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Prince & Princess of WalesPrince PhilipQueen Elizabeth II

The Queen pays tribute to Gallipoli Dead at Cenotaph service

By
25th April 2015

Her Majesty led a wreath-laying ceremony at the Cenotaph Saturday to mark 100 years since the First World War’s Gallipoli campaign.

The Nation Commemorates ANZAC Day and Gallipoli Centenary

Joining The Queen at the ceremony was The Duke of Edinburgh, The Duke of Cambridge as well as numerous political leaders and military figures.Prince Williams attendance on Saturday was contingent on The Duchess of Cambridge going into labour with their second child. The world is still eagerly waiting for the news when she has been admitted to hospital.

Australian High Commissioner Alexander Downer and his New Zealand counterpart, Sir Lockwood Smith, joined diplomats from 17 nations including Turkey, France, Canada, India, Pakistan and Belgium.

Upon the last toll of Big Ben at 11 am the buglers from the Band of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines sounded The Last Post, signalling the start of two minutes’ silence.

Following The Queen in laying a wreath were Prime Minister David Cameron, George Brandis, Australia’s Attorney General, and David Carter MP, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives.

In the eight-month Gallipoli campaign, 140,000 soldiers lost their lives, including more than 34,000 British troops, more than 8000 Australians and almost 2500 New Zealanders.

After the ceremony, Her Majesty and Prince Philip joined the congregation at Westminster Abbey for a service of commemoration.

The nation commemorated the centenary of the Gallipoli Campaign and Anzac day at events in London and Turkey. On Saturday 25 April, a service took place at the Cenotaph on Whitehall to pay homage to those who fought and died during the Gallipoli campaign in Turkey 100 years ago. The event, which was attended by HM The Queen, Their Royal Highnesses The Duke of Edinburgh and The Duke of Cambridge, commemorates both the centenary of the Gallipoli Campaign and the 99th anniversary of Anzac Day. It comprised a Service of Commemoration and the laying of wreaths, followed by a march past of some 3,000 descendants, military personnel and members of the Gallipoli Association and other military associations. HM The Queen laid the first wreath at the cenotaph followed by the Prime Minister of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Government representatives, and representatives from Australia, New Zealand and Turkey, defence chiefs and representatives of the Commonwealth and service associations. Uniquely the service included an art installation erected near the Cenotaph: Gallipoli 1915 - a small-scale reproduction of a sculpture which forms part of the ?Gallipoli 1915? memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire. Made from a fallen oak tree, the leafless branches symbolise the hands of soldiers on the beaches of the Gallipoli Peninsula, reaching out to be evacuated. Reflective pieces of music drawn from those countries that took part in the Gallipoli campaign, were sung by Choirs of Chelmsford Cathedral and was played by the Band of Her Majesty?s Royal Marines Portsmouth, the Band of Her Majesty?s Royal Marines Collingwood, the Band of the Grenadier Guards, the Band of the Scots Guards and The Turkish Air Force Band, under the directorship of Lieutenant Colonel Nick Grace, Principal Director of Music and the most senior military musician in the British services. Children from the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Turkey gave readings during the se

Earlier today Prince Charles and Prince Harry continued their second day in Turkey honouring the war dead.

At dawn on Saturday, Prince Charles and Prince Harry attended the Spirit of Place Ceremony and the Dawn Service, ANZAC Commemorative Site.

Prince Harry commented on people returning yearly for the ANZAC Day service: “It is this love, the memory of these lives lost, that draws us back here now, a century later, to stand among their graves and to remember their loss and all they gave for us and for each other.”

ANZAC commemorates the landing of Australian and New Zealand troops at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915. The date, 25 April, was officially named ANZAC Day in 1916. ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.

photo credit: Crown Copyright 2015 / Sergeant Rupert Frere RLC

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