30. What? No Hat? The PM Meets The Queen

Which One Is The PM?

Above:The PM and the GG

One could be forgiven for thinking the G.G. (Governor General) is our Prime Minister. If you didn't know what either lady looked like, who would you say was the PM dressed to meet Her Maj? If you said the lady on the right, you would be wrong - it's the lady on the left, the one without a hat.
Then again, the hatted one (Quentin Bryce) does look rather severe doesn't she? Whereas Julia the hatless looks genuinely happy and relaxed.

Above: The Prime Minister meets the Queen
Our Prime Minister Ms Julia Gillard said she chose to bow her head as she shook the Queen's hand because that is what she felt comfortable with.

"The advice to me was very clear - that you can make a choice with what you feel most comfortable with," she said.

"That's what I felt most comfortable with. The Queen extended her hand, and I shook her hand."

There Are No Obligatory Codes
The Queen meets thousands of people each year in the UK and overseas. Before meeting Her Majesty, many people ask how they should behave.

According to The Official website of the British Monarchy, the simple answer is that there are no obligatory codes of behaviour - just courtesy.

However, many people may wish to observe the traditional forms of greeting.

For men this is a neck bow (from the head only) whilst women do a small curtsy. Other people prefer simply to shake hands in the usual way.

On presentation to The Queen, the correct formal address is 'Your Majesty' and subsequently 'Ma'am'.


Australia's Queen of Sarcasm Etiquette Scathing In Her Opinion of the PM
June Dally-Watkins says the PM should have stuck to the traditional greeting.

Said she, "I saw the Prime Minister kind of wobble and I didn't know, did she try to curtsy? I didn't know what she was doing. I just laughed. I was laughing out loud because I thought it was really hilarious and of course very rude.

But I just couldn't understand what that movement was. What was she doing?"

It seems to me, Dally-Watkins herself was very rude and not at all "ladylike" in either her actions or sentiments.
June old girl - you should know better.

Naturally the fact that she is a Liberal and not a Labor supporter would have had nothing to do with it.

Ms Dally-Watkins said recently while "formal" had its heyday in the '50s, the refined customs of a bygone era should still hold a place in modern society.

What she of the flag-bearing do's and do not's needs to remember is the so-called "refined customs" of a "bygone" era are just that - bygone. If we look back a little further into "bygone" days, women had no voice, couldn't vote, couldn't go out to work, had no rights and were an extension of their husband's arm - and this was in "refined" times when everybody was so bloody polite to and with each other it was nigh on impossible to have a decent conversation or exchange views. Except if you belonged to the "lower orders" - who of course were only "people" and etiket and manners didn't apply to them!

Meeting the Queen

Above: The PM, HM and the GG
The co-called "wobble" which so offended dear old Junie!
Judging from this photo, I'd say the only one with her nose in the air is Dally-Watkins. The Queen looks happy and smiling, not at all offended. Then again, no doubt she has been trained from birth never to show her feelings or make indiscreet remarks in public, something that Dally-Watkins obviously has not been able to do, no matter how she might pride herself on so-called "manners and etiquette."


Another Tirade from Dally-Watkins
The following day, Dally-Watkins described the greeting as "the lowest part of Ms Gillard's life" and said "instead of bowing her head, she should be hanging it in shame.
I think it was not only funny, but it was shameful, if she isn't a royalist, it's not a matter of that, it's a matter of paying courtesy, good manners to a queen, to the Queen.
That was the expected thing to do and I thought not to do that shamed her tremendously."

About June
June Dally-Watkins, a former model was born in 1927 and grew up on a remote property at Watsons Creek, near Tamworth. Her mum Caroline was a single parent - a great stigma at the time and she (June) kept the story of her birth a secret until very much later in life. When her mother took her to Farmers department store in Sydney and asked if she could be a model, a successful career was launched. In 1950, she founded a modelling/deportment agency in Brisbane.

Above: Australia's queen of etiquette, June Dally-Watkins

Quelle Embarrassment! Quelle Horreur!
And it would appear she also had a bone to pick with the PM's outfit.

Said June - "She should have been wearing a hat, she should have been standing straight and she should have curtsied. I thought that was a great embarrassment for Australia."

She gave the GG (Quentin Bryce) full marks for her meeting with the Queen and described her (the GG) as "delightful", saying, "She did all the right things. I thought she was magnificently dressed and she curtsied beautifully and she was polite. You wouldn't know what her thoughts were, but she did all the things that were correct and expected of her as the Governor-General, but as the Prime Minister, Julia should have conducted herself the same way."

