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As dawn broke, we gathered to commemorate them.

On Anzac Day, we honour the service and sacrifice of all Australians who have served our country, and those who continue to serve.

Lest we forget.

It has been a big week at the Australian War Memorial.

Aircraft Hall is open once more. New exhibitions have launched. And our long-awaited galleries in Anzac Hall are beginning to welcome visitors.

Operation Kudu: Supporting Ukraine is now on display, while the Recognising Service gallery, featuring the Tarin Kowt T-Walls, offers a chance for visitors to reflect on the service of those deployed to the Middle East region.

Plugge’s Plateau was unveiled, and we were honoured to host Their Majesties the King and Queen of Denmark.

We have also previewed two highly anticipated galleries, 'Conflict in the Middle East from 1990' and 'Peacekeeping'.

And this is just the beginning. Visitors can now catch a glimpse of galleries still to come.

Before your visit, take a look at our pinned post to see when each new gallery is opening.

A New Anzac is a four-part documentary series which follows the redevelopment of the Australian War Memorial.

Filmed over the course of three years, the series follows this transformative period behind-the-scenes through the eyes of the curators, historians, and contemporary veterans.

As new spaces are constructed and existing galleries decommissioned, the complexity of Australia’s contemporary military and peacekeeping history is revealed.

Through captured footage, archival resources and interviews, A New Anzac reflects on the AWM's role in modern day Australia.

🎬 Premiering 10 April at 8.30pm, on SBS On Demand - link in bio.

More than 100 years ago, a young Australian Flying Corps Lieutenant named John Clifford 'Cliff' Peel had a vision that would change healthcare in remote Australia forever.

While training as a pilot during the First World War, Peel wrote to Reverend John Flynn suggesting aircraft could be used to deliver efficient and cost-effective medical care across the outback. Tragically, Peel was killed in action in France in 1918 at just 24 years old, never seeing his dream come to life.

A decade later, his vision became reality with the creation of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, which continues to provide vital care to Australians in rural and remote communities today. ✈️❤️

Photographs: Clifford Peel and aircraft, 1917, Courtesy of Doug Peel.

More than 100 years ago, a young Australian Flying Corps Lieutenant named John Clifford 'Cliff' Peel had a vision that would change healthcare in remote Australia forever.

While training as a pilot during the First World War, Peel wrote to Reverend John Flynn suggesting aircraft could be used to deliver efficient and cost-effective medical care across the outback. Tragically, Peel was killed in action in France in 1918 at just 24 years old, never seeing his dream come to life.

A decade later, his vision became reality with the creation of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, which continues to provide vital care to Australians in rural and remote communities today. ✈️❤️

Photographs: Clifford Peel and aircraft, 1917, Courtesy of Doug Peel.

Timor-Leste experienced a violent political crisis in April 2006, leading to one of Australia’s largest peacekeeping deployments: Operation Astute.

Australian, Malaysian, New Zealand and Portuguese personnel helped restore security and provide humanitarian assistance at the request of the Timor-Leste Government.

An estimated 9,700 Australians deployed to Operation Astute between 2006 and 2013 to assist our close neighbour rebuild. This response to the 2006 Timor-Leste crisis saw the largest deployment of amphibious ships by the Royal Australian Navy since the Second World War.

Today, we mark 20 years since the commencement of Operation Astute and recognise the service and partnership that helped restore stability in our region.

Timor-Leste experienced a violent political crisis in April 2006, leading to one of Australia’s largest peacekeeping deployments: Operation Astute.

Australian, Malaysian, New Zealand and Portuguese personnel helped restore security and provide humanitarian assistance at the request of the Timor-Leste Government.

An estimated 9,700 Australians deployed to Operation Astute between 2006 and 2013 to assist our close neighbour rebuild. This response to the 2006 Timor-Leste crisis saw the largest deployment of amphibious ships by the Royal Australian Navy since the Second World War.

Today, we mark 20 years since the commencement of Operation Astute and recognise the service and partnership that helped restore stability in our region.

