Anzac Rituals – Secular, Sacred, Christian Department of History School of Philosophical and Historical Inquiry Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences University of Sydney Darren Mitchell A thesis submitted in 2020 to fulfil requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge, the content of this thesis is my own work. This thesis has not been submitted for any degree or other purposes. I certify that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own work and that all the assistance received in preparing this thesis and sources have been acknowledged. Signature: ------------------------------ Name: Darren Mitchell i Abstract This thesis will argue that Australia’s Anzac ceremonial forms emerged from Christian thinking and liturgy. Existing accounts of Anzac Day have focussed on the secular and Western classical forms incorporated into Anzac ritual and ignored or minimised the significant connection between Christianity and Anzac Day. Early Anzac ceremonies conducted during the Great War were based on Anglican forms, and distinctive commemorative components such as laying wreaths at memorials and pausing in silence, as well as the unique Australian ‘dawn service’ tradition which began ten years after war’s end, have their antecedents in religious customs and civic rites of the time. Anglican clergy played the leading role in developing this Anzac legacy - belief in Australia in the 1910s and 1920s remained predominantly Christian, with approximately half of believers being Anglican adherents - yet this influence on Anzac ritual has heretofore received scant acknowledgement in academic and popular commentary which views Anzac Day’s rituals as ‘secular’, devoid of religious tradition and in competition with it. Sydney’s Anzac Day in 1916, the first anniversary of the Gallipoli landings, and the ceremonies that followed through to 1919, illuminate the significant role of the city’s Anglican leadership in early Anzac ceremonial remembrance practice. The history, adoption and adaptation of elemental Anzac commemorative motifs of wreaths, silence, and dawn reveal their roots in Biblical theology and church approaches to mourning, challenging the secularisation hypothesis. Parallels between the story of the emergence of the Dawn Service in Sydney and that of the New Testament record of the discovery of Jesus’ empty tomb will provide context for this exploration. Christian design motifs and inscriptions will also be noted in significant public memorials, adding to the argument that Christianity was the principal cultural repository for responding to the disastrous consequences of the Great War. This study will explain the deep current of Biblical thinking in Anzac commemoration and reveal how Anzac public remembrance is not only ‘sacred’ in a ‘secular’ formulation, as is commonly assumed, but also, fundamentally, Christian. ii Acknowledgements A coffee meeting with Bob Linder in 2015 gave me the confidence to undertake doctoral research. A Professor of History at Kansas State University, Bob was making one of his frequent visits to Australia and generously gave of his time and wisdom in response to my scratchy thoughts on paper. Bob’s encouragement led me to approach Stephen Garton at the University of Sydney, and nascent ideas became a project of research. My gratitude is extended to those who formed my community of research and writing along the way: Peter Bentley, Kerry Sanders and Kevin Tuffin, friends and interlocutors, helped gird up wandering thoughts into substantive findings, enthusiastically sharing insights, along with plenty of extra-curricular book suggestions. Colin Bale, whose research alongside that of Bob Linder’s has set a solid foundation for mapping the life of Christians in Australia’s history of the Great War, readily shared his knowledge of Sydney Anglican history; John Moses gave gracious insight into the challenge of revisiting well-trodden ground; Andrew Cameron and Bruce Scates willingly provided the support I needed through the application process. James Curran, Julia Horne, Mark McKenna, Dirk Moses, and Tamson Pietsch who, at University seminars, coffee meetings, corridor encounters, and progress reviews, provided liberal doses of gentle challenge and suggestions. The Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences supplied a vital travel grant to attend the 2019 Memory Studies Association Conference in Madrid which enabled me to test research conclusions about heritage and contemporary forms of war remembrance ritual. Tiger Li, a fellow research student, has been an inspiring companion and patient reader of early drafts. Ron Holder, a founding member of Sydney’s Anzac Day Dawn Service Trust, entrusted to me the records of the Australian Legion of Ex-Service Clubs, the organisation which began the Dawn Service tradition. Another Trust member, Geoffrey Usher, tackled editing with acumen and enthusiasm. Julie Olston at Moore College Library, along with Erin Mollenhaur in the College Archives, provided friendly support over many years; Louise Trott at Anglican Church Diocese of Sydney iii Archives was astute and accommodating; Tracey O’Connor at RSL NSW Registry helped locate long undisturbed files; and Nyree Morrison at the University of Sydney Archives enthusiastically supported my inquiries. Kerry Sanders, Tiger Li and Kevin Tuffin read the whole draft and their feedback proved essential in fashioning the final thesis. The truism applies: the thesis is far better as a result of their scrutiny. Martin, Hannan, and Nadine at Badde Manors: plenty of coffee, and a non-library space that proved especially productive. Alison Starr and Alexandra McCosker, from other universities, with shared research interests, became indispensable conference pals: we pondered together after keynote addresses, presented together on panels, encouraged each other through the inevitable grind; all of which made undertaking a PhD, at a mature age, bearable, even pleasurable. Stephen Garton, my supervisor, has been full of warmth and commitment, wonderful foresight and a trust that was energising. Family bears the highest burden of a PhD, and I thank Lulu, Jack, and Audrey for their sustained tolerance and love through these four years. Their understanding has been vital. Lulu ensured disruptions were minimised, Audrey became my on-campus buddy, Jack’s own example inspired me to step out in faith in pursuit of a passion. Finally, two dear friends who contributed significantly to my research, passed away before I was finished. Gordon Maitland, a General in the Australian Army, whose service began on the islands to the North-West of Australia during the Second World War, enjoyed another significant career in history writing and in commemoration leadership. Olwyn, a widow of Lt Col Charles Green who was killed in the Korean War, researched and wrote about the experience of those who served with her beloved Charlie. Gordon and Olwyn spent their lives in the service of others, striving, successfully, to ensure that we do not forget those who died in war and those who endured. Their infectious energy for learning, well into their tenth decade, was irresistible. For the greater part of my studies, they shared their life as well as their knowledge, a practical wisdom, born of long experience. iv I dedicate this thesis to their memory, with deep gratitude and affection. Acronyms ADCC Anzac Day Commemoration Committee (Brisbane) AIF Australian Imperial Force ANMEF Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force RSA Returned Soldiers’ Association RSL Returned and Services League RSSILA Returned Sailors’ and Soldiers’ Imperial League SDM Sydney Diocesan Magazine SMH Sydney Morning Herald Note All references sourced from internet locations have been accessed and checked on 18 March 2020, prior to submission. v Chapters Introduction 1 Part I: Sydney Anglicans and Anzac Day Chapter One - Wright and Talbot 27 Chapter Two - The Making of Anzac Day 62 Part II: The Foundations of Anzac Liturgy Chapter Three - Wreaths 112 Chapter Four - Silence 146 Chapter Five - Dawn 174 Part III: Set in Stone and Bronze Chapter Six - Public Memorialisation 204 Conclusion 243 Bibliography 248 ------------------------------------------------------ vi Introduction There is overwhelming evidence that remembering the Great War in Europe entailed a return to traditional practices of mourning, embedded in classical, romantic, and religious images and languages. Jay Winter1 The Government has decided to invite the heads of the churches to hold a memorial service at some hour to be arranged on 25th April [1916] throughout the length and breadth of the State. NSW Premier William Holman2 This thesis argues that much of the scholarship on Anzac Day has obscured the critical importance of Christian thinking and practice in shaping Australia’s commemorative tradition and early development of Anzac Day rituals. In a context of unimagined national shock, Australians did what Jay Winter found to be the case in Europe. They returned to ‘traditional practices of mourning’, particularly to Christian language and symbols, modes of religious expression that they found recognisable, made sense and were believed by many to be efficacious. The historiographical tradition with respect to Anzac Day has been that Anzac Day is fundamentally secular, drawing on classical motifs to ennoble Anzac sacrifice. Christianity has been seen as marginal to the core symbolic frames shaping commemoration, having little influence on the form of Australia’s