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The Diggers’ March in Sydney
Audio
In April 1938, several thousand New Zealand “diggers” sailed from Wellington for Sydney, where they reunited with their Australian “cobbers” of 1914 – 1918 in a grand Anzac Day procession through the city.
The huge march from the Cenotaph to the Domain, where a commemoration service was held, was part of Australia’s 150th anniversary celebrations and some 50,000 returned servicemen took part – with an estimated half a million people lining the Sydney streets.
In this live radio broadcast from the Wellington waterfront, Station 2ZB announcers – who were veterans themselves – capture the cheering, bands and excitement on the docks. New Zealand Prime Minister Michael Joseph Savage farewells the old soldiers as they board former World War One troopships – ‘the Monowai’ and ‘the Maunganui’ – for the trip across the Tasman.
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Marching in Dunedin
Video
Following an ANZAC Day ceremony at the Cenotaph in Queen's Garden, Dunedin, hundreds of veterans march down Princes Street. The sheer number of marchers reflects the fact that the Otago and Southland regions provided the largest number of soldiers for the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) per head of population. On parade are the 4th Otago Hussars; the 5th Otago Mounted Rifles and marines from a Royal Navy ship. The Battalion Band is followed by officers on horseback and soldiers of the Territorial Regiment. Each company is led by the company commander on horseback, all of whom wear medal ribbons indicating they are World War One veterans.
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Lest We Forget
Video
Thousands of Melburnians turn out in the pouring rain in 1925, to honour the fallen of the First World War.