I know other poeple are just as proud of their heritage, but 25 April is our day!
The greatest number of casualties per men on the field of all the Allied armies
They travelled the furthest
Were away the longest
The only all volunteer force
They came from a newer land
Prime Minister of France, George Clémenceau, to Australian troops a few days after the capture of Le Hamel.
“When the Australians came to France, the French people expected a great deal of you…We knew that you would fight a real fight, but we did not know that from the very beginning you would astonish the whole continent…I shall go back tomorrow and say to my countrymen: I have seen the Australians. I have looked in their faces. I know that these men will fight alongside of us again until the cause for which we are all fighting is safe for us and for our children.”