Thousands of Australians all over the nation have come out in force to attend Covid-safe ceremonies and pay their respects to fallen Diggers on Anzac Day.
Sunday marks the 106th anniversary of the landings at Gallipoli, a campaign which ultimately cost more than 8,700 Australian and New Zealanders’ lives.
While some services went ahead with few Covid restrictions, many Australians opted to pay tribute at home by standing at the end of their driveways holding candles at dawn – particularly those in Perth’s lockdown.
Last year Anzac Day was marked by televised services only and no marches for the first time in more than a century as the COVID-19 pandemic kept people indoors.
Montana Seaman and her partner and serviceman Luke Williams shared a passionate kiss after the dawn service at Coogee beach
In regional Victoria, locals paid tribute to the Diggers by decorating hay bales as soldiers in uniform. The ten painted hay bales were placed along the corner of a property just south of Pyramid Hill on Bendigo Road
Alastair Tomkins, joined by his wife Katie and their sons Hugo, 9, (left) and Lyndon, 6, stand in silence after playing The Last Post in their driveway in Brisbane
At Currumbin beach on the Gold Coast, hordes of Queenslanders gathered at dawn to pay their respects to the fallen Diggers
People gather on Currumbin beach to watch surf boats perform a burial at sea in Currumbin on the Gold Coast as the sun rose
Services and marches were back with limited crowds in most parts of the country.
Outside of the Sydney CBD, a maximum of 5,000 people – excluding spectators – can participate in an outdoor Anzac Day march or dawn service.
At Coogee Beach in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, hundreds took to the sand at dawn to watch the sun rise.
Montana Seaman and her partner and serviceman Luke Williams were photographed sharing a passionate kiss after the dawn service.
Mourners braved the frigid temperatures to watch on as surf boats performed a burial at sea at Currumbin on the Gold Coast
An Australian soldier and guests observe a minute silence during the Anzac Day dawn service in Sydney
Outside of the Sydney CBD, a maximum of 5000 people – excluding spectators – can participate in an outdoor Anzac Day march or dawn service. Pictured: A young on-looker stands for the Australian national anthem during the Sydney Dawn Service
At Currumbin beach on the Gold Coast, hordes of Queenslanders gathered at dawn to pay their respects to the fallen Diggers.
Mourners braved the frigid temperatures to watch on as surf boats performed a traditional burial at sea.
Further north in Brisbane, families awoke early to stand at the end of their driveways holding candles.
Alastair Tomkins, joined by his wife Katie and their sons Hugo, 9, and Lyndon, 6, stood in silence after playing The Last Post in their driveway at dawn.
A veteran walks next to police officers as they attend the consular corps wreath-laying ceremony commemorating Anzac Day in Sydney
World War II veteran Jack Mackrau hosted a small service outside his home in Kingsley, in Perth’s north, on Sunday at dawn.
Their neighbours also took to the porches of their homes to commemorate Anzac Day on Sunday morning.
In Sydney’s CBD, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian recited a poem before the Anzac Day address by Air Vice-Marshal Joe Iervasi, Air Commander Australia.
The Last Post was then played in the Sydney dark.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison told the dawn service at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra that the nation faced a defining moment 12 months ago.
‘A moment of uncertainty and danger, when the future seems so uncertain, masked by fog,’ he said in front of about 3,000 people.
‘We could not gather, but we held candles in driveways and on balconies and we played the Last Post on radios and iPhones as some, especially in our west, will do again today.’
In regional Victoria, locals paid tribute to the Diggers by decorating hay bales as soldiers in uniform.
The ten painted hay bales were placed along the corner of a property just south of Pyramid Hill on Bendigo Road.
Sydney limited its march to 10,000 people. A Maori choir sang at a Sydney dawn service in a mark of the intrinsic link that Anzac Day brings to the two nations.
A soldier played a didgeridoo for the first time at the dawn service the Australian War Memorial in the national capital Canberra, in recognition of the sacrifices of indigenous Australians in war.
That service has attracted up to 40,000 people in past years. This year, it was a ticketed event with a limit of 4,200 people.
Melbourne recently lifted its Anzac Day march limit from 5,500 to 8,000 after veterans complained that more than 75,000 spectators would be allowed to attend an AFL match in the city on the same day.
Anzac Day services overseas were cancelled, including Australian and New Zealand-led services in Turkey and Australian services in France. Pictured: Crowds at the Coogee Dawn Service on April 25
William and his wife Kate (pictured on Wednesday) will be among a reduced number attending a dawn service at Wellington Arch on Sunday morning
Prince William sent a special pack of traditional Anzac biscuits (pictured, right) to the Australia and New Zealand High Commissions in London, along with a note (left)
The ribboned pack of traditional Anzac biscuits were delivered by a member of royal staff to the High Commissions in London
Prince William released a statement to the New Zealand and Australian High Commissions in London to pay his respects.
‘This Anzac Day, Catherine and I join Australians and New Zealanders across the world to remember and honour the service men and women of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps,’ the Duke of Cambridge said.
‘Today we stand together to reflect not only on their sacrifices, but also their courage, sense of duty, and their famously indomitable spirit.
‘Though many will still be unable to come together in person this year, we are heartened in the knowledge that Australians and New Zealanders will continue to commemorate those who have given so much for our freedoms.’
Meanwhile, Princess Anne will attend two ceremonies in London on Sunday in honor of Anzac Day.
The Princess Royal will participate in the Anzac Day Service of Commemoration and Thanksgiving at Westminster Abbey.
She will also attend the Anzac Day Dawn Service at Wellington Arch, where she will lay a wreath at the Australian and New Zealand War Memorials.
Anzac Day services overseas were cancelled, including Australian and New Zealand-led services in Turkey and Australian services in France.