Lemnos Gallipoli Memorial annual commemorative event announced - All Welcome

 

The Lemnos Gallipoli Memorial unveiling, August 2015. Photo Anthony Leong

This year’s commemorative service at Albert Park’s Lemnos Gallipoli Memorial will be held on Saturday 8^th August. The service will commence at 11am. All are welcome to attend.

This is the 11^th annual commemorative service held by the Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee at the Lemnos Gallipoli Memorial since it was official unveiled in 2015.

The Lemnos Gallipoli Memorial nurse. Photo Jim Claven

The Lemnos Gallipoli Memorial was erected by the Committee in recognition of the service of Australian service personnel on Lemnos during the Gallipoli campaign and of the role of the Island and its people in the campaign. The Committee resolved to create the memorial as part of the Centenary of Anzac celebrations held in 2015. Following a major community fundraising effort, the Memorial was designed and created by renowned Australian commemorative sculptor Peter Corlett OAM, blending Hellenic and Anzac themes, combining the figures of an Australian nurse and weary digger on a sandstone plinth etched with the names of the villages on Lemnos visited by the Anzacs in 1915. A large crowd attended the unveiling, with representatives of government, diplomatic, service and community organizations as well as many individuals connected to Lemnos or to those who served there. The Memorial was gifted to the City of Port Phillip.

Many dignitaries have visited the Memorial since it was unveiled, including senior Hellenic military representatives, ambassadors, historians and archaeologists from Greece and many veterans’ families. Greece’s famous presidential guard – the Evzones – have also joined us for a special service at the Memorial during their visit to Australia.

The Evzones at the Lemnos Gallipoli Memorial. Photo Jim Claven

Following its unveiling, on the proposal of the Committee and with the support of the City of Port Phillip, the Lemnos Gallipoli Memorial site was official re-named Lemnos Square, giving the Memorial and its commemoration of the connection between Lemnos, Gallipoli and Port Phillip even greater significance.

The commemorative service will include official speeches, a wreath-laying/gift book laying ceremony, the national anthems of Greece and Australia and the reciting of the Ode. As with previous years, the service will include a wreath or book laying component. The Committee encourages those wishing to lay a wreath to consider purchasing one the Committee’s books – Jim Claven’s Lemnos & Gallipoli Revealed – and laying that instead. The book can then be gifted to a school, Library or other suitable organization of your choice to further spread awareness of the role of Lemnos in the Gallipoli campaign.

The Lemnos & Gallipoli Revealed book as a gift at the Lemnos Gallipoli Memorial service. Photo Jim Claven

Committee President Lee Tarlamis OAM MP encourages all with an interest in honouring this important Hellenic connection to Australia’s Anzac story to attend. “All are welcome to attend our community service”, he said.

Those wishing to take part by laying a wreath or a gifted book should contact Lee Tarlamis OAM MP via email – lee.tarlamis@hotmail.com.

Jim Claven OAM, LGCC Secretary

Applications Open – 2026 Victorian Premier’s Spirit of Anzac Prize

Ari Burnu Cemetery at Gallipoli, just north of Anzac Cove, where Australia's Hellenic Anzac Private Peter Rados of the 3rd Battalion AIF is buried. Photo Jim Claven.

The Victorian Government has announced that applications are now open for the 2026 intake for the Victorian Premier’s Spirit of Anzac Prize. Applications for the Prize are now open and close at 5 pm on Monday 11 May.

The Prize is open to Victorian students in years 9 to 12. Students from all backgrounds, from across the state, are encouraged to apply. To enter, students are asked to reflect on the Anzac values and how they model them in their lives.

To enter the Premier’s Spirit of Anzac Prize competition, students must respond to the submission questions in the online application form via the Grants Gateway platform and provide both a signed Prize 2026 Parent/carer declaration consent form and Prize 2026 School representative statement and declaration form.

Twelve students will be selected to visit historically significant Anzac sites and learn first-hand about the people, places and sacrifices of those who served in war. Participation in the tour provides a unique cultural opportunity to deepen student’s knowledge of Australia’s wartime and peace-keeping history (especially the contribution of Victorian service people), as well as to connect with veterans and the ex-service community. Through the Prize, recipients could take part in a fully funded overseas study tour in September to learn about the Anzac legend. It also aims to help build students build confidence, leadership skills and a deeper understanding of the world.

This year’s Prize offers young Victorians the opportunity to join a fully funded study tour to significant war heritage sites in Türkiye. Previous overseas tours have included visits to the Anzac sites at Gallipoli as well as to those on the Island of Lemnos. Historian Jim Claven OAM has previously provided an introductory presentation on Lemnos & Gallipoli to prize recipients and their families for that year’s tour of Lemnos. Given the current international situation, decisions regarding the timing and location of the tour will be made with the safety of students and teacher chaperones as the highest priority.

