[Mb-civic] CBC News - RECORD CROWDS TURN OUT TO MOURN GALLIPOLI'S DEAD

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RECORD CROWDS TURN OUT TO MOURN GALLIPOLI'S DEAD
WebPosted Mon Apr 25 01:31:44 2005

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA---Australians and New Zealanders turned out in record
numbers Monday morning to mark the 90th anniversary of the battle of
Gallipoli, a disastrous First World War campaign that left 100,000
soldiers dead.

In the focal point of the memorials, thousands of people gathered in what
was thought to be the largest crowd ever to attend the annual dawn
service at Anzac Cove on Turkey's Gallipoli peninsula.

The cove takes its name from the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps
(ANZAC), whose troops waded ashore on April 25, 1915.

They fought under British command in a bloody nine-month campaign to
capture Istanbul and open a Black Sea route to Russia.

The battle is seen as a defining moment in the history of the young
nations of Australia and New Zealand, where Anzac Day has become a
memorial day for all fallen troops and both countries' biggest
national holiday.

Members of the crowd at Gallipoli's North Beach – many draped in
Australian flags – watched as a light display lit the cliffs where
the Anzacs were forced to dig in.

Then they listened to a service that included words from Australian Prime
Minister John Howard, his New Zealand counterpart Helen Clark and
Britain's Prince Charles.

25,000 gather in Sydney

In Australia's largest ceremony, about 25,000 people attended a dawn
service in central Sydney.

Dozens of other marches and memorials were held throughout the country
and New Zealand, and Australian forces held ceremonies and commemorative
barbecues at overseas postings.

Some 8,709 Australians and 2,701 New Zealanders were killed in the
fighting at Gallipoli, along with more than 21,000 British troops,
9,800 French soldiers and more than 1,300 Indian troops. Thousands more
were wounded.

On the other side, Turkey lost some 86,000 men in the campaign, but
forced the Allies to withdraw from the peninsula.

Gallipoli took place only 14 years after a number of former British
colonies came together to form Australia and was the first battle where
Australians fought under their own flag.

With reports from the Australian Broadcasting Corp. and Agence France-
Presse

Copyright (C) 2005 CBC. All rights reserved.