War Memorials - to commemorate ANZAC Day.

One of the saddest things about travelling, is that in every town, no matter how small, there seems to be a memorial to those who served and and died in wars. David and I often stand and read the names of long-dead young men, in quiet contemplation of the waste of their lives. Too many of them died too soon to have children. Their memories are left to live on only in the hearts of more distant relatives and strangers.

Today is ANZAC Day: the 100th Aniversary of the landing at Gallipoli in WWI by Australian and New Zealand forces. In memory of the terrible waste of young lives on both sides of the conflict, I have collected together photographs of war memorials around the world. Some of the photos are mine. Some have been sent to me by other bloggers. They are in no particular order.

I took this photo recently in Balranald, a small town in New South Wales. There are 42 names on this side of the statute, all of whom died in WW I. I don't think I have ever been to a country town in Australia which does not have a similar memorial or where the loss was not equally catastrophic.

Source: D-Day Cemeteries: Remembering the Fallen

This photo of La Cambe, France was taken by Betsy Wuebker of PassingThru.com. Betsy wrote this about the photo.

 "In many respects, I felt more emotion at La Cambe, the German WWII war dead cemetery in Normandy, France, than I did at the other D-Day sites. In contrast with the light-filled and hopeful American cemetery nearby, La Cambe’s energy is dark and melancholy. It is a stark, visual reminder of incomprehensible loss. The German dead are buried in groups, as many as six sharing one small marker. The central tumulus holds the single grave of some 300, known and unknown. I caught a glimpse of it through a narrow window in the bordering wall at the moment a beam of sunlight streamed forth. This is a photo that can still bring me to tears."

WW II graves at Kranji Cemetery in  Singapore.

Kranji Cemetery, Singapore - WW II

Memorial to the Australian Light Horse, at Harden in New South Wales.

Source: Albom Adventures

The Memorial in front of the Auckland War Memorial Museum, New Zealand. It was taken by Rhonda Albom of AlbomAdventures.com. Rhonda attended an ANZAC Day in New Zealand and has written a post describing the ceremony - click here to read it.

The Great Ocean Road, in Victoria, Australia, is the world's largest war memorial, built in memory of Victorians who died in WW I.

The Memorial in Parramatta Park, Sydney. David and I often cycle past here.

Arlington Cemetery, Washington, USA

Source: Ana Travels

This is the Confederate War Memorial in Austin, Texas. It was sent to me by Ana Astri-OReilly of  anatravels.org

Paula of ContentedTraveller.com sent me this photograph of Cheoung Ek, Cambodia. It is on the site of a mass grave of victims of the Khmer Rouge. It is perhaps in a slightly different category to the other photographs since the victims were not soldiers but I have included it because the tragedy is the same.

Carole of Travels With Carole sent me this photograph. It is the Iowa Jima Memorial Arlington, Virginia, the largest cast-bronze statute in the world. Carole, pictured, had just attended her father's funeral at Arlington National Cemetery. Her father, a marine, had fought in the Pacific during World War II. You can read his story here

I intend to add to this gallery from time to time. If you have a photograph you would like me to include, or a link to a relevant blog post please send it to me.