Shrine of Remembrance

Shrine Curator Neil Sharkey discusses the Shrine's special exhibition The Cinderella Service: Australians in Coastal Command 1939–45 . Discover the story of 5,000 Australian airmen who undertook grueling maritime patrols with the Royal Air Force Coastal Command. Battling the German submarines which threatened to blockade Britain, the men made an essential contribution to the Allied effort during t...

Join Dr Barbara Musso,Facilities Program Director of the Marine National Facility CSIRO and Emily Jateff who was Chief Scientist on board RV Investigator when it discovered the final resting place of SS Iron Crown. The vessel, sunk by a Japanese submarine off the Victorian coastline in June 1942, was discovered in 2019 in a collaboration between CSIRO and Heritage Victoria.   Changed forever: Lega...

The Cinderella Service: Australians in Coastal Command 1939–45. Discover the story of 5,000 Australian airmen who undertook grueling maritime patrols with the Royal Air Force Coastal Command. Battling the German Submarines which threatened to blockade Britain, the men made an essential; contribution to the Allied effort during the war's longest continuous campaign, the Battle of the Atlantic.   Sp...

For two days in April 1951, the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment fought a heroic rearguard action and helped to stop a massive Chinese force at the gates of Seoul. Dr Adrian Threlfall explores Australia's largest post-Second World War battle.   Adrian's two books are: Jungle Warriors Reg Saunders: An Indigenous War Hero Adrian's third book is due for release in 2020.   The Shrine's special...

Recorded Friday 5 April.  MC: Mr Dean M Lee, CEO Shrine of Remembrance Speakers: The Honourable Robin Scott, Minister for Veterans Mr Tom Parkinson, President of the Korean War Veterans Association of Australia Dr Richard Trembath, academic and author of A Different Sort of War: Australians in Korea 1950–53 Mr Kim Sunghyo, Consul-General of the Republic of South Korea   The Korean War 1950–53 will...

Shrine Curator Neil Sharkey shares his insights into the creation of our latest special exhibition on the Korean War. Although the fighting ceased over 65 years ago, the war has never ended. The Korean War 1950–53 is on display in the Shrine Galleries daily until March 2020. Entry is between 10am and 4.30pm.

Len Waters was a trailblazer. In realising his childhood dream, Len became the first and only Indigenous Australian fighter-pilot. Peter Rees reflects on Len's man's extraordinary life. Recorded Tuesday 28 May during Reconciliation Week 2019. Enter the draw to win a complimentary copy of  Peter Rees's book on Len's life,  The Missing Man,  through the Shrine's Facebook page .   The Missing Man is...

How can we create a more peaceful world? Join Dr Tania Miletic, specialist in peace and conflict studies, as she reflects on the Australian experience of conflict prevention and peace building processes around the world.

In the aftermath of the Second World War, Australia conducted hundreds of trials against Japanese wartime leaders. Adam Wakeling considers whether these trials were acts of justice or revenge and what we can learn from them today.

Australia had the highest levels of public education in the British Empire at the outbreak of the First World War. From the midst of destruction came an outpouring of art and creativity. Discover our literary legacies from The Great War with Dr Clare Rhoden.   See Clare's website for more information on her books The Purpose of Futility and The Stars in the Night.   Recorded Thursday 4 April 2019.

Be inspired by the remarkable story of Victorian surgeon Dr Mary de Garis. Mary was the Chief Medical Officer of a tent hospital for two years on the Eastern Front during the First World War. Dr Ruth Lee tells her story.

MC: Mr Peter Meehan Ode: Dr Robert Webster OAM, State President RSL Victoria Address: The Honourable Daniel Andrews, Premier of Victoria In Flanders Field: Mr Angus Hatty Musical support by the Royal Australian Navy Band and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chorus  

Historian Jim Claven discusses the agreement which ended the fighting between the Allies and the Ottoman Empire. This armistice encompassed the eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East and affected tens of thousands of Australian soldiers. Jim's upcoming publication Lemnos and Gallipoli Revealed: A Pictorial History of the Anzacs in the Aegean, 1915-16 is due for release in late April/early May....

