The plaque is unfurled by Lola Watts Yarrawonga P-12, Lou Hollis Friends of Warrnambool Botanic Gardens, and Jayden Dawson Cobram Special School.
Photo by
Les_Garbutt
We drive past the cenotaphs in towns throughout the country acknowledging the fallen in World War 1, without giving the names on the Memorials a second thought.
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As we get older though, we contemplate the real significance of the sacrifices made by those young men and the impact it had on their families and broader community. There is a story behind each inscription.
Early 20th Century in post Federation Australia, was a time when patriotism was at the forefront of the minds of most people.
We had sent young men to Crimea and to South Africa to support the British in the Boar War and were ready to do so again in 1914 in compliance with Kitchener's appeal in the famous poster "We Need You".
It was of course for "King and Country, so, off they went in their thousands, many never to return and even more to be destined to spend the rest of their lives scarred by the effects of war. They suffered in silence.
Those who chose not to go, who were deemed medically unfit or in a protected occupation, suffered the lifelong ignominy of being branded a coward.
Many received the universal gesture of cowardice, a white feather, sent by the self-righteous, with a devastating impact on the recipients. In those days it took more courage to stay than to go.
One of the most significant battles of the WWI Dardanelles Campaign was undertaken at Gallipoli and is known in history as The Battle of Lone Pine.
It was a diversionary action designed to draw Turkish attention away from the main assault elsewhere. The battle ground was identified by a single pine tree, known by the Troops as the Lonesome Pine.
The battle commenced at 5.30pm on August 6, 1915 when the first wave of Australian Infantry Brigade (1800) threw themselves upon the entrenched Turks. It lasted four days and three nights and ended in a stalemate.
Casualties were massive 2,272 Anzacs and an estimated 6,000 - 7,000 Turks were killed or wounded.
The battle served no strategic purpose.
The plaque tells the story of the lone pine planted at ClubMulwala; a project undertaken by members of the Rotary Club of Central Murray Sunrise.
Photo by
Les_Garbutt
At the conclusion of fighting, the Allies had taken ground 150m wide with a 300m front. It was a stark example of the futility of War. The conditions and level of slaughter is almost indescribable and unimaginable to people of our generation.
Private Victor Laidlaw reported:
"To us, looking through the periscope can see quite well, also plenty of dead bodies can be seen. In fact, in the Lonesome Pine Trench which we captured, the Turks were lying there 5 feet deep. And our fellows had to fight standing on top of them. Bombs would make a further mess of the corpses. Flies were in abundance and beautiful large maggots were beginning to make their appearance. In fact, Captain Lind of the 5th Battalion had been having some rest when all of a sudden he felt something soft on his trousers and was horrified to find hundreds of these crawling maggots..."
Between the landing at ANZAC Cove in April 1915 until the evacuation in December the men eked out an existence under constant attack and the presence of disease, rats and flies, while under the command of insipid leadership.
The pine tree, which gave the battle its name, was shattered by artillery. A soldier, Thomas Keith McDowell, retrieved a single pinecone and brought it back to Australia.
He gifted the pinecone to his aunt, Mrs Emma Gray who lived near Warrnambool. She planted some seeds from that pine cone 12 years later.
One of the seeds struck and in 1934 was planted in the Warrnambool Botanical Gardens. In recent years, Warrnambool identity, (Mrs) Lou Hollis collected pinecones from that tree and began propagating seeds from it.
Members of the Rotary Club of Central Murray Sunrise believed it was important that we not let the human sacrifice of the Great War become a mere footnote in history.
They felt that Rotary could make its contribution to ensure that our community have a tangible link with the past and constant reminder of the ultimate sacrifice made by those young men, that is to provide our community with a living history of the terrible events of those times.
A small crowd witnessed the planting and unfurling of the plaque honouring the memory of the Battle of Lone Pine.
Photo by
Les_Garbutt
The Central Murray Sunrise Rotary Club obtained a small tree from Lou Hollis and with the co-operation of Club Mulwala, planted this tree in the grounds of the Club.
A Dedication Ceremony was conducted at Midday, Thursday August 6, 2026 on the 111th anniversary of the battle, and paid tribute not only to the troops who served in that battle but to all who served and paid the ultimate price.
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