Remembrance Day 2015

Date: Wednesday, November 11, 2015 – 11:00

The Knox Remembrance Day Committee holds the Remembrance Day Service on the 11th of November or on the Sunday prior at the Tim Neville Arboretum Dorset Rd, Boronia. Those marching are asked to please form up at 1050 hrs around the corner in Francis Crescent and then proceed 300 metres north along Dorset Rd to the parade ground at the War Memorial located on the Dorset Rd side of the Arboretum. At the conclusion of service your are welcome to return to the Boronia RSL Sub-Branch for refreshments.

For further information contact John McLeod AFSM at 9762 3694 / 0412 011 686 / johnmcleod@optushome.com.au

Remembrance Day in Australia commemorates the noble sacrifices of armed forces and civilians during times of war. At the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, one minute of silence is observed across the country to mark the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front during WWI after over four years of gruesome warfare.

The moment in 1918 when hostilities ceased was originally named Armistice Day, becoming a time when allied nations honoured the brave sacrifices made by all who fought and lost their lives during the First World War. At the end of the Second World War, the Australian and British governments renamed November 11 Remembrance Day to mark and remember all who have fallen in times of war. The ritual of observing one minute of silence was first proposed by Australian journalist Edward Honey in 1918 and continues to be universally practiced on Remembrance Day each year.

Unlike ANZAC Day, Remembrance Day is not a public holiday in Australia but services are held at 11am at War Memorials and cenotaphs in suburbs and towns across the country. Traditionally, the Last Post is sounded by a bugler followed by one minute of silence. After the minute of silence, flags are raised from half mast to masthead as Rouse is played.

Remembrance Day is observed across the world in the United Kingdom, Canada, France, South Africa, The United States of America, Bermuda, Ireland and New Zealand as well as in Australia. In many of these locations, two minutes of silence is observed at 11am.