Photo: unification.com
About a thousand soldiers from Russian Empire were part of the Australian-New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC), which participated in World War I, more than a hundred years ago. The memory of fighters of young Australian army is annually honored at the national level in the country in April, marking ANZAC Day. Earlier, an action in memory of Russian warrior Peter Chirvin, organized by representatives of Russian diaspora, took place in Sydney, Unification/Edinenie Russian Newspaper Australia reports.
On ANZAC Day, parades are held with the participation of veterans and active Australian military armies. Russian compatriots, who carefully preserve the memory of Russian corps soldiers, also form their convoys. On the eve of ANZAC Day, compatriots honored the memory of the Russians who died in the corps at one of the cemeteries of Sydney, where Peter Chirvin is buried. He was wounded twice on battlefields of World War I and was awarded the Australian Military Medal.
Soldiers and officers of the Australian-New Zealand Corps are considered heroes in the country. ANZAC joined World War I from the very beginning. In 1915 it participated in the battles on Gallipoli peninsula in Turkey, and later fought in France and Belgium.
More than 60 thousand Australians were killed during the War, and the number of victims is about 150 thousand. During World War I, on average, every 10th resident was drafted into the army and participated in hostilities.
Russkiy Mir
