War Memorials in Australia

Royal Australian Navy Memorial

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Place: Campbell,  Australian Capital Territory, 2612
District: Southern Tablelands (ACT)
Orientation: Suburb of Canberra
Location: Anzac Parade, east side
Position: 35 17 06 S     149 08 78 E
Ref: 00011

__________________________

The memorial is a sculpture standing 8.2 metres high with representational figures emerging from geometric shapes.  It is made of copper alloy, iron, stainless steel, aluminium and zinc.  Water cascades down the sculpture into a moat surrounding it.  There are exposed aggregate concrete paving surrounds and on either side is a pier carrying the Navy's battle honours. Two ceremonial flagpoles stand forward of the memorial and a plinth at their bases supports the RAN insignia and dedication plaques.

Unveiled in 1986, the 75th Anniversary of the RAN, the memorial symbolises the mutual dependence of sailors and their ships, its dynamic force complemented by the image of moving water.  The design, by Ante Dabro, represents Naval duty as being constantly watchful, vigilant and ready and able to make an immediate disciplined response.

 

Plaques on pier at north-east corner of paving

EMDEN 1914 MALTA CONVOYS 1941-42
DARDANELLES 1915-6 MATAPAN 1941
ATLANTIC 1939-45 GREECE 1941
ENGLISH CHANNEL 1939-45 CRETE 1941
MEDITERRANEAN 1940-45 BISMARCK 1941
CALABRIA 1940 KORMORAN 1941
SPADA 1940 PACIFIC 1941-45
LIBYA 1940-42

 

 

Plaques on pier at south-east corner of paving

INDIAN OCEAN 1941-45 SABANG 1944
SUNDA STRAIT 1942 BURMA 1944-45
CORAL SEA 1942 LEYTE GULF 1944
NEW GUINEA 1942-44 LINGAYEN GULF 1945
GUADALCANAL 1942-43 OKINAWA 1945
SAVO ISLAND 1942 KOREA 1950-53
NORTH AFRICA 1942-43 VIETNAM 1967-71
SICILY 1943

 

 

Plaque on top surface of plinth on northern side of monument

THIS NATIONAL NAVAL MEMORIAL,
DEDICATED TO ALL THOSE MEN AND WOMEN WHO HAVE SERVED OR ARE SERVING
AS PERMANENT OR RESERVE MEMBERS OF THE ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY,
WAS UNVEILED BY HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN
ON 3 MARCH 1986, ON THE OCCASION OF THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY
OF THE FORMATION OF THE ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY.
THE MEMORIAL IS THE NATION'S TRIBUTE TO THE BRAVE AND
DEVOTED MEN AND WOMEN WHO HAVE CREATED THE NAVAL HERITAGE
OF AUSTRALIA AND TO THOSE WHO ARE CONTINUING THAT TRADITION.

 

On west face of plinth

RAN insignia

 

Plaque on west side of memorial
ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY MEMORIAL
Insignia of Royal Australian Navy

On 10 July 1911 the Commonwealth Naval Forces were renamed the Royal Australian
Navy. The role of the Navy was to provide for the defence of Australia and to cooperate
with broader Empire interests. During the First and Second World wars, the Navy showed
the Australian people the importance of naval forces to a maritime nation. Serving on all
oceans of the world, the RAN suffered heavy casualties but proved its fighting capacity in
a number of crucial battles.

The Navy served with distinction during the Malayan Emergency and also in the Korean,
Vietnam and Gulf wars. Australia's Navy has made a significant contribution to peace
operations in the Middle East, Somaloa, Cambodia, Bougainville and East Timor.

Also known as 'Sailors and Ships - Interaction and Interdependance' this memorial, by
Ante Dabro in collaboration with Lester Firth and Associates and Robert Woodward,
reflects the mutual dependence of sailors and their ships.

Bronze figures feature in the memorial and convey the daily activities associated with
naval life, while the geometric forms, such as an anchor chain, depict elements of a ship.
The torrents of moving water complement the dynamic force of the work.

                                                                                         

                                    Coat of arms of Commonwealth of Australia

 

 

 

Information current to April 2001

Sources:  The Memorials of Anzac Parade, pamphlet produced by the National Capital Authority, Canberra, undated

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