Day 43
It was my turn to go for the coffee today while Jill prepared the breakfast. Afterwards we completed the packing of our bags so that we could check out early and go and see more of Canberra before leaving for home later today.
Our first stop was to be the Ainslie Mountain look out and after seeing more of the city than we intended, when we took a few wrong turnings, we eventually arrived at this very impressive high spot above the city. Mount Ainslie stands at 843 metres above sea level.
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| Mount Ainslie across the lake |
For picture-perfect views of Canberra, you can’t get better than a visit to Mount Ainslie. People will walk, cycle or drive to the lookout and enjoy the impressive scenery. Here you can take in Lake Burley Griffin and many of Canberra's national attractions, framed by picturesque mountain ranges. You can also see clearly how Walter Burley Griffin’s vision for the city has been brought to life. A hotspot for photographers.
After our stay here we moved on to the Australian War Memorial completely unprepared for what we would see.
The Memorial is located in Australia's capital, Canberra. It is at the northern end of the city's ceremonial land axis, which stretches from Parliament House on Capital Hill along a line passing through the summit of the cone-shaped Mount Ainslie to the northeast. No continuous roadway links the two points, but there is a clear line of sight from the front balcony of Parliament House to the War Memorial, and from the front steps of the War Memorial back to Parliament House.
The Australian War Memorial consists of three parts: the Commemorative Area (shrine) including the Hall of Memory with the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier, the Memorial's galleries (museum) and Research Centre (records). The Memorial also has an outdoor Sculpture Garden.
We first of all looked around the exterior of the building before entering what was the museum display area. It was massive and took us through the whole course of 'The Great War'
The photograph below is the breach of a gun from HMAS Sydney - The largest warship ever in Australia's history. It took seven men to load and fire this gun. The HMAS Sydney was one of the ships in the navy fleet built and gifted to Australia by the UK in 2013
In Newport we should all know the story of William Lysaght's great plan to build a steelworks in Newport. The land that was to be used to build the steelworks was on the East side of the river Usk in an area known as Pill Fields, yet the people who would provide the workforce lived on the West side.
To cut a long story short and to avoid boring those who already know, this resulted in the building of the Transporter bridge enabling the workforce to cross on the moving Gondola whist still able to let tall ships through to berth in the centre of town near the main Newport bridge.
The name of this steelworks was the Orb Works and it's symbol was that seen on the Anderson shelter here.
But what was the connection in Australia?
It appears that the founder of the steelworks, John Lysaght, had started exporting corrugated steel sheets to Australia in the 1880s from his small steelworks in Bristol. When the large Orb steelworks opened in Newport at the end of the 19th century, production of the sheeting was centred in Newport, so the Anderson shelters used in Australia during the first world war appear to have originated in Newport.
In 1921 the company established an Australian subsidiary in Newcastle, New South Wales, and many of the Newport workers emigrated there to start up the new mills using the Lysaghts name and Orb symbol,
Having spent a long time at this particular area it was time for lunch but en route to the restaurant we were completely blown away by the sight of ten full size aerooplanes on display in front of and below the second world war display that we had not even seen yet. This building was becoming like the Tardis, so much bigger inside than we could have imagined. A few of these planes are shown below.
After lunch we hurriedly passed through the second world war display as there was far too much to see in the time we had left. Another visit would be necessary sometime in the future.
We ended our visit in the the commemorative area.
At the entrance to the Memorial are two medieval stone lions that once stood at the gateway of the Menin road at Ypres (Ieper), and were damaged during the First World War. The lions were presented by the city of Ypres to the Memorial in 1936. From the entrance, you can see the copper-clad dome of the Hall of Memory - inside of which lies the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier.
Stepping through the front entrance to the Memorial, your attention is immediately captured by the Commemorative Courtyard. Straight ahead are the Pool of Reflection and the Eternal Flame. Above are 26 sculptures carved in sandstone, representing the people and animals inhabiting Australia. Light and shade, flowers and stone, flame and water: all the elements here are designed to evoke a mood of calm contemplation.
Surrounding the courtyard and glimpsed through arched cloisters is the Roll of Honour. Here are inscribed in bronze the names of virtually every Australian who has died in war since 1885 – more than 102,000 people. Australia is one of the few nations able to name its war dead so completely. Walking past the Roll gives an impression of the magnitude of this loss. Many visitors insert paper poppies in the niches of the Roll of Honour, next to a name that has significance for them.
Lastly we entered the hall of memory the home of the tomb of the unknown soldier. Plans to honour an unknown Australian soldier were first put forward in the 1920s, but it was not until 1993 that one was at last brought home. To mark the 75th anniversary of the end of the First World War, the body of an unknown Australian soldier was recovered from Adelaide Cemetery near Villers-Bretonneaux in France and transported to Australia. After lying in state in King’s Hall in Old Parliament House, the Unknown Australian Soldier was interred in the Hall of Memory on 11 November 1993. He was buried in a Tasmanian blackwood coffin, on which were placed a bayonet and a sprig of wattle. Soil from the Pozières battlefield in France was scattered in his tomb.
Then it was time to leave. Our short visit to Canberra was over and we had a four hour drive back to Sydney to look forward to.
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| Looking out over the lake towards the Parliament buildings |
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| General view over Canberra |
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| The bridge across the lake joining both sides of Canberra |
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| Another general view |
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| Out towards the mountains |
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| There must be something interesting out there |
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| Stood on the highest point on the mountain |
After our stay here we moved on to the Australian War Memorial completely unprepared for what we would see.
