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They went with songs to the battle, they were young.
Straight of limb, true of eyes, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.

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Nice ode to fallen comrades. Nice

Agreed

Politicians here seem able to forget a debt of blood. Some of us never will.

Bill

That ode is ANZAC day's equivalent of the 'Lords Prayer'. As a youngin in NZ I used to go to all the dawn services ("At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will remember them"), but then the day become, just another 'day off work'. Of late its taken on more significance, especially this year. I recently worked on a military project and as part of that got to conduct focus groups with a lot of diggers who had seen action in Iraq and Afghanistan. I have not felt so strongly about having to do something today ... I have a much greater respect for those to have given so much. I was up early today to watch the dawn service on TV with the Arena'ettes (they wanted to watch the Wiggles); even though they are too young to understand, I will take them later this AM to a commeneration at a local war memorial.....they will not forget.

BUT, then this afternoon .....bring it on - its Collingwood v Essendon in the ANZAC day clash!

netizens

Footmen (foot soldiers) or infantry are soldiers who fight with small arms on the ground and are transported to the battlefield. The etymology of ‘infantry” is thought to derive from the same Latin root as 'infant', either via Italian, where it referred to young men who accompanied knights on foot, or via Spanish, where the infantes (royal princes but not heirs to the throne) commanded the footmen, hence known as infanteria. From antiquity armies have been built around a core of infantry and relied on their feet for operational movements (transportation behind the lines, especially in the pre-industrial era) and tactical movement (movement in battle). At first foot soldiers fought in loosely organized groups under the commanded of individuals within ear shot who would call out orders. The Greeks preferred heavily-armed formations of infantry which fought in rigid formation but by the time of the Romans, legions were lightly-armed and mobile, capable of relocating on the battlefield to exploit advantage. By the early Middle Ages, combat preference was given to knights (on horseback). Foot soldiers were armed with long spears to counter the long reach of lances used by the cavalry. About 1350 when personal armoury became too heavy to be practical ground fighting was reintroduced and the importance of the archer became apparent. Eventually the bow was replaced by the musketeer as guns became more accurate and require less skill to use. The introduction of the bayonet marked the beginning of modern infantry and as time progressed and communications and weaponry improved, infantry formations were trained to carry out pre-arranged tactical (silent) manoeuvres in the heat of battle. By the First World War I (1914-1918), it was recognized the ability of infantry to manoeuvre in constricted terrain unseen was extremely effective. Modern warfare reinforced the importance of protecting the soldiers and saw the development of mechanized infantry in armoured vehicles and air assaults. Infantry units are now used to patrol, escort and pursue moving unseen in areas of possible enemy activity to discern enemy deployments and ambush enemy patrols. Foot soldiers rely on their equipment, weaponry and clothing and that includes their boots. Each theatre of war demands clothing and footwear suitable to the geographical and climatic conditions and foot soldiers' boots have evolved to become some of the most sophisticated footwear on Earth. The term Digger came to refer to Australian military personnel since the Australian and New Zealand invlvement in the Vietnam War (1962-1973)but was previously recorded as being used to describe both Australian and New Zealand soldiers. No one is really sure of the origins of ‘digger’ but some authorities’ think it may have been a nickname given to new recruits from mining areas which they took to the Battle of Gallipoli (1916). There is no written evidence to support this and Australian troops were more commonly known as Kangaroos, or Tommy Kangaroo and sometimes Johnny Kangaroos at this time. Other nicknames were Cobblers, Trooper Redgum and Billjims. Certainly survival at Gallipoli was dependent on finding suitable cover and fox holes were life saving. Many linked to communicating trenches so the survivors of the nightmare landing may have earned the title because they survived by digging in. Diggers was used as a term of endearment by the British Tommy’s’ in 1916, when they referred to Maori battalions who dug out communicating trenches. After the Battle of the Somme (1916), Australian soldiers generally referred to themselves with pride as "Diggers." By 1917the name had spread from the New Zealand Division to the Australian Division in the ANZAC Corps and gained general acceptance. The sobriquet 'digger' was commonly used in World War II (1939-1945) to refer to Australian and New Zealand troops who fought side by side but in separate battalions. By the Vietnam War, Australian and New Zealand troops formed combined units and the term Kiwi was used to refer to New Zealanders and the Australians were called Diggers.

toeslayer

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I hope this does not offend anyone.

I remember hearing this song for the first time sung by a British man called Mike Harding. I was moved to tears.

The following lyrics were copied from the Pogues rendition of the same song.

