ANZAC Day
ANZAC day is an Australian public holiday, and a memorial for Australian and New Zealander soldiers who have served and died in wars and conflicts around the world. It was named for the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (A.N.Z.A.C's), a military unit in WW1. It is held on the 25th of April each year, the anniversary of the ANZAC's first landing in Gallipoli in WW1. On Anzac day, many people wake up before sunrise to go to dawn services held at war memorials all around the country, which usually include speeches from veterans, reading of poetry, laying wreaths at memorials and a moment of silence. The dawn services are held at dawn because in the First World War, many air raids on military bases would happen in the dark, early hours of the morning, so soldiers would have to get up early to keep watch. A dawn service ends with the playing of the Last Post, a melody that has historically been used to signify the end of the working day for soldiers, as the sun rises. Symbols of Anzac day include rosemary for remembrance, and Anzac biscuits, a type of cookie invented during war time and made to be cheap, suited to war time rations, and to last long enough to be sent to soldiers overseas. These same biscuits are still made with the same recipe today.
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