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