Join Michael Veitch and discover the extraordinary story of young Australian airman Barney Greatrex. Shot down during his 20th mission over occupied France and rescued by the resistance, Barney seized the opportunity to continue fighting. Barney Greatrex: From Bomber Command to the French Reistance – the stirring story of an Australian Hero is available through Hachette Australia . Discover more s...

Join Shrine Curator Neil Sharkey as he explores the stories of Australians who gave aid to the various Resistance organisations in Axis occupied Europe and those Australians who owed their freedom and their lives to these groups. Hear how the stories and themes from different European resistance movements have been brought together to create the exhibition's overarching narrative and the difficult...

As fighting ceased on the Western Front in November 1918, the Australian military turned its attention to a threat closer to home. The Spanish influenza had arrived in the Pacific Islands and was taking a devastating toll on the populations of Samoa, Tonga and Fiji. Hear an author from the Official History of Australian Peacekeeping, Humanitarian and Post–Cold War Operations series, Dr Steven Bull...

Meet two of the artists, Kirsten Haydon and Neal Haslem, behind the Shrine's special centenary of Armistice exhibition, Flowers of war , in conversation with the Shrine's Director Access and Learning, Jean McAuslan. Hear how this incredible work of art, comprising of hundreds of enamelled floral emblems, was created and how it has evolved as it has toured through venues around the world. If you ar...

Some of our greatest leaders and shapers of society have hailed from the Australian Defence Forces. Brigadier Nicholas Jans (Retd) OAM in discussion with Tim Orton explores how military institutions create extraordinary leaders and the skills and principles civilians can learn from our armed forces. Our Autumn public program series for 2019 has just been released. Bookings are essential.

Dr Jean Bou examines the dramatic events in Palestine in the last months of the Great War, when a great offensive led to a rapid British advance over hundreds of miles. An advance in which the Australian Light Horse played a considerable role. Read more about the fall of Damascus in Dr Jean Bou's article 'Onto Damascus' in Remembrance .

What were the experiences of the Australians fighting on the Western Front in the final battles of the First World War? Sourced from soldier's diaries and letters, Will Davies, pieces together their experiences from Amiens to the Hindenburg line. Will's book, The Last 100 Days is available for purchase through the Shrine Shop. The centenary of Armistice edition of Remembrance is out now.

What did it mean in a country so attached to Anzac, a legend of battlefield prowess, to have spent the war as a prisoner? Drawing on their own words, Professor Christina Twomey presents the POW's struggle to rehabilitate themselves and to win compensation. The Battle Within can be purchased through the Shrine Shop . Available now, the Centenary of Armistice edition of Remembrance . Recorded Thursd...

Dr Bart Ziino.   News of the armistice that ended the First World War arrived in Australia late on 11 November 1918. That moment witnessed an outburst of emotion in public rarely seen. On the surface—and in the streets—the response was a mixture of exultation and relief. But only slightly less obvious were more difficult feelings of pain, loss and bitterness, as Australians took the opportunity to...

Flowers of war Shrine CEO Dean Lee is joined by Professor Paul Gough for the launch of our newest special exhibition, Flowers of war.  The appearance of cornflowers and poppies on the battlefields at the end of the First World War symbolised for many the fragility of life and the hope of rebirth. This collaborative work of art comprises enamelled floral emblems of remembrance, inspired by those fo...

Guest speaker Dr Jean Bou Special recording from the exhibition launch of The Light Horse: Australians in the Middle East 1916–18 . The exhibition was launched in October last year and will be closing at the end of this week. It features works of art by Sidney Nolan, George Lambert and Susan McMinn as well as personal memorabilia from General Sir Harry Chauvel. The exhibition is on display to the...

Jim Eames recounts the remarkable story of Qantas and its crew in the face of the Japanese advance towards Australia. Flying unarmed planes through war zones and at times under enemy fire, the airline supplied the front lines, evacuated the wounded and undertook surprising escapes. Courage in the Skies is available for purchase through the Shrine Shop . Recorded 10 May 2018.