The Australian War Memorial
The Memorial is located in Australia's capital, Canberra. It is at the northern end of the city's ceremonial land axis, which stretches from Parliament House on Capital Hill along a line passing through the summit of the cone-shaped Mount Ainslie to the northeast. No continuous roadway links the two points, but there is a clear line of sight from the front balcony of Parliament House to the War Memorial, and from the front steps of the War Memorial back to Parliament House.
The Australian War Memorial consists of three parts: the Commemorative Area (shrine) including the Hall of Memory with the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier, the Memorial's galleries (museum) and Research Centre (records). The Memorial also has an outdoor Sculpture Garden.
We first of all looked around the exterior of the building before entering what was the museum display area. It was massive and took us through the whole course of 'The Great War'
Australia in the Great War
Australia in the Great War is the Memorial’s new permanent exhibition on display in the First World War Galleries from 1 December 2014.
The exhibition presents the story of Australia in the First World War chronologically, covering all major theatres of operations: Gallipoli; the Western Front; Sinai and Palestine; and the war at sea. The events taking place on the home front and the immediate and enduring legacy of the war are also included.
The Memorial holds one of the world’s great collections of material related to the First World War.
The First World War Galleries integrate a wide variety of items from this collection, including dioramas and other works of art; uniforms; medals; technology such as artillery and firearms; photographs; film; and personal items such as letters and diaries.
Since the opening of the Memorial in 1941 the First World War Galleries have undergone several major alterations and many smaller updates. The new state-of-the-art galleries now occupy the entire west wing of the Memorial’s ground level.
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| The displays were magnificent |
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| Vehicles and weapons on display |
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| Over the Top - one of many 3D displays to view |
The photograph below is the breach of a gun from HMAS Sydney - The largest warship ever in Australia's history. It took seven men to load and fire this gun. The HMAS Sydney was one of the ships in the navy fleet built and gifted to Australia by the UK in 2013
As I turned a corner in the Museum I saw a first world war Anderson shelter and went across to check it out. Imagine my surprise when I saw the writing on the side: -
To cut a long story short and to avoid boring those who already know, this resulted in the building of the Transporter bridge enabling the workforce to cross on the moving Gondola whist still able to let tall ships through to berth in the centre of town near the main Newport bridge.
The name of this steelworks was the Orb Works and it's symbol was that seen on the Anderson shelter here.
 |
| An old photograph of the Transporter bridge built for William Lysaght |
But what was the connection in Australia?
It appears that the founder of the steelworks, John Lysaght, had started exporting corrugated steel sheets to Australia in the 1880s from his small steelworks in Bristol. When the large Orb steelworks opened in Newport at the end of the 19th century, production of the sheeting was centred in Newport, so the Anderson shelters used in Australia during the first world war appear to have originated in Newport.
In 1921 the company established an Australian subsidiary in Newcastle, New South Wales, and many of the Newport workers emigrated there to start up the new mills using the Lysaghts name and Orb symbol,
Having spent a long time at this particular area it was time for lunch but en route to the restaurant we were completely blown away by the sight of ten full size aerooplanes on display in front of and below the second world war display that we had not even seen yet. This building was becoming like the Tardis, so much bigger inside than we could have imagined. A few of these planes are shown below.
After lunch we hurriedly passed through the second world war display as there was far too much to see in the time we had left. Another visit would be necessary sometime in the future.
We ended our visit in the the commemorative area.
At the entrance to the Memorial are two medieval stone lions that once stood at the gateway of the Menin road at Ypres (Ieper), and were damaged during the First World War. The lions were presented by the city of Ypres to the Memorial in 1936. From the entrance, you can see the copper-clad dome of the Hall of Memory - inside of which lies the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier.
Stepping through the front entrance to the Memorial, your attention is immediately captured by the Commemorative Courtyard. Straight ahead are the Pool of Reflection and the Eternal Flame. Above are 26 sculptures carved in sandstone, representing the people and animals inhabiting Australia. Light and shade, flowers and stone, flame and water: all the elements here are designed to evoke a mood of calm contemplation.
Surrounding the courtyard and glimpsed through arched cloisters is the Roll of Honour. Here are inscribed in bronze the names of virtually every Australian who has died in war since 1885 – more than 102,000 people. Australia is one of the few nations able to name its war dead so completely. Walking past the Roll gives an impression of the magnitude of this loss. Many visitors insert paper poppies in the niches of the Roll of Honour, next to a name that has significance for them.
Lastly we entered the hall of memory the home of the tomb of the unknown soldier. Plans to honour an unknown Australian soldier were first put forward in the 1920s, but it was not until 1993 that one was at last brought home. To mark the 75th anniversary of the end of the First World War, the body of an unknown Australian soldier was recovered from Adelaide Cemetery near Villers-Bretonneaux in France and transported to Australia. After lying in state in King’s Hall in Old Parliament House, the Unknown Australian Soldier was interred in the Hall of Memory on 11 November 1993. He was buried in a Tasmanian blackwood coffin, on which were placed a bayonet and a sprig of wattle. Soil from the Pozières battlefield in France was scattered in his tomb.
Then it was time to leave. Our short visit to Canberra was over and we had a four hour drive back to Sydney to look forward to.
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