It's Not A Bloody Garden Party!
I have news for you June old girl - I'd take the word of the "Official website of the British Monarchy" over yours any day. And as for "a great embarrassment for Australia" - I'm Australian, and I am not embarrassed. Neither am I ashamed.

This is Australia, not Merrie Olde England and it is the 21st century, not the 19th century when Victoria was on the throne (you know, the old biddy who always looked like she was smelling something nasty) and the legs of tables were covered for "decency". Thank goodness we have moved away from that nonsense. Yes, manners are important and good manners, consideration for others and being polite is something that should be practised regardless of the era.

Trying to hang onto an out-dated system from days of yore with its' de rigeuer way of doing things only strengthens and promotes a class system which, alas is still rampant in some parts of the world.

If you receive an invitation to a Garden Party at Buckingham Place, full instructions concerning what to wear are on the invitation card sent to you from the Lord Chamberlain's Office. But let me say again - this is not England, this is Australia where we have no royal garden parties, no palaces or castles. And trying to instill what you may perceive as the "right" way, doesn't necessarily make it so. Now, had Our Julia greeted the Queen with, "G'day your maj, how ya goin'?" it may have been a different situation, but - it wasn't and she didn't so perhaps some people should climb down off their high horses, return their nose to a normal position (not stuck up in the air) and stop being so stuck-up and snobbish.


Two Ladies in Silver

Above: Her Maj and the PM
At a formal reception held at Parliament House. Here, the Queen, is wearing a dress in antique white with a chic silver-toned lace jacket. The Prime Minister's outfit consists of an elegant silver grey satin underdress and matching top overlaid with a silver grey skirt with matched jacket and bow tied at waist level. Story here

29. Melbourne - World's Most Livable City

Well now, it's a great day for Melbourne and all Melburnians - we have been voted the world's most livable city! Isn't that great news! After nearly ten years, we finally knocked Vancouver off the top spot and we're it!

And is it any wonder why we're the best city? Just look at some of the photos of our beautiful city:

Above: Princes Bridge

Above: Melbourne Cottages

Above: Flinders Street Station

Above: Eureka Building and Arts Centre Spire

According to the latest Economist Intelligence Unit's Global Liveability Survey, Melbourne is ranked as the world's best city to live in. From 140 cities around the world, Melbourne was given a score of 97.5 per cent. Other Australian cities in the top 10 include Sydney, which ranked sixth (up from seventh) in the previous survey, and bot Adelaide and Perth are unchanged with joint eighth.

You can read about it here

28. Anaphylaxis - Child-Care Centres

Early Learning Centres and the Anaphylactic Child
When a child attends an early learning centre (child-care/creche) you want to know that your child is in a safe and friendly environment and those responsible for his/her care are following the guidelines set out.

An early learning centre in a Melbourne suburb seems not to have been following these guidelins and is embroiled in food-related safety issues. A child attending this centre has a nut allergy and this was made known to the director at the beginning. She was informed that the child has a nut allergy and cannot eat any products that contain nuts, cannot have products that state "May contain traces of nuts" and/or products that state "Produced on equipment that may contain traces of nuts". You would think this would be a simple thing - yes? Not. Not so.
There have been a number of "Incidents" at this early learning centre.

The centre provides morning and afternoon tea, and a hot lunch - the lunch is catered and is brought in each day.
Some of the foods provided for morning/afternoon tea were not nut free. The child was given Arnotts biscuits and it was pointed out that Arnotts biscuits are not nut free (the packaging actually states this product may contain traces of nuts) - this was brought to the attention of the director and a website for nut free foods was given to her. A food management plan was instituted where staff would write down each day what the child had eaten.
The mother checks this each day when she picks up her child. Recently she saw that a staff member had written down that the child had morning tea and what food had been eaten. The mother asked which staff member wrote this down - the child had arrived at the early learning centre at a later time and had not had morning tea. Quite rightly, she wanted to know how this error had been made. Of what use is a food management plane if false information is being recorded?

The director has denied this occurred and says it didn't happen. She states a staff member wrote down the child had morning tea and realised the child had not and so amended it. She states she refutes everything. Why would the director wish to deny this? Why lie?

A notification was made to the relevant government department earlier.