Recipients will participate in an overseas study tour during the September school holidays. The Department of Families, Fairness and Housing covers all costs associated with accommodation, transport, insurance, activities and meals. Financial assistance is available on request for students who need support for any additional related costs.

Teachers, Principals, Parents or Carers are encouraged to pass this opportunity on to eligible secondary students they may know and who may be interested.

Given the strong links between Greece and Australia’s Anzac tradition across both world wars, this writer hopes that eligible Victorian students of Hellenic background or with veteran connections to the Anzac campaigns in Greece across both world wars will consider making an application for this important and valuable prize.

For more information or to apply for the 2026 Premier’s Spirit of Anzac Prize, visit https://www.vic.gov.au/spirit-anzac-prize-student-competition.

2018 Prize recipients visiting the newly unveiled Australia Pier Memorial at Mudros, Lemnos. Photo The Premiers Spirit of Anzac Prize FB page.

Jim Claven, LGCC Secretary

Event Announcement - First Adelaide Screening for Anzac The Greek Chapter - 4 May 2025

 

Our Committee is excited to announce the forthcoming screening of our new commemorative documentary Anzac The Greek Chapter in Adelaide.

The screening will be held at the Henley and Grange RSL at 2-5pm on 4 May as part of Adelaide's iconic annual Festival Hellenika. This Festival has been held over many years and celebrates the best of Hellenic culture. One of the filmmakers - historian Dr Peter Ewer - will be travelling specially from Melbourne to attend the screening and be available to discuss the film as the screening. 

All are welcome to attend. For more on the Festival, click here.

The film tells the story of the Anzacs in the Greek campaign of 1941 in their own words, drawing on an over 130 hour archive of veteran interviews created by renowned Greek campaign historian Dr Peter Ewer. They tell their story of their experiences of the campaign as they traversed over mainland Greece and on to Crete. Funded by the Australian Government and supported by our Committee, the film was created for the Committee by Peter and filmmaker John Irwin assisted by myself and Vicki Kyritsis on behalf of the Committee. The film was launched at the Greek Film Festival in Sydney and Melbourne last year to great praise. For more information on the documentary, please click here.

On behalf of our Committee, I would like to thank the Festival Hellenika and its President Dr Adoni Fotopoulos for their desire to bring this important documentary on one of the most important aspects of the Hellenic link to Australia's Anzac story to Adelaide. We are proud that it will be showcased as part of this great festival program. 

More screenings are planned, including in Greece - watch this space.

For more information on the Adelaide screening please contact Festival Hellenika President Dr Adoni Fotopoulos - adoni@dealwithit.com.au.

Jim Claven OAM, LGCC Secretary

Annual Lemnos Gallipoli Campaign Commemorations on Lemnos - 2025 Date Announced

East Mudros Military Cemetery. Photo Jim Claven

The Committee has received a communication from the Sub-Prefect of Lemnos and Agios Efstratios Mr. Apostolos Koutsogiannis, informing us of the date of this year's anniversary event to honour and remember the fallen of the Gallipoli Campaign.

The commemorative event is schedule to be held on Saturday 29th April 2025. 

A detailed schedule will be announced soon.

This post is made to assist all who may wish to attend this years coming event and so they can make their travel plans.

Jim Claven OAM Secretary LGCC

Melbourne Shrine’s Armistice of Mudros Commemorative Service - Thursday 31 Oct 2024 – All Welcome

 

HMS Agamemnon. Public Domain.

The annual commemoration of the Armistice of Mudros will be held on Thursday 31 October 2024. On this day in 1918 the First World War across the Balkans and Middle East came to an end with the coming into force of the Armistice signed between the representatives of the Entente powers and the Ottoman Empire in Lemnos' great Mudros Bay the day before.

This service was initiated by the Governors of Melbourne’s iconic Shrine of Remembrance on the proposal of the Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee. The first service was held in 2018 and the following year was held in conjunction with the unveiling of the special Lemnos 1915-16 Plaque and Tree dedication in the grounds of the Shrine. It has been held every year since.

Attendees at the Armistice of Mudros commemorative service held in 2019. Photograph Jim Claven 2019.

The Lemnos 1915-16 Plaque at the foot of the Lemnos Tree, Melbourne Shrine of Remembrance. Photographed following the 2019 annual Armistice of Mudros service. Photograph Deb Stewart 2019.

The location of the Lemnos 1915-16 Plaque and Tree in the grounds of the Shrine. Photograph Jim Claven 2019.

This service commemorates the 106th anniversary of the Armistice of Mudros. Signed on 30 October 1918 and coming into effect at noon on 31 October 1918, the Armistice signaled the end of the First World War across the Eastern Mediterranean, from Syria to northern Greece, and including the Gallipoli campaign of 1915-16 and the Salonika campaign of 1915-1918.

The Armistice was signed by British Admiral Arthur Calthorpe, representing the Entente Powers (as the Allies were then known) and representatives of the Ottoman Empire. The signing took place aboard the Royal Navy warship HMS Agamemnon while anchored in Mudros Bay, Lemnos, amongst the large Allied naval fleet that assembled there for the purpose and to take part in the coming occupation of Constantinople and the Ottoman Empire. Australian and Hellenic warships were part of this fleet.

