2779

There are few holidays in the world — aside from religious celebrations, New Year’s, or Labour Day — that touch the hearts of multiple nations.One of these is the subject of today’s article: ANZAC Day.

April 25 is a national holiday in both Australia and New Zealand, as this is the day when the two countries commemorate the soldiers who fell in the First World War. However, it is not only about those who lost their lives — the day also honours the veterans who returned home from the war.

In 1914, both Australia and New Zealand pledged military support to the British Empire if needed. This led to the formation of the ANZAC, the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.

In 1915, the ANZAC — fighting on the side of the Allies — landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey, to confront the forces of the Ottoman Empire.After initial defeats, the ANZAC eventually returned home victorious.Australia lost 8,709 soldiers, while New Zealand lost 2,779.

Because the landing took place at dawn, ANZAC Day traditionally begins with a dawn service. This is followed by the national anthem, readings, bagpipe music, ceremonial salutes, and then numerous events across the country.

The official flowers of ANZAC Day are the poppy and rosemary, with the red colour symbolising the blood sacrifice.Also popular is the ANZAC biscuit, which soldiers ate in place of bread during the war — and which was supposedly so hard it was nicknamed a “bullet-stopper.”To this day, there’s an ongoing (and friendly) debate between Australians and New Zealanders about whether the biscuit is better soft or hard.

When we visited Wellington at the end of March, we saw the ANZAC Memorial and the Gallipoli exhibition at the Te Papa Museum, where cutting-edge 3D technology and gigantic sculptures bring scenes of war to life.The creation of the giant wax figures took more than 24,000 hours.

But ANZAC memorials can be found not only in New Zealand and Australia — there are monuments around the world in places like Malaysia, Turkey, and Canada.Naturally, Aussies and Kiwis living in the diaspora also commemorate ANZAC Day wherever they are.

What gives this day its bittersweet complexity is that Hungarian families living in New Zealand and Australia also take part in the commemorations — even though Hungary fought against ANZAC, on the side of the Central Powersduring World War I.To this day, many Hungarian families have ancestors or grandparents who fought in that war against Australia and New Zealand.

So I’ll end with the words of Commander Mustafa Kemal Atatürk:

“Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives...

You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country.

Therefore rest in peace.

There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side...

You, the mothers who sent their sons from faraway countries, wipe away your tears;

your sons are now lying in our bosom and are at peace.

After having lost their lives on this land, they have become our sons as well.”

Darvasi Áron