Why had sixty thousand men given their lives during the war—one in every ten of military age? 'They died for the safety of Australia', Prime Minister William Morris Hughes told parliament in 1919, and in death had 'made for themselves and their country a name that will not die'. Humble monuments to them were appearing in most suburbs and towns, like this one in Burnie in Tasmania. They were soon supplemented by massive memorials in the state capitals and, eventually, by the Australian War Memorial in the new national capital, Canberra. (AWM H17762; Commonwealth Parliamentary Debates, 10 September 1919)
Source
AWM H17762
Copyright
Australian War Memorial