A single didgeridoo pierced the silence at the Australian War Memorial as thousands gathered on Anzac Day to pay tribute to those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their nation.
Letters from Anzacs in World War I were read out and the names of fallen soldiers were illuminated on the building in Canberra, as the dawn service began at 5.30am and ended with a minute’s silence and the Last Post.
Army chaplain Phil Riley commemorated the Anzac legend on Thursday ahead of Governor-General David Hurley and New Zealand’s High Commissioner to Australia Andrew Needs laying wreaths at the Stone of Remembrance.
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“At this hour, on this day, 109 years ago, the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, at Gallipoli, made immortal the name of Anzac and established an imperishable tradition of selfless service,” the chaplain said.
Vice Australian Defence Force chief David Johnston led his tribute with the story of two young aviators who fought and lost their lives 79 years ago on a mission to disarm German troops.
“It is in this darkness, before the dawn, that we are closest to the soldiers of the first Australian Imperial Force who spent their dawn 109 years ago crouched in small boats on the shores of Gallipoli,” the vice admiral said.
“They lie a long way from home but they are near in our memory today.”
He asked all Australians to also remember the families who mourned on Anzac Day.
“I ask you all to hold in your hearts those who mourn on Anzac Day and remember those whose service left them wounded in body, mind, or spirit,” he said.
As dawn services took place around Australia to commemorate Anzac Day, 3000km north of Canberra Prime Minister Anthony Albanese finished walking the Kokoda Track with his Papua New Guinean counterpart James Marape.
Albanese, who will make a speech at a dawn service at Kokoda, honoured the sacrifice of those who served along the mountainous trail, as well as those who served in other conflicts.
“Anzac Day has never asked us to exalt in the glories of war. Anzac Day asks us to stand against the erosion of time and to hold on to their names, to hold on to their deeds,” he said.
Albanese hiked parts of the Kokoda Track where 625 people were killed and more than a thousand wounded during the World War II campaign.
Thursday marks the 109th anniversary of the landings on April 25, 1915, at Gallipoli, Turkey, where Defence Minister Richard Marles will attend a dawn ceremony later on Thursday.
“When we think about the Gallipoli campaign, we think of mateship and sacrifice, and we admire the extraordinary actions of the Anzac soldiers,” Marles said.
RSL National President Greg Melick said it was a sombre day that also remembered those who have served and died in the line of duty.
The landings marked the first major battle Australian and New Zealand soldiers faced in World War I.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said the campaign at Gallipoli had forged a new beginning for Australia.
“Just as the Anzac spirit shaped our national soul, our national soul sustained the Anzac spirit,” he said.
Liberal MP Phil Thompson, a former soldier who was named Anzac of the Year in 2016, said it was a day of reflection amid the current global tensions.
While service personnel and the community got together at pubs and enjoyed the game of two-up each year, it was important to acknowledge those who had died while enjoying the day with mates, Thompson said.
“When I’m at the RSL or pub I buy two beers, one for myself and one for my mates who paid the ultimate sacrifice and that sits on the table and they have a seat,” he told AAP.
“When you’re out and laughing and having fun and you’re with your mates, you’re still remembering and reflecting.
“They would want that.”
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