The ANZAC Day centenary of April 25, 2015 presents a splendid opportunity to appraise the historical and geopolitical significance of Limnos island (Lemnos), both as a location with strong ties to the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (the ANZAC Corps, as they continue to be called) and as a site on which World War I would leave its indelible historical imprint. The resting ground for hundreds of ANZAC soldiers who lost their lives in the war, a former training camp to practice landings and the base for the 3rd Australian General Hospital (the main hub for wounded soldiers from the offensive), Limnos island would become a timeless site where resilience, struggle, and even love, would unravel at so turbulent a time in world history.
The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) & the Campaign of Gallipoli
Over 50 thousand Australian and New Zealand troops fought during the campaign of Gallipoli (1915), an allied expedition intended to capture the Gallipoli peninsula and allow the allied navies access to the Dardanelles. Its central objective was to capture Constantinople, the capital city of the Ottoman Empire and an ally of Germany. If the Gallipoli campaign went on for eight months, the ANZAC troops were met with resistance from the Ottoman defenders and the allied forces were evacuated at the end of 1915. Both sides suffered casualties and immense hardship, with an excess of eight thousand Australian soldiers losing their lives and another nineteen thousand suffering injuries.
Limnos in the Great War
Owing to its geographical position opposite the shores of Gallipoli, Limnos would serve as a spot for the disembarkation, resting, refueling and medical treatment of the thousands of Australian and New Zealand soldiers, and the hundreds of Australian nurses who came to provide care to the troops.
At approximately 80 kilometers from the Gallipoli shores, Limnos island became a prime landing, refueling and resting ground: all Australian soldiers passed through Limnos, practiced landings and rested there, or received treatment in the medical camp set up on the island. The port of Limnos itself was a departure point for all naval and submarine expeditions to Gallipoli.
In August and September 1915 alone, the Australian medical camp established in Limnos would accommodate almost 100,000 wounded soldiers. Over two hundred Australian nurses carried out their duties on the island. One of them, Clarice Daley, married Sergeant Ernest Lawrence in the west Moudros army camp in October 1915. The event of their wedding sent out a glimmer of light to the thousands of soldiers who had lost colleagues or they themselves had been wounded in the War.
As an effect of its role in the Gallipoli campaign, Limnos would receive scores of eminent Australian personae, such as Albert Jacka and Generals Birdwood and Monash. Two great Commonwealth cemeteries are located in Limnos, in the areas of Moudros and Portianos respectively.
The resultant links to the ANZAC Corps have meant that, to this day, the island has continued to maintain a strong relationship with Australia.
ANZAC Day: 100 years since the Campaign of Gallipoli
To Australians across the globe, April 25 is a day of remembrance of those who sacrificed their lives in the course of the Great War. To mark its joint World War I heritage with Limnos, the Australian Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee and the RSL (Returned Services League) have commissioned the creation of a bronze statue of a nurse and soldier in Limnos, which is to be erected in the Albert Pak district of Melbourne on August 8 this year.
Numerous initiatives have been taken both in Australia and Limnos island in order to preserve this integral part of Australian and Greek history and thousands of Australian and New Zealand visitors are expected to come to the island as a result of this year’s ANZAC Day centenary.
Remembering the ANZAC in Limnos: A Year of Celebrations
To mark the ANZAC Day centenary, an array of events has been planned by the “Lemnos Friends of ANZAC” Association and is set to unravel on the island in the course of 2015:
New Museum in Moudros, to include a range of photographs from 1915-6 and a collection of items from that period.
New Cultural Center in Portianou to be inaugurated by the end of 2015.
New commemorative plaque to be unveiled near the Allied Cemetery of Portianou this year. The plaque represents the two Canadian nurses who worked and lost their lives in Limnos in the Great War. The plaque has been donated by the nation of Canada.
Two new mobile applications to assist visitors in their location of monuments and the production of relevant maps for individual use or gift purchase.
In collaboration with all countries involved in the Gallipoli Campaign, and the North Aegean Prefecture, the unraveling of celebrations on a monthly basis:
April 17 - 20, 2015: Official Commemorative Celebration of the centenary of Gallipoli Campaign in Limnos
March 7, 2015: Traditional Greek Dances’ Night to be held by the Lyceum of Greek Women in the Clancy Auditorium of New South Wales University, Australia.
March 28, 2015 onward: Photographic exhibitions throughout Limnos. This program starts with the first photographic exhibition on the Limnos airport and it will last till end September
International Conference organized by the Lemnos Friends of the ANZAC in cooperation with worldwide World War I Veteran Associations.
June 20 - 23, 2015: A four-day-long presentation of international historical films in collaboration with all countries involved, the History of the Hellenic Army and Greek Director Nikos Volonakis.
July 17 & 18, 2015: The Lemnos Gallipoli Project, a presentation of contemporary artworks representing women’s experience of the First World War, to include the premiere of ‘Women at War’, a modern opera by Greek- Australian composer Tasos Ioannidis.
July 20 - 23, 2015: Musical events with DJs and orchestras to commence in the Limnos location of Paleo Pedino, a stone-built village frequently mentioned in the journals of the Australian nurses that served in Limnos in the course of the campaign of Gallipoli.
August 5 - 11, 2015: Presentation of national and local traditional costumes worn in each of the countries that participated in the campaign of Gallipoli at the start of the 20th century at the Greek Culture National Museum of Limnos
End of August: A 4-day Wine-making Conference to celebrate the importance of wine production in the culture and economy of Limnos.
September 6 - 8, 2015: Conference of the Commonwealth countries Red Cross Services in collaboration with the Red Crescent on the theme of ‘The use of nurses during World War I’. Mrs Clare Ashton (the ANZAC Sisters Nursery of WWI and the University of Sydney) will be the keynote speaker.
Many more festivities are planned and are in process of creating. The Lemnians’ participation is very big and it seems that 2015 will be a good start to highlight the role that Limnos island has into this historical moment of Gallipoli Campaign.