The mother collects her child at around 5.00pm and yesterday received a phone call at 4.55pm from a staff member who informed her they noticed the child had swelling around the mouth and nose at approximately 3.10pm and it was worse at 4.30pm. The mother asked had they given the child Zyrtec? The staff member answered no.
Staff have not followed the action plan in place for this child.

There is an Action Plan for Anaphalaxis - see below.

Above: Action Plan for Anaphalaxis

The form can be found HERE. This form shows the child's photo, name and DOB, and other relevant information relating to each individual child. On the right hand side is "Mild to moderate allergic reaction"
* Swelling lips, face, eyes
* hives or welts
* tingling mouth
* abdominal pain, vomiting (these are signs of a severe allergic reaction to insects)
This is followed by "Action"

The plan is a personal plan for the individual child and on this child's plan it clearly states under "Action" To moniter the child, give Zyrtec (medication), contact the mother and to stay with the child and moniter that child.

The mother took the child to a doctor's clinic which is next door to this early learning centre and the child was seen straight away. The doctor asked was the child given Zyrtec to which the mother answered no. The doctor said to give the child Zyrtec and keep an eye on her.

NOW, there is an Action Plan for Anaphalaxis for this child, both Zyrtec and an EpiPen are kept there for this child. There is an Anaphalaxis model policy which requires that all proprietor's of licensed children’s services to have an anaphylaxis management policy in place. This policy is required whether or not there is a child diagnosed at risk of anaphylaxis enrolled at the service. In services where a child diagnosed at risk of anaphylaxis is enrolled the proprietor shall also:

• conduct an assessment of the potential for accidental exposure to allergens while child/ren at risk of anaphylaxis are in the care of the service and develop a risk minimisation plan for the centre in consultation with staff and the families of the child/children (Schedule 3 of the Regulations).
• ensure that a notice is displayed prominently in the main entrance of the services stating that a child diagnosed at risk of anaphylaxis is being cared for or educated at the service
• ensure all staff members on duty have completed recognised anaphylaxis management training (r. 26(3) and that practice of the adrenaline autoinjection device such as the EpiPen® administration is undertaken on a regular basis, preferably quarterly, and recorded annually.

These are just some of the points outlined in the policy - you can read the full points of the policy HERE.

27. The "Real" Australia

How do we define the "real" Australia? Many times people who are planning on visiting Australia want to see the "real" Australia. I remember one lady saying, "I am traveling to Australia. It will be my first time traveling outside the United States and my first time traveling alone. I would love any advice. I am hoping to see the "real" Australia, not the tourist Australia. I would also like the opportunity to meet some new people."

Australians with their natural sense of the ridiculous and the humourous love to take the mickey - Beware the Drop Bear, Walking Toad, The Galah, the snakes, spiders and other nasty creepy-crawlies like the Blue Tongue Lizard, sharks, (esp. the White Pointer), salties, crocs, red bellies, black bellies, funnel webs, dingoes and those nasty fish that can kill you if you stand on them. Not to mention the box jelly fish!
And speaking of spiders, there was even a song written about one Redback On The Toilet Seat

Anyway, my advice for those wanting to see the "real" Australia:

1) Go the Footy on Saturday arvo, barrack for a team, and abuse the umpie, a time honoured tradition that - abusing the ump, then go to the local pub and get pissed to the eyeballs.

2) Stay at the Railway Hotel in West Melbourne, you'll meets lots of "locals" and have a chin-wag.

3) Say "bl**dy good tucker this" when eating at the pub

4) Eat a dead horse

5) Go to Centrelink- join the dole queue

6) Learn to call ketchup tomato sauce - pronounced to-mahto

7) Say, "My shout" at the pub - you'll have instant friends & everybody will love you. Remember when it's your shout, you don't walk away.

8) If you're a bloke and want some entertainment, go to St. Kilda of an evening.

9) Drive on the left-hand side of the road.

10) Drive slowly - see our country; drive fast and see our gaols.

If you follow the above suggestions, I guarantee you, you will see the real Australia.

 

26. Murder and a Sex Scandal 2

Academy head should have expelled cadets

The head of the Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) should have expelled seven men involved in the Skype sex scandal, a former defence department secretary says.

Paul Barratt became head of the department in late 1997, shortly after the Howard government launched an inquiry into the effectiveness of sexual harassment and sexual assault policies at ADFA.

The veteran public servant says ADFA commandant Bruce Kafer, who has been suspended, needed to explain why he allowed seven young men to continue studying at the college after the "Skype incident" sex scandal.

