Ceremonies Archive

On the first Sunday of April 1946, a parade was held at what became known as "ANZAC Park" in Kure, Japan. Detachments from all services of the four nations, Australia, UK, India and New Zealand which comprised the British Commonwealth Occupation Force (BCOF) in Japan. The ceremony included the formal raising of the flags of each nation and the official declaration of the occupation.

On the first Sunday of April each year a service of remembrance is held at the Shrine to mark the contributuion of the BCOF forces.

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Annual commemorative service and wreath laying.

The Australian-Maltese community holds its annual service of remembrance in April each year. This time marks the award of the George Cross to the island by King George VI of the United Kingdom in a letter dated 15 April 1942 so as to "bear witness to the heroism and devotion of its people" during the tremendous hardships they suffered in the early days of World War II.

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Shrine Monthly Remembrance Service
This remembrance service is in memory of the Victorian servicemen and women who served overseas in World War I, either in units of the Australian Military Forces or in ships of the Royal Australian Navy. Their names are recorded forever in the books displayed in the Ambulatory of the Shrine of Remembrance. They served in the Middle East, on the Gallipoli Peninsula, in France and on the oceans of the world. In WWI, 89,000 Victorians served overseas and 19,000 made the supreme sacrifice. Today we remember, in particular, those who served in the following ships and units:
 

A joint effort by the Shrine of Remembrance and the Chelsea RSL Sub-Branch 'Digger for a Day' gives students in the Chelsea area the chance to make a special pilgrimage to the Shrine close to ANZAC Day each year. Special educational activities are organised for attending school groups who also attend a short service of remembrance during the day.

Legacy is a national voluntary organisation of veterans, servicemen and women and other volunteers who are dedicated to the care of the dependants of Australian Defence Force members, after the death of a spouse or parent during service, and to Australian and Allied families after operation service. Legacy was formed in 1923.

Each year prior to ANZAC Day Legacy holds a special service for school students. This service combines education with commemoration and is attended by thousands of school children annually. All students are welcome to attend. The first service was held in 1932 - three years before the Shrine was opened.

Further information about Legacy, and this students' remembrance service, can be found on their website. Please follow the link below:
  
Legacy
 

Annual Ceremony to Commemorate the service of the 2/14th Battalion.

The HQ 3rd Division Association holds its annual pilgrimage at the Shrine on the eve of ANZAC Day. The Association remembers the service and sacrifice of its members at this time.

The 3'66 Club was the association for 2nd AIF Signals units.  The club was formed by units present on Bougainville in October 1945 after the cessation of hostilities.

In past years, the association gathered close to ANZAC Day to commemorate the service and sacrifice of its members. The Friends and Relatives now meet in their memory.

Villers Bretonneux Day, April 24th, marks the successful counterattack and recapture of Villers Bretonneux in 1918. This action played a significant role in the overeall defeat of the German attack launched in March 1918.

A service is held annually by the Friends of the 15th Brigade on April 24th each year at the Shrine of Remembrance. The 15th Brigade, which had suffered dreadfully in the ANZACs first major action on the Western Front at Fromelles, together with the 13th Brigade, was instrumental in this action.

Villers-Bretonneux is today the main Australian site of commemoration in France.
 

ANZAC Day marks the anniversary of the first major action by Australian and New Zealand troops in the Great War when, at dawn on April 25 1915, they landed on the beaches at Gallipoli in the Dardanelles Strait. Here they fought troops of the Ottoman Empire alongside British, French and Indian allies.
Today ANZAC Day is the most important day of remembrance and commemoration in both New Zealand and Australia and dawn services are attended by hundreds of thousands of people across both countries.

During World War II the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) formed beach commando units to go ashore with the first waves of amphibious assaults, to signpost the beaches, control boat traffic, and communicate with the maritime forces. These were known as Royal Australian Navy Beach Commandoes. These Commandoes underwent their training at HMAS Assault, a naval base commissioned as an Amphibious Training Centre at Port Stephens in 1942.

HMAS Assault veterans and their families gather the day after ANZAC Day each year to remember their former comrades. This date was chosen to make reunions easy to plan and simple to travel to for overseas or interstate members.
 

The 57/60th Battalion (AIF) Association holds a small service each year to commemorate the service and sacrifice of its members.This service is traditionally held on the first Sunday following ANZAC Day. This tradition was born at the Association's first function, the first Sunday after ANZAC Day 1946, following the creation of the organisation in 1945.