- Address: Treloar Cres, Campbell ACT 2612, Australia
- Phone: +61 2 6243 4211
- Website: awm.gov.au
- Founder: Charles Bean
- Founded: November 11, 1941.
- Architect: John Krast
- Architectural styles: Art Deco, Byzantine Architecture
- Working hours: 10.00 - 17.00
Australian War Memorial (Australian War Memorail) - one of the most popular sights of the Australian capital . It is dedicated to all soldiers and service personnel who died in all wars in which Australia participated. Created in 1941, it is one of the most significant among similar memorials in the world.
Structure of the memorial
In terms of the memorial War Memorial is a cross. The building was built in Byzantine style with elements of art deco. The memorial includes the Memorial Hall, which houses the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier, the Sculpture Garden, the Memorial Galleries and the Research Center. Hall of Memory - includes the grave of an unknown soldier, mosaics depicting Australian soldiers: infantryman, pilot, sailor, military woman, and two covered Roll of Honor galleries, on whose walls are bronze plates with names and surnames of about 200 thousands of Australian soldiers and officers who died in all wars in which the Australian Union took part (starting with the British military company in Sudan, which took place in the eighties of the XIX century). Only names and surnames, without indication of ranks and arms, because "before death all are equal". The tablets adorn the poppy flowers, because in Australia, as in many other countries, it is the poppy that is considered a symbol of memory and spilled on the battlefields of blood.
In front of the Hall of Memory is a pond in which the Eternal Flame is burning; around grow rosemary bushes, personifying mourning and eternal memory.
The Military Museum
Under the building of the Memorial is a military museum. The museum's exposition is based on the collection of former official military correspondent Charles Bean, who after the war became a historian of the First World War, and the materials of John Treloar, the creator of the Australian War Records Section, which collected materials for the museum. 25 thousand exhibits were collected only during the First World War; among them were the diaries of ordinary soldiers, who were specifically asked to keep records, and photos (18 photographers and artists worked on the battlefields, whose task was to capture a war without embellishment, just as it was.
During the Great Depression, the museum already existed, but as a traveling exhibition. It was opened in Melbourne in 1922, and from 1925 to 1935 she worked in Sydney. The issue of permanent premises for the museum was raised in the early 20s of the last century, in 1927 the building project was adopted. However, due to lack of funds, it was completed only in 1941, when Australia had already become a party to the Second World War. The top floor of the museum is dedicated to the events of the 1st and 2nd Great World Wars. There are a lot of diarams depicting different battles, real equipment that took part in the battles.
In the aviation hall of the museum you can not only see the exhibits, but also watch films about air battles; In addition, several times a day, air battles are played here, accompanied by light and sound effects. You can witness an airborne landing or feel like a pilot bomber. The Hall of Valor presents the world's largest collection of Crosses of Victoria - 61 pcs. Near each of the Crosses is a photograph of the person awarded this cross and a brief excerpt from the award documents.
The lower floor is occupied by a research center and a theater, but part of it is devoted to the military conflicts of the 20th century; Also there are various temporary exhibitions. In total, the collection of the museum includes more than 20 thousand maps, more than a million photographs taken at the fronts, where the Australian soldiers fought, about 40 thousand memorable exhibits and much more. The museum is free of charge. You can see it yourself, or you can get on the tour, which is conducted by volunteers. Excursions take place at 10-00, 10-30, 11-00, 13-30 and 14-00.
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Sculpture garden
To the memorial area there is a square where you can wander through the alleys, looking at the sculptures dedicated to the Australian warriors. Opens the Sculpture Garden a large monument to the Australian soldier. The most popular of the sculptures is "Simpson and his donkey," which depicts the national hero of Australia, John Simpson Kirpatrick. He is known for the fact that he and his donkeys took a large number of wounded from the battlefields. Got from Indian soldiers who also participated in the battle, the nickname Bahadur (from the Indian translates as "brave of their brave"), Simpson died. His name can also be seen on the plate in the Hall of Remembrance. In addition to sculptures, it is also possible to see cannons and gun turrets from warships and military equipment.
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How to get to the memorial?
The memorial is located at the northern end of the central street of Canberra - ANZAC boulevard, the so-called "Ceremonial axis", which stretches from the Parliament building. You can reach the Memorial by public transport - bus number 10 on weekdays and number 910 on holidays and weekends. You can come here by bike - near the Memorial there are special parking lots: near the building of the Memorial administration and near the CEW Bean building.
The ceremony of closing the memorial is very solemn: shortly before 17-00 the brief history of the memorial is sounded, at 17:00 on the steps of the Memory Hall a piper appears in a Scottish national costume and performs a Scottish funeral song "Forest Flowers" or a bugler who performs a melody that is funerary during the fighting ("The Last Outpost").
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