The incident became public after an 18-year-old woman went public with how she was filmed having sex with a student, only to have six males watch an internet broadcast of it in another room.

The men involved are still at ADFA.

"I'm surprised at the way this was handled," Mr Barratt told ABC Television on Monday.

"How anyone could come to the conclusion that the behaviour of the seven male cadets would be dealt with as a misdemeanour is very surprising to me.

"It seemed to me to be egregiously serious and I would have been expecting the commandant of ADFA, immediately, to ask all seven of those young men to show cause why they shouldn't have been marched out the gate of ADFA."

Six inquiries into the culture of Defence have been launched.

Commodore Kafer was sent on leave on Saturday, Defence Minister Stephen Smith said on Monday.
Mr Barratt said Commodore Kafer needed to explain his decision, adding he saw no future for the seven men in the Australian Defence Force.

7 News AAP April 12, 2011.

Defence reform long overdue

Scroll down and listen to Derryn's editorial and passionate debate with Neil James of the Australian Defence Assoication.

The response was predictable. Within minutes of the announcement that women would no longer be banned from front-line duties in the Australian military the sexist jokes were out there.

Twitter was a twitter with such savoury lines as ‘when female soldiers get their periods they’ll start fragging their senior officers’.

Fragging being a Vietnam War term for tossing a grenade into an officer’s tent.

The decision by Defence Minister Stephen Smith to remove all combat barriers for females is long overdue. It was sexist. It was discriminatory. Not that Australia has been alone.

In Britain and the United States there are still restrictions on women serving in front line combat roles. In New Zealand there are no restrictions. In Israel, it is surprising that, it is only in the past decade that more combat positions have been opened up for females when young women have been conscripted, the same way as men, for about fifty years.

And in Germany women were allowed to take up combat roles after an European Court test case in 2001.

What people are not realising, in what will be a predictably shrill debate, is that frontline action and membership of such elite groups as the SAS will not come automatically.

As Stephen Smith pointed out: ‘When it comes to women in the ADF, including in combat roles, an opportunity for women should be determined on the basis of physical and intellectual capacity, not on gender’.

And that’s the way it should be. That’s the criteria that should and will be followed. It will mean that some women, despite their career ambitions, won’t make it. Maybe a lot of them.

There are men who dream of joining elite units like the SAS who don’t make it because they don’t reach the physical and mental standards required.

Right now, only 13% of Australian Defence Force personnel are female. Most are in the Navy. Less than 10% are in the Army.

Little wonder places like the Australian Defence Force Academy have been such bastions of chauvinism.

Little wonder that complaints of sexual harassment and assault have either been ignored or badly handled.

And one more thing: How come the academy chief has been sent on forced leave while the so-called Skype Incident is investigated? The female cadet who was the target of the predatory prank has been sent on compassionate leave. But the fellow cadet who premeditatedly set up the dirty picture show, and his six mates who watched in another room, have not been suspended.

As I said yesterday, if this were a university campus, those Neanderthals would have at least been suspended, if not expelled, by now. But then, this is the military. And they do things differently.

Posted by: Derryn Hinch | 12 April, 2011.

Smith reads riot act after webcam sex scandal

Defence Minister Stephen Smith has warned Defence Force personnel that inappropriate conduct "cannot and will not be tolerated", after allegations of a webcam sex scandal at Canberra's Australian Defence Force Academy.

Defence has called in the Federal Police to investigate claims male cadets secretly used a webcam to broadcast live footage of one of their number having consensual sex with an 18-year-old female colleague.

The woman, known only as 'Kate', told the Ten Network she did not know she was being filmed and said she was "physically ill" when Defence investigators told her what had happened.

Speaking this morning, Mr Smith said, if true, the allegations constituted the "greatest betrayal of trust" that could happen in a workplace.

He said the men involved will be sacked from the Academy and the Defence Force if the allegations are proven.

"I can't think of a greater betrayal of trust of a colleague in the workplace than the suggestions that have been made," Mr Smith said.

"Once that trust has been destroyed then it is very difficult, if not impossible, for the person who has broken that trust to remain as a Defence Force personnel member."

He said the incident brought the reputation of the Academy and the Defence Force itself into question and warned that Defence chiefs "will not tolerate conduct that is inappropriate, sexist, conduct which vilifies women, or conduct which is inappropriate in any way that goes to the dignity and civility of workmates".

He said ADF personnel needed to understand the breaking of the ADF's standards of conduct "will not be condoned".

"Conduct of the nature I've described cannot and will not be tolerated," he said.