Timor-Leste experienced a violent political crisis in April 2006, leading to one of Australia’s largest peacekeeping deployments: Operation Astute.

Australian, Malaysian, New Zealand and Portuguese personnel helped restore security and provide humanitarian assistance at the request of the Timor-Leste Government.

An estimated 9,700 Australians deployed to Operation Astute between 2006 and 2013 to assist our close neighbour rebuild. This response to the 2006 Timor-Leste crisis saw the largest deployment of amphibious ships by the Royal Australian Navy since the Second World War.

Today, we mark 20 years since the commencement of Operation Astute and recognise the service and partnership that helped restore stability in our region.

Timor-Leste experienced a violent political crisis in April 2006, leading to one of Australia’s largest peacekeeping deployments: Operation Astute.

Australian, Malaysian, New Zealand and Portuguese personnel helped restore security and provide humanitarian assistance at the request of the Timor-Leste Government.

An estimated 9,700 Australians deployed to Operation Astute between 2006 and 2013 to assist our close neighbour rebuild. This response to the 2006 Timor-Leste crisis saw the largest deployment of amphibious ships by the Royal Australian Navy since the Second World War.

Today, we mark 20 years since the commencement of Operation Astute and recognise the service and partnership that helped restore stability in our region.

Sometimes survival in war comes down to luck.

Private Colin John Spence DCM, a schoolteacher from New South Wales, was serving in Malaya with the 2/18th Infantry Battalion during the desperate fighting against the Japanese advance in 1942. On the night of 26 January, Australian troops successfully ambushed Japanese forces along the Mersing–Jemaluang Road.

In the middle of the grenade fight that followed, a Japanese officer slipped behind Col’s platoon and swung a sword at his neck. At that exact moment, Col leaned forward to throw a grenade.

The blade missed killing him by inches.

Instead, it slashed from his shoulder to his hip. Col turned instinctively and shot the officer with his rifle before collapsing from blood loss. He survived 150 stitches, evacuation from Singapore just days before its fall, and even a chance encounter with a Japanese fighter pilot who spotted the Red Cross on his evacuation ship and chose not to attack.

The sword that nearly killed him is now held in the Australian War Memorial’s collection as a reminder of a brave (and very lucky) man.

Sometimes survival in war comes down to luck.

Private Colin John Spence DCM, a schoolteacher from New South Wales, was serving in Malaya with the 2/18th Infantry Battalion during the desperate fighting against the Japanese advance in 1942. On the night of 26 January, Australian troops successfully ambushed Japanese forces along the Mersing–Jemaluang Road.

In the middle of the grenade fight that followed, a Japanese officer slipped behind Col’s platoon and swung a sword at his neck. At that exact moment, Col leaned forward to throw a grenade.

The blade missed killing him by inches.

Instead, it slashed from his shoulder to his hip. Col turned instinctively and shot the officer with his rifle before collapsing from blood loss. He survived 150 stitches, evacuation from Singapore just days before its fall, and even a chance encounter with a Japanese fighter pilot who spotted the Red Cross on his evacuation ship and chose not to attack.

The sword that nearly killed him is now held in the Australian War Memorial’s collection as a reminder of a brave (and very lucky) man.

Australia had a military presence in Japan for ten years after the Second World War, initially as part of the British Commonwealth Occupation Force (BCOF).

The BCOF policy of non-fraternisation prohibited marriage between servicemen and Japanese women, but despite the ban romance still blossomed.

Japanese people were not able to enter Australia because of the White Australia Policy, meaning husbands then needed to leave their wives and children behind when they were ordered home.

In 1952 the Australian government finally granted permission for Japanese wives of Australian servicemen to enter Australia. By 1965, over 650 Japanese war brides had come to join their husbands, leaving their homes and families to begin a new life in Australia.

Step inside the Memorial’s newly unveiled spaces, including the Anzac Atrium, refurbished Aircraft Hall and new permanent galleries, in the latest issue of WM, the Australian War Memorial’s magazine.

