Avenue of Honor
The Avenues of Honor (German: Alleen der Ehre) are a special form of memorials in Australia . These are rows of trees along paths and streets where trees were planted for those who died in the First World War . Each tree symbolizes a fallen man.
history
In Victoria , the first and largest Avenue of Honor in Ballarat , Ballarat Avenue of Honor , was built in 1917 . It was from this avenue that the idea spread to the Central Highlands around Ballarat, and 128 such memorials were planted with trees between 1917 and 1921.
The longest Avenue of Honor stretches for 14 miles with 3,771 trees along Ballarat-Burrumbeet Road from Ballarat. Bronze nameplates of the soldiers were placed in front of the trees. These are largely missing today. The first 1,000 trees were planted on June 3, 1917 and the last tree on August 16, 1919. The trees were planted at regular intervals on either side of the road. 23 tree species were used, with 50 trees in each group, 25 on each side of the road. Later, 100 trees of one species were planted with 50 each on the opposite side of the street. The cost of the trees at the time was just over £ 2,000.
The foundation stone for an arched brick victory gate was laid at the beginning of the avenue on February 7, 1920, and the gate was inaugurated on June 2, 1920. On ANZAC Day in 1921, two captured German cannons were set up at the Siegestor. A temporary stone memorial and memorial cross at the western end of the avenue near Learmonth were erected in 1936, which were permanently renewed in 1959. In 1954, two granite panels were attached to the Victory Gate in memory of the army, navy and air force in World War II , and the painting was renewed in 1985.
In the 1970s and 1980s, numerous trees were removed as new streets and paths were created that branch off the avenue. But trees were also replaced. Since this row of trees is part of Australian cultural history, 3,091 of the trees on Ballarat Avenue of Honor were listed in the National Trust of Australia (Victoria) on December 15, 1988 .
Other places that have Avenues of Honor in Victoria include Bacchus Marsh, Booroopki, Lysterfield, Lakes Entrance, Woodend North and Buchan South. There are also individual Avenues of Honor in New South Wales and Western Australia , such as B. Cowra and Albany .
Tasmania has about 40 Avenues of Honor for fallen Tasmanian soldiers of World War I. One of the most famous is in Hobart , Soldiers Memorial Avenue with 520 trees. Of the trees originally planted, 350 trees are still preserved, the others have been replanted. Flowers are laid on these trees and a “Soldier of the Month” is honored each month and is featured on the website of this cemetery. A letter from this soldier, for example to his parents, is also published there.
Australia provided 330,000 soldiers in World War I, of whom 53,993 fell in combat operations and 137,013 were wounded. Australia had the most casualties of all allies in terms of population. 15,485 Tasmanian soldiers were deployed in World War I, about half of whom were wounded and 2,432 were killed.
Honor for the Fallen
Every year on April 25, ANZAC Day of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) takes place with large celebrations in memory of the entry into the war by Australia and New Zealand . April 25, 1915 is the day on which the ANZAC entered the war in the Battle of Gallipoli on the Dardanelles on the side of the Entente . There, the ANZAC forces suffered considerable human losses: 8,709 Australian and 2,701 New Zealand soldiers were killed, 19,441 Australian and 4,852 New Zealand soldiers were wounded.
Web links
- Ballarat Avenue of Honor. Dyson Drive, Alfredton West on ballarat.vic.gov.au
- The Soldiers Memorial Avenue
- Information on Soldiers Walk
- Names of the fallen on the Soldiers Walk in Hobart
Individual evidence
- ↑ The Ballarat Avenue of Honor ( Memento of the original from April 13, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 19, 2010
- ^ Soldiers Walk in Hobart on abc.net.au , accessed February 19, 2010
- ↑ Information on Australia War Museum on awm.gov.au , accessed February 19, 2010
- ↑ Statistics on Australian War Memorial awm.gov.au , accessed on February 20, 2010