He said the ADF has worked hard to change its culture with regard to the treatment of women but added that "quite clearly, much more work needs to be done".

"The Australian Defence Force and its personnel cannot do their work effectively in the national security interests of the Commonwealth unless there is trust in the workplace," he said.

Australian Federal Police officers are investigating the allegations to see if any federal or Australian Capital Territory laws have been broken.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard said she would not comment directly on the case because of the ongoing investigations.

But she said, in broad terms, any conduct of that nature was "disgusting" and would be "repudiated" by Australians.

"Any conduct that treats a woman in a way that her dignity is pushed aside, that engages in misusing trust, breaching trust, going out of the way to embarrass people and strip them of dignity and a sense of self worth is disgusting conduct and we would all repudiate it - it's not what we want to see in this country," Ms Gillard said.

She said no-one who joins the ADF should "have their trust abused and their dignity subject to assault".

"We've seen some incidents in the past which were unacceptable," Ms Gillard said.

"I meet terrific young men and women dedicating their lives to the protection of this country and I want them respected in every sense of that word."

The latest sex scandal to hit the Defence Force comes after the final investigation into the activities on board HMAS Success finished recently.

That report said a "predatory sexual culture" existed on the ship, with senior sailors engaging in alcohol-fuelled public sex acts.

In recent weeks, Chief of Navy Vice Admiral Russ Crane warned if behaviour does not improve he will introduce breath testing of all sailors in a bid to wipe out drunkenness.

"I don't want to have to do this but it will occur if I continue to see instances of poor and inappropriate behaviour," he said.

The new sex scandal is bad news for the Defence Force.

"Across the history of the ADF, particularly since the 1990s, there have been persistent incidences of the sexual abuse of women," Dr Ben Wadham, a senior lecturer in sociology and military culture specialist at Flinders University, told AM.

"The Australian Defence Force is a highly masculinised institution. It remains male-dominated.

"The institution may have made attempts to create gender equity but it hasn't addressed that principal question about its culture as one that persists where the culture is male-dominated and women remain guests in that environment."

By Jeremy Thompson

Updated Wed Apr 6, 2011. ABC News.

Defence investigates cadet sex video

The Defence Force has confirmed it has called in police to investigate sex allegations made by a first-year female cadet at the Australian Defence Force Academy in Canberra.

The 18-year-old, identified as 'Kate', says she had consensual sex with another first-year cadet but it was transmitted by Skype to six cadets in another room without her knowledge.

She told the Ten Network she only became aware of the incident when she was contacted by Defence investigators who were alerted by another cadet.

"It was like my whole world came crashing down around me," she said.

"They had to read the statements that the boys had to make and I actually threw up. I had to be asked to be excused from the interview because it made me physically ill."

She says still photos were also taken and "then distributed to other people".

"You see it on the TV and you read it in the papers that these things happen but until it happens to you, you don't actually believe that these things happen," she said.

Academy chief Commodore Bruce Kafer says Australian Federal Police (AFP) will investigate the incident because the college is on federal land.

"If the perpetrators, or those alleged to have been involved, are found guilty of a crime, this could result in termination of their military careers," he warned.

The ACT branch of the Australian Federal Police is the body investigating whether a crime has been committed.

A spokeswoman told AM the AFP is investigating whether charges can be laid under the ACT's act of indecency legislation, or under Commonwealth telecommunications laws.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard said she would not comment directly on the case because of the ongoing investigations.

But she said in broad terms any conduct of that nature was "disgusting" and would be "repudiated" by Australians.

"Any conduct that treats a woman in a way that her dignity is pushed aside, that engages in misusing trust, breaching trust, going out of the way to embarrass people and strip them of dignity and a sense of self worth is disgusting conduct and we would all repudiate it - it's not what we want to see in this country."

Defence Minister Stephen Smith is expected to comment on the allegations today.

The latest sex scandal to hit the Defence Force comes after the final investigation into the activities on board HMAS Success finished recently.

That report said a "predatory sexual culture" existed on the ship, with senior sailors engaging in alcohol-fuelled public sex acts.

In recent weeks Chief of Navy Vice Admiral Russ Crane warned if behaviour does not improve he will introduce breath testing of all sailors in a bid to wipe out drunkenness.

"I don't want to have to do this but it will occur if I continue to see instances of poor and inappropriate behaviour," he said.

The new sex scandal is bad news for the Defence Force.