When I was a young man I carried my pack
And I lived the free life of a rover
From the murrays green basin to the dusty outback
I waltzed my matilda all over
Then in nineteen fifteen my country said son
Its time to stop rambling cause theres work to be
Done
So they gave me a tin hat and they gave me a gun
And they sent me away to the war
And the band played waltzing matilda
As we sailed away from the quay
And amidst all the tears and the shouts and the
Cheers
We sailed off to gallipoli

How well I remember that terrible day
the blood stained the sand and the water
And how in that hell that they called suvla bay
We were butchered like lambs at the slaughter
Johnny turk he was ready, he primed himself well
He us with bullets, he rained us with
Shells
And in five minutes flat hed blown us all to hell
Nearly blew us right back to australia
But the band played waltzing matilda
As we stopped to bury our slain
And we buried ours and the turks buried theirs
Then started all over again

Now those
In mad world of blood, death and fire
And for weeks I kept myself alive

Then a big turkish shell knocked me arse over tit
And when I woke up in my hospital bed
And saw what it had done, I wished I was
Dead
Never knew there were worse things than dying
no more Ill go waltzing matilda
the green far and near
For to hump tent and pegs, a man needs two legs
No more waltzing matilda for me

So they collected the cripples, the wounded
Maimed
And they shipped us back home to australia
, the blind insane
Those proud wounded heroes of suvla
And as our ship pulled into circular quay
I looked at the place where legs used to be
And thank christ there was nobody waiting for me
To grieve and to mourn and to pity
And the band played waltzing matilda
As they carried us down the gangway
But nobody cheered, they just stood and stared
turned all their faces away

And now every april I sit on my porch
And I watch the parade pass before me
my old comrades, how proudly they march
Reliving dreams of past glory

The forgotten heroes a forgotten war
And the young people ask , what are they
Marching for?
And I ask myself the same question
And the band plays waltzing matilda
And the old men answer to the call
But year after year their numbers get fewer
Some day no one will march there at all

Waltzing matilda, waltzing matilda
Wholl a-waltzing matilda with me?

Lest we forget.

l cant remember missing one, as from a teenager l played at two marches( salvation Army Band) every year at Greensborough and Eltham for many years, these days l attend privately at the Whittlesea march with my children and parents, it is good to see the crowds have grown so much over the years, at Whittlesea it was a great crowd with a very broad age group.
Something we should never forget and it is up to us to show our children the past and why "we owe so much to so few"

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David Sutton
C.Ped.CM
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www.bilbyshoes.com

The game has just finished and there was a shot of a different version of the ode on a banner:

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will thrash Essendon

Obviously from a Collingwood supporter (they won 154 - 81)

Now its on to Crusaders vs Blues... heaps of ANZAC day symbolism before the game and a large 'poppy' painted on the ground.

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Craig Payne
Department of Podiatry
La Trobe University
Melbourne, Australia
http://www.latrobe.edu.au/podiatry
__________________________________________________ ___________________________________
God put me on this earth to accomplish a certain number of things - right now I am so far behind, I will never die.
The views expressed above are those of the author and not that of La Trobe University
This is where I am, where are you?

Twirly,

My paternal grandfather, after WW11 active service in Syria and then in New Guinea, not only refused to march on Anzac Day but also never joined the RSL (Returned Service League in Australia). Apparently he was not alone.

However I, who never served (being a past active participant in the Moratorium movement in Australia), am very aware of the sacrifice and misery caused by politicians sending our young off to kill and be killed. And so I DO attend the Anzac Day March as an enthusiastic "supportive" spectator! Definitely not alone!

There is an Australian play, which used to be studied at school, asking this very question.

We should never forget.
The importance of studying history; hopefully makes us more aware of mistakes that have been made in the past which should help us be more reluctant to make them in the future. At present it's not looking good though, is it?

All the best, Mark C

I was about to post something on those very lines.

But since you have stollen my thunder, i shall content myself with some quotes.

and my faovourite

On which note, happy Anzac day

Regards
Robert

Time to bump this thread 12 months later. I will be at the local dawn service tomorrow AM with the Arena'ettes, so they can start to appreciate what this is all about and what it means.

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Just got home from this mornings Dawn Service at the Australian War Memorial, wet, cold, but thankful. Thankful to all that have and still do give themselves, servicemen & servicewomen and their relatives. The minister gave an excellent sermon, the service spokesperson also, no 'blood'n'guts', no politics. Turning up is the least I can do, mark.