Anzac
Where can I find information about the ANZACs and Anzac Day?
Image: Anzac Day Parade by Farrow. Collection: Upper Hutt City Library.
Entry last updated: 18/09/17
Introduction
ANZAC is the acronym for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. It came about In 1914 during World War One when the Australian Army and the New Zealand Army formed the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. This new unit became known as the Anzacs, to acknowledge both countries. Anzac Day, Anzac poppies and Anzac biscuits are all associated with the Anzac soldiers and are part of the history and culture of New Zealand.
Anzac history
The ANZACs (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) first fought together along with the British Army in the Gallipoli campaign, on 25 April 1915. They were attempting to overthrow the Ottoman Empire and several battles took place on the Gallipoli Peninsula.
Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand
Te Ara is one of the best websites to start with when looking for information on New Zealand topics. You can trust the information on this website because it is a government website. You can tell this because it has .govt in the web address.
To find out about Gallipoli,
- Choose Stories A-Z from the tabs at the top, and select F.
- Scroll down to First World War.
- Choose Gallipoli and the war against Turkey.
Also try searching for Anzac to bring up all the stories that mention Anzac.
Tips: Te Ara links sometimes take you to the Short Story. Remember to click on the Full Story for more in-depth information. You can also look at the All images and media link for pictures and photos related to your story.
NZ History is another great website for information about New Zealand Aotearoa. It is also a government website as we can see from their Contact Us page. This website has heaps of information about Anzac history like the Gallipoli campaign and the Anzacs.
- Choose New Zealand at War on the front page.
- From here choose First World War.
- Then go to Gallipoli and the Balkans.
- Finally choose Gallipoli campaign.
This website is the New Zealand government's guide to Anzac Day and it covers past and present commemorations. You can tell it's a government website because it has .govt in the web address, so you can trust the information.
The links at the top of the page will take you straight to:
- Significance of Anzac Day which includes traditions and rituals like poppies and Anzac biscuits and Myths and misconceptions
- The Gallipoli guide for information about the battles that New Zealand troops were involved in.
Anzac Day
Anzac Day was first observed in New Zealand on 25 April 1916 and in 1920 it became a public holiday. On this day each year, we remember the soldiers who fought at Gallipoli, as well as all New Zealanders who have fought in wars since.
One of the main purposes of this website is to provide information for people planning Anzac Day events. From the links across the top of the homepage choose Anzac Day today which outlines the order of Anzac Day commemorations.
The RSA (The Royal New Zealand Returned and Services' Association) was formed in 1916 to support the men and women returning from war and their families. This role of support continues to be the main focus for the RSA, as well as leading the Anzac commemorations each year. Their website has heaps of information about Anzac day:
- From the Remembrance link at the top of the page, you can go to Anzac Day.
- Choose Today for an outline of events on Anzac Day.
- Choose History to read about the first Anzac Day.
- Choose Dawn Service to find out what this involves.
- Choose Poppy Day to find out about the history of the Poppy and the Poppy Appeal.
Tips: Websites that have .org in the address can have good information, but you need to check how reliable it is. Check the About us link on the website if you can find one. That can tell you what the organisation's mission and values are.
This website also has lots of information about Anzac Day. You can find it by going to the First World War section and choosing Commemoration and then Anzac Day.
Anzac symbols
There are different symbols that are part of remembering the Anzacs. The red poppy is a symbol of Anzac Day and is sold to raise funds for returned service men and women. You might also come across Anzac biscuits. These were baked and sent to the soldiers on the front line.
The National Army Museum is located in Waiouru, and it has collections and displays about New Zealand's military history including Anzac history.
- Use your keywords 'anzac biscuit' to search, using the search bar at the top of the page.
- Choose the result The ANZAC Biscuit to read about how the biscuit became a symbol of Anzac.
Tips: Search words, or keywords, are the most important words of our topic, like 'anzac'. We can always change our keywords or add more if we need to.
Te Papa is New Zealand's National Museum and it houses collections and exhibitions about Pacific art, history and culture.
- Te Papa has made available an image of the RSA poppy that you can download and use. You can find this by searching for 'poppy' on their Collections Online page.
- Currently there is an exhibition called Gallipoli: The scale of our war and you can read about this exhibition by going to What's on.
Tips: Te Papa is another government website (it has .govt in the web address) so the information should be well-researched and reliable.
Anzac experiences
So many years later, it can be hard to imagine what life was like for the Anzac soldiers. Here are some websites to help us understand what they went through.
This website has heaps of information about the history of New Zealand soldiers and the wars they have been involved in, including stories of Anzac experiences.
From the Collections tab choose:
- Kiwis at war
- Voices from the past
- New Zealand Soldiers' War Stories.
Tips: Websites that have .co in the address can have good information, but you need to assess how reliable it is. Check the About us link on the website. That can tell you what the company’s mission and values are.
NZ History also has a page describing what life was like for the Anzacs, with images and quotes from the soldiers.
- Follow the steps mentioned earlier until you reach The Gallipoli campaign .
- Choose number 7. Soldiers' experience .
Anzac poetry
Some poems have been written to help remember the Anzacs and the sacrifice they made.
This is the official website of the New Zealand Army (the .mil in the web address stands for military). On their Anzac Day page you can read about the significance of the poppy and the remembrance poem, 'In Flanders Fields'. It also includes sound recordings of the 'Last Post' and 'The Ode' which are part of Anzac Day commemorations.
- Look for the link to Anzac Day under the tab Culture and History.
- Look down the page for the poem 'In Flanders fields'.
- Go to the bottom of the page to listen to 'The sounds of Anzac Day'.
Tips: At the bottom of the page you can see that this website also belongs to the New Zealand Government so you can trust the information.
Anzac Day Commemoration Committee
This is an Australian website and they have put together a collection of poems that can be used in Anzac services.
- Choose Anzac Service Schedule and guides from the front page.
- Choose Read more beside the poetry heading.
Tips: Remember to check the About us pages to find out more about who owns the website.
Primary sources
Primary sources are things like diaries, letters or photos that were created at the time when the events were happening. They can also be created by people who were eye-witnesses of what happened. Primary sources are very important for studying historical events.
Topic Explorer (National Library)
This is an online tool that has a wide range of quality resources for students in a range of formats (eg articles, books, images, videos, primary sources, sets, websites) on a variety of topics. These resources have been selected from reliable national and international sources.
- Choose the topic called Anzac.
- This will show lots of different types of resources.
- From here you can choose the Show only primary sources option.
Books
There have been many books written about the ANZACs and Anzac Day - check out your local public or school library to see what they have.
Anzac Day is part of a series of books about special days in New Zealand written by New Zealand author Kevin Boon. You can read this online at the International Children's Digital Library
.
Some other recommended titles are:
- Anzac Day - the New Zealand story: what it is and why it matters by Philippa Werry
- Anzac heroes by Maria Gill
- Roly, the Anzac donkey by Glyn Harper.