Where the Armistice of Mudros was signed 106 years ago this month - Mudros Bay, Lemnos. Photo Jim Claven 2018.

As many readers will know, the Aegean Island of Lemnos played an important role during the First World War. Only 50 kilometres from the Dardanelles, it operated as an advance base during the Gallipoli campaign, with major medical facilities for the treatment of the wounded and sick from the campaign on the Peninsula. Amongst the over 1,300 Allied service personnel buried in Lemnos’ war cemeteries are over 200 Australian and New Zealand war dead.

The order of service for the commemorative service is as follows:

11.15am - Attendees assemble at the Lemnos Tree (B37) before moving to the Shrine Sanctuary;

11.30 am - Attendees assemble in the Shrine Sanctuary;

11.45 am - Service commences; and,

12.15 pm - Service concludes.

Committee President, Mr Lee Tarlamis, OAM MP, thanked the Shrine and its staff, including Dale Capron, the Ceremonial Programs Manager, on behalf of the Committee for their support over the years in holding this important service.

“They have thereby ensured that the commemoration of the Armistice and the service and sacrifice of thousands continue to be remembered”, Mr Tarlamis said.

Lemnos Committee Secretary and historian Mr Jim Claven proposed the commemoration on behalf of the Committee as a result of his having researched the story of the Armistice of Mudros since 2013. He has had the story of the Armistice featured in publications from Australia to Greece and the UK, including a major feature in Remembrance, the Shrine magazine, as well as making public presentations on the Armistice at both the Shrine and at Mudros Bay on Lemmos in 2018.

Those readers seeking to find out more about the Armistice of Mudros can listen to the podcast of Jim Claven’s presentation at the Shrine in 2018 or read his article in Neos Kosmos, published on 2 October 2018, via the links below:

https://podtail.com/en/podcast/shrine-of-remembrance/armistice-of-mudros-jim-claven/

https://neoskosmos.com/en/2018/10/02/news/greece/melbourne-and-greece-to-commemorate-the-centenary-of-the-armistice-of-mudros/

Jim Claven, Secretary, Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee

Anzac The Greek Chapter - Premiere Screenings Announced for Melbourne and Sydney GFF

 

Great news that the long awaited public premiere of our Committee's latest project - the documentary Anzac The Greek Chapter - have been announced and bookings are now being taken.

This important new documentary created for the Committee by filmmakers Dr Peter Ewer and John Irwin features the Greek campaign veterans themselves re-telling their experiences of the campaign in 1941. For more information on the background and details of the documentary, click here.

The screenings will take place in Melbourne and Sydney as part of this year's Greek Film Festival in October. The screening in Melbourne will take place at 8.30pm on 17 October 2024 and in Sydney at 2.30pm on 19 October 2024. 

Each of these screenings will include a special Q&A session where well-known journalist (and Greek campaign veteran's son) Barrie Cassidy - the narrator of the documentary - will interview filmmaker and historian Dr Peter Ewer. Historian Jim Claven OAM - the Associate Producer of the documentary - will also take part in the Melbourne Q&A. 

There will be an additional screening in Melbourne at 4.30pm on 27 October. 2024.

Read an article on the coming Greek Film Festival which highlights our documentary by clicking here.

Tickets are free - but please consider making a donation

The tickets are free - the screenings being underwritten by the Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee - however all attendees are encouraged to make a donation to the Committee when they book their ticket. This will contribute to the cost of the screening and allow the Committee to continue its important commemorative work.

Book Your Tickets Here

To book your ticket for the Melbourne screenings, please click here.

To book your ticket for the Sydney screening, please click here.

The Committee would like to place on record their appreciation for all the support from the Greek Film Festival organisers - the Greek Community of Melbourne & Victorian and the Greek Festival of Sydney. Without their support these public screenings would not have been possible. Special thanks to Jorge, Heidi, Antonia, Nia and Chryssa, 

Jim Claven OAM - Secretary Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee

ANZAC: The Greek Chapter - The Documentary - Trailer Released

 

Greek Campaign Veteran Don Stephenson in a still from the documentary. Supplied

Recently the Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee released the trailer for our latest completed project - ANZAC The Greek Chapter - the documentary.

The filmmakers have produced this short trailer for the documentary to promote the documentary and provide an excellent introduction to the content of the full documentary. The trailer features excerpts of the documentary, including many of the Greek Campaign veterans who were interviewed and which form the cornerstone of the documentary.

You can watch it be clicking here. 

Please feel free to share the trailer to help promote the screenings of the documentary. Note that the documentary is available at this stage only for non-commercial screenings.

For more information on the documentary click here.

Greek Campaign Veteran Mollie Edwards in a still from the documentary. Supplied.

Jim Claven OAM

Secretary - Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee