AWM P03335 003 Sister Muriel Burbury Australian Army Nursing Service c 1919-20

The ANZAC "A" badge is a brass insignia authorised in November 1917 for members of the First Australian Imperial Force who had served as a member of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) during the Gallipoli campaign in 1915. In 1918, eligibility was extended to those who had served at Lemnos, Imbros and

Tenedos Tenedos (, ''Tenedhos'', ), or Bozcaada in Turkish language, Turkish, is an island of Turkey in the northeastern part of the Aegean Sea. Administratively, the island constitutes the Bozcaada, Çanakkale, Bozcaada district of Çanakkale Provinc ...

and the transports and hospitals off Gallipoli as well as the communications line to Egypt.

History

The origins of the award are uncertain with

John Monash General Sir John Monash, (; 27 June 1865 – 8 October 1931) was an Australian civil engineer and military commander of the First World War. He commanded the 13th Infantry Brigade before the war and then, shortly after its outbreak, became co ...

William Birdwood Field Marshal William Riddell Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood, (13 September 1865 – 17 May 1951) was a British Army officer. He saw active service in the Second Boer War on the staff of Lord Kitchener. He saw action again in the First World War ...

and

John Gellibrand Major General Sir John Gellibrand, (5 December 1872 – 3 June 1945) was a senior Australian Army officer in the First World War, Chief Commissioner of the Victoria Police from 1920 to 1922, and a member of the Australian House of Representat ...

all being credited with the idea in various accounts. The most likely version is that the award was a result of several ideas proposed in early 1916 to commemorate the Anzacs. When Monash led his brigade in commemorating the first

Anzac Day , image = Dawn service gnangarra 03.jpg , caption = Anzac Day Dawn Service at Kings Park, Western Australia, 25 April 2009, 94th anniversary. , observedby = Australia Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Cook Islands New ...

, men who had served at Gallipoli wore a blue ribbon on their right breast and those who had gone ashore as part of the first landing wore a red ribbon as well. Birdwood advised in August 1916 that he supported Australian veterans of the ANZAC campaign wearing an "A" badge on their colour patches. The 1st and 2nd Divisions supported the idea enthusiastically. The

3rd Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * Second#Sexagesimal divisions of calendar time and day, 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (d ...

and

4th Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

, both of which had fewer ANZAC veterans in their ranks, were less enthusiastic in their adoption of the badge. However, Monash, as commander of the 3rd Division, was able to claim by November 1916 that "'All who have a right to be called "Anzacs" among us are now wearing a metal "A" on the colour patches on the sleeves".F.M. Cutlack (ed.), ''War letters of General Monash'', Sydney, 1934, p. 148 cited o

/ref> In early 1917, convalescent soldiers returned to Australia wearing the badge and its status was initially questioned. This led to its formal approval through AIF Order 937 issued in November 1917. Subsequent orders clarified the entitlement to the badge and made it compulsory. In January 1918, the order extended eligibility to people who had served behind the lines on the Greek islands of Lemnos, Imbros and Tenedos, on the communication lines and hospital ships offshore or on the islands or in the communications to Egypt. This included nurses who served in the hospital ships meaning that women as well as men received acknowledgement as ANZACS. There was initial resentment of the badges by soldiers who had fought in France at the

Battle of Pozières The Battle of Pozières (23 July – 3 September 1916) took place in northern France around the village of Pozières, during the Battle of the Somme. The costly fighting ended with the British in possession of the plateau north and east of the v ...

and the

Battle of Mouquet Farm The Battle of Mouquet Farm, also known as the Fighting for Mouquet Farm was part of the Battle of the Somme and began during the Battle of Pozières (23 July – 3 September). The fighting began on 23 July with attacks by the British Reserve A ...

in 1916 who thought that their contribution had been equal to the Anzacs. ANZAC rosettes were also worn by men who had joined in 1914 and came home on ANZAC leave to show that they had not been shirking their duty.

References

{{Reflist * ''Australian Encyclopedia'' (1996), Volume 1, page 1.

External links

Anzacs.org "A is for Anzac"

Australian military insignia Australian campaign medals Badges ANZAC (Australia) Military awards and decorations of World War I Australia in World War I