This issue offers a closer look at the people, objects and stories behind the Memorial’s newest galleries and exhibitions.

Features include the return of iconic collection items like G for George and the Mural of Australian Military Aircraft, alongside stories behind major displays including the RF-111C, Chinook helicopter, HMAS Brisbane bridge and more.

Subscribe today: shop.awm.gov.au. Link in bio.

Crete became the stage for one of the Second World War’s most costly battles.

Following the advance of German forces through Greece, Allied troops were forced into retreat. Many were captured or evacuated, with thousands making their way to Crete in an attempt to regroup.

On 20 May 1941, Germany launched the first large-scale airborne invasion in history, sending waves of paratroopers into combat.

Despite determined resistance, including fighting at Retimo airfield, shortages of supplies and evacuation capacity left Allied forces with few options but to surrender or attempt escape.

Among those who fought in the campaign was Corporal John Kelly. He was killed in action at just 32 years old.

Crete became the stage for one of the Second World War’s most costly battles.

Following the advance of German forces through Greece, Allied troops were forced into retreat. Many were captured or evacuated, with thousands making their way to Crete in an attempt to regroup.

On 20 May 1941, Germany launched the first large-scale airborne invasion in history, sending waves of paratroopers into combat.

Despite determined resistance, including fighting at Retimo airfield, shortages of supplies and evacuation capacity left Allied forces with few options but to surrender or attempt escape.

Among those who fought in the campaign was Corporal John Kelly. He was killed in action at just 32 years old.

In 1971, Second Lieutenant Graham Spinkston picked up a book titled The Taste of Courage and carried it with him back into the field. Soon after he would find himself leading his platoon under heavy fire during the Battle of Nui Le in Vietnam.

Although wounded by a rocket propelled grenade, he stayed in command until he could be evacuated. Only later did he discover something extraordinary. The book in his pack had been torn apart, with a spent enemy bullet lodged inside having stopped a shot that could have killed him.

Graham would later joke he had been “shot in the book.”

He went on to serve a long military career, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel, and then dedicated himself to mentoring young people through Op Flinders. A moment of chance saved his life. What he chose to do with that life made a lasting difference.

Museums are more than places that preserve history - they are places where stories, experiences and communities can be seen, heard and understood.

This International Museum Day, we share Iraqi Australian Bashar Hanna’s story from the new Conflict in the Middle East from 1990 Gallery.

Living in Baghdad during both the Iraq-Iran and Gulf Wars, many of Bashar’s memories are stained with the sounds of bombing and fighter jets.

When he arrived in Australia in 1998, Bashar found comfort in music. Today, he builds community programs that celebrate connection and healing through creativity. Proudly identifying as an ‘Australian of Mesopotamian descent’, Bashar hopes to “help people find a sense of belonging and to contribute to the social fabric of multicultural Australia.”

As a child living through conflict, Bashar once wished on this lamp for a better life. Today, it helps tell a story of resilience, identity and belonging.

Bashar’s story is just one of many in the new gallery of individuals and communities from war-torn countries who now call Australia home.

Sapper John Fitzgerald, from Quairading in Western Australia, embarked from Melbourne on 26 November 1917, served on the Western Front with the 2nd Australian Tunnelling Company, and returned to Australia on 12 May 1919.

Despite exemptions for “persons who are not substantially of European origin or descent” from service, some 1,300 Indigenous Australians served during the First World War – at Gallipoli, Tobruk, the Western Front, and the Middle East.

They served in all branches and units of the Australian Imperial Force – from artillery and the light horse, artillery to engineers, and flying corps. And they were decorated for gallantry in the field, earning Distinguished Conduct Medals and Military Medals.

Sapper Fitzgerald’s two younger brothers served in the Second World War, continuing the proud legacy of defence of Country.

Image: Sapper John Fitzgerald, Photograph by R.W. McGeehan, Melbourne, 1917. P11745.001