"Across the history of the ADF, particularly since the 1990s, there have been persistent incidences of the sexual abuse of women," Dr Ben Wadham, a senior lecturer in sociology and military culture specialist at Flinders University, told AM.

"The Australian Defence Force is a highly masculinised institution. It remains male-dominated.

"The institution may have made attempts to create gender equity but it hasn't addressed that principal question about its culture as one that persists where the culture is male-dominated and women remain guests in that environment."

- ABC/AAP.

25. Government Welfare Cuts

With around 11,000 teenage mothers in receipt of parenting payment, that's a heck of a lot of money for the taxpayer to be paying to support teenagers who have a child. Do the math - multiply $625.90 which is the government payment by 11,000... about $6.39741684 million dollars a fortnight!

The Prime Minister's tough love budget gets the seal of approval from me.

Teenage mums' welfare payments will be suspended six months after the birth if they do not follow Centrelink orders under Julia Gillard's "tough love" Budget.
Once their child reaches 12 months, teenage parents must attend school to finish year 12. If they skip class, they will lose their parenting payment of up to $625.90 a fortnight.


This should have been done years ago and not just to balance the budget - many young people accept little or no responsibility. There will of course be people who disagree with getting teen mums back to school for an education or working see here.


HOWEVER, there are other things that need to be taken into consideration and further planning and action must be done for this to be workable -

1. I disagree with enforcing this when the baby is at such a young age - it is better by far to wait until the baby is 12 months old.

2. Another problem I can see is where does the baby go while the mum is at school? There aren't enough childcare centres and placements as it is - does the government also have a plan to build enough childcare centres to accommodate these babies?

3. And when the mother has completed year 12, what then?

4. Changes made to single parent pensions (now called parenting payment) - at present, single parents must work a minimum of 15 hours per week when their youngest child turns 6 or they lose the pension.

5. With the government's new tough love budget, when the teen has completed year 12 will they be expected to work even though their child is under the age of 6 years?

Cuts to Disability Pensions
Is Julia Gillard and her razor gang going to slash disability pensions? The Australian Human Rights Commission's disability discrimination commissioner has backed calls to get people off the disability pension and back into work. And is that fair? Pensioners are already living below the poverty line - are they going to go in a downward spiral of further poverty to pay for the Queensland floods? Don't get me wrong, there is a huge damage bill to not only Queensland but Victoria as well, and we as taxpayers will all share the cost, but cutting pensions? Seems to me Ms Gillard is targeting the wrong people - why not start with cutting the wages of our Members of Parliament? Cut the freebies and perks and taxpayer-funded travel in the name of "on government service" - let them drive their own cars to and from work and pay for their own petrol out of their own pockets. I do - I pay for mine, nobody pays me petrol money.

And pensions for former Prime Ministers are way above the ordinary pensioner.
Kevin Rudd will get $600,000 a year for life when he leaves politics.
John Howard gets a multi-million dollar pension. Mr Howard will retire on a pension worth up to $330,000 a year or he could take a $1.5 million lump sum payout and an annual pension of about $165,000 a year.

And what about all the other former prime ministers, how much would they be getting I wonder?

We've all heard the old saying, there's one law for the rich and another for the poor.

24. Anzac Day - Lest we forget

 

ANZAC Day, 25th April is the day Australians remember the original landing on Gallipoli in 1915. It is our most important national occasion. It marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australians and New Zealand forces in the First World War. ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. The soldiers in those forces quickly became known as ANZACs, and the pride they soon took endures to this day.

 

Above: Anzac Cove
Australian and New Zealand soldiers formed part of the allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallopoli Peninsular to open the way to the Black Sea for the Allied navies. The landed at Gallipoli on April 25 and met fierce resistance form the Turkish defenders. The campaign dragged on for eight months.

 

Above: Anzac soldier carrying a wounded comrade at Gallipoli
At the end of 1915 the Allied forces were evacuated after both sides had suffered heavy casualties and severe hardship. Over 8,000 Australian soldiers were killed. News of the landing at Gallipoli made a profound impact on Australians at home and 25 April quickly became the day on which Australians remembered the the sacrifice of those who had died in war.

 

Above: Anzacs
We honour those Diggers and all Diggers who have made the ultimate sacrifice.


Below is an Anzac tribute I made compiled of original photoshots from World War One, including the Landing at Anzac Cove, Passchendaele, marches and photos taken by soldiers.

 

Above: Looking through a window on to a battlefield cemetery

Lest we forget