Events have been held in major cities, suburban centres and country towns honouring men and women who served in past conflicts and those serving today.

At the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese led tributes on the 108th anniversary of the Gallipoli landings during World War I.

Around 8,700 Australians died during the 1915 Gallipoli campaign, where 75,000 Anzac troops fought in perilous conditions for eight months, in a battle that has defined Australia’s national identity. 

‘Every Anzac Day, from the greatest memorial to the simplest cenotaph, we honour all who have served in our name, and all who serve today,’ he said.

‘It is a collective act of remembrance, reflection and gratitude – one carried out by multiple generations of Australians and devoted to multiple generations.’

Mr Albanese said it was important to remember the contribution of defence personnel who did not make it home.

‘As we gather here, in towns and suburbs across the country, and in former battlefields across the world, we are surrounded by their names and the places that made their final claim on them, laid out in an atlas of grief,’ he said.

‘If we are to truly honour our veterans, we owe them something more than just gratitude. Just as they stepped up for us, we must step up for them,’ he said.

The prime minister said it was also important to acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who donned the khaki and ‘fought harder for Australia than Australia was sometimes willing to fight for them’.

‘Yet we learn and we keep taking steps forward together,’ he said. 

In Canberra, the service began with the sounds of a didgeridoo played by Sub-Lieutenant Jordon Bradshaw, permeating the silence in front of thousands of attendees.

Wreaths were laid in commemoration by Governor-General David Hurley and New Zealand High Commissioner Annette King.

Ceremonial lanterns, which were placed in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier on Monday evening, were carried by veterans and serving members into the War Memorial as the reveille was played by a lone bugler. 

The Anzac Day march will also mark three decades of peacekeeping efforts in Somalia, featuring 120 veterans who served as part of Operation Solace. 

The march will include the governor-general, who commanded the 1RAR battalion, and feature more than 1,000 veterans. 

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said Anzac Day was one of the most meaningful dates on the national calendar.

‘The values for which we stand are more enduring than any conflict, as long as we have the courage and commitment to defend them always,’ he said.

At Sydney’s Martin Place, NSW Premier Chris Minns spoke at his first service after being elected before attending a service at an RSL in his electorate of Kogarah.

Dozens of colourful wreaths were laid at the base of the Cenotaph, a monument erected in honour of the servicemen and servicewomen whose remains are elsewhere. 

Up to 7,000 current serving members and veterans will march from Martin Place to the Anzac Memorial in Hyde Park.  

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander service people will be recognised at the Coloured Digger March in Redfern later on Tuesday. 

Spectators can head into Elizabeth Street in Sydney to pay tribute to servicemen and their families as they make their way through the CBD alongside marching bands and bagpipes. 

Rear Admiral Christopher Smith said it was important to acknowledge the sacrifice of servicemen and women.

‘We gather today not to glorify war, but to remember ourselves, that we value who we are and the freedoms we possess,’ he said.

The march will feature more than 120 veterans who served as part of Operation Solace. Among those will be Governor-General David Hurley, who commanded the 1RAR battalion group during the operation.

Lieutenant-Governor of Victoria James Angus highlighted the 70th anniversary of the end of the Korean War at Melbourne’s dawn service.

‘Every Anzac Day is both historic and tragic. Historic because each anniversary marks another war, another battle. Tragic because of the terrible price paid by young Australians,’ he said.

This year’s Anzac Day will also coincide with 50 years since the end of Australian involvement during the Vietnam War.

More than 500 Australians died during the conflict and over 3,000 were injured. 

Services will also take place to mark Anzac Day in France, Papua New Guinea and Turkey.

In New Zealand, thousands of Kiwis have spent their morning at dozens of dawn services, from Kaitaia in the north to Invercargill in the frosty south.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins, commemorating his first Anzac Day as New Zealand’s leader, spent his morning at his local dawn service in Wellington’s north.

Mr Hipkins said he would keep his two grandfathers in his thoughts.

‘My mum’s dad was a signalman in the Air Force,’ he said.

‘And my dad’s dad had a very long period away from home from Greece to Italy to J Force during the Second World War,’ he said, referencing the name given to NZ forces in occupied Japan.

‘The lifelong impact that had on both of my grandfathers is something that I’ve never underestimated.

‘I think about them on Anzac Day. I think a lot of Kiwis will feel the same.

‘They’ll be thinking about their grandparents or great grandparents and the enormous sacrifices that they made for us to enjoy the freedoms that we do on a day-to-day basis.’

Services will also take place to mark Anzac Day in France, Papua New Guinea and Turkey.