Passchendaele Memorial Commemoration

Auckland War Memorial Museum

Friday October 12th, 2018

On Friday, October 12th 2018 the Passchendaele Society will host a Commemoration in the First World War Hall of Memories, Auckland War Memorial Museum at 11.00am.

The Ceremony will be attended by the Mayor of Auckland, Phil Goff and will feature the Royal New Zealand Navy Band, Auckland Choral choir, and vocalist Rebecca Nelson. The speaker will be Lode Notredame, a citizen of Passchendaele and long-time tour guide in Flanders.

October 12th 1917 became the bloodiest day in New Zealand military history when 846 young New Zealanders lost their lives attacking Bellevue Spur leading to the village of Passchendaele. That day has become a powerful symbol of tragedy and the futility war. The day lives on in the hearts of New Zealanders 101 years after the catastrophic events of the battle of Passchendaele, also known as the third battle of Ypres, in 1917.

The President of the Passchendaele Society, Bob Davis, welcomes all members of the public to attend this event.

Mr Davis said that; “October 12th is a symbolic day of commemoration for all New Zealand and the Passchendaele Society is committed to observing this day every year as a mark of respect not only to those who died at Passchendaele but to all who served and to every New Zealander affected by the war.”

In 2017 the Passchendaele Society established a lasting memorial to the more than 5,000 New Zealanders who lost their lives in Belgium in 1917. The New Zealand Memorial & Garden – Nga Puha Mahara (Petals of Remembrance), in the grounds of the Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917 in Zonnebeke a few kilometres from Passchendaele, now stands as a permanent focal point for New Zealanders travelling to the First World War battlefields.

ENDS

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