ON this day 99 years ago ANZAC was born.
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As the traditional ANZAC Dedication states the day: "received its baptism of fire and became one of the immortal names in our history."
Australian and New Zealand troops landed on the shores of Gallipoli, the Dardanelles Peninsula, on April 25, 1915.
According the the Australian RSL the ANZACs (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps), "along with other Commonwealth Forces, held ground against almost impossible odds for the next eight months, against a Turkish force determined to defend to the death their homeland.
"It was all the British forces (of which the Australian and New Zealand force were a part), could do to hold ground against a Turkish army determined to drive them into the sea. It was a battlefield where no one, not even General Birdwood and his staff were safely out of the range of Turkish guns. The odds against them were tremendous, but they held on repulsing many Turkish counterattacks in conditions of hardship that tested the hardiest.
"Both sides suffered horrendous casualties amongst the many ravines and gullies of that rugged battleground on which the ANZAC tradition was formed and that has become the benchmark for standards of courage, mateship, humour and a determination to complete a given task, and has set an example for all Australians to follow whenever faced with difficulties."
"Initially, ANZAC day was a mark of respect for those who served and sacrificed their lives in the Great War for Civilisation, the war as many hoped, to end all wars.
"However, because of the vicissitudes of man, the date has become the day on which the nation remembers those who served and those who made the ultimate sacrifice in all the conflicts that Australia has participated up to the present day in the continuing struggle to preserve our freedoms in the attempt to rid the world of tyranny."
For more details go to http://rslnsw.org.au/