On Monday 11 November, on the 11th hour of the 11th day, all over Australia, people will stop at 11.00 am for a minute of silence – to remember the Service and Sacrifice of the fallen in WWI.

At the Melbourne Shrine of Remembrance, a Wreath Laying Ceremony will take place in the Sanctuary of the Shrine. The Sanctuary is considered the heart of the Shrine. It has a compelling atmosphere of reverence. The Sanctuary serves as a place of ceremonial events and personal solitude.

In the Sanctuary is the stone of Remembrance and has no hidden meaning…but reveals its purpose with the uttermost simplicity”. It bears the inscription “Greater Love Hath No Man”, which is taken from the Bible, John 15.13.

The full verse reads “Greater Love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends”. The stone is placed below floor level, so that no hands may touch it and that heads bow in reverence to read the inscription.

A special feature of the Shrine is the Ray of Light; a beam of sunlight which passes through an aperture crossing the word Love on the stone of Remembrance on Remembrance Day.

It took Dr Baldwin, the Government Astronomer and Surveyors, 144 pages of astronomical and mathematical calculations to ensure the precision of the placement of the apertures.Dr Baldwin calculated that the ray will continue to pass the centre of the Stone, within two minutes of 11.00 am on Remembrance Day for at least 5,000 years. The accuracy of the calculations was tested on Armistice Day in 1931, when to the relief of surveyors the ray of sunlight fell upon a board where the Stone of Remembrance was to be placed.

The external aperture is covered on all days except Remembrance Day. Just above the frieze panels on the eastern wall is the internal aperture. On Remembrance Day the shaft of light first appears on the north-west side of the wall surrounding the Stone of Remembrance and the light then moves across the stone.

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It takes 11 minutes for the light to cross the stone. Precisely at 11.00 am the light shines upon the word Love in the centre of the Stone. That marks the commencement of one minute of silence (originally two minutes) and the Governor of Victoria lays a Wreath. Those present for the ceremony include the Premier, Lord Mayor of Melbourne, diplomats, politicians, Shrine Trusties and Governors, RSL and Legacy representatives and Defence Service Chiefs.

The Armistice to end WWI was signed at 5.00 am on the 11th of November, but it was a further six hours before the hostilities on all fronts ended. Thus, Armistice hour is on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, 1918.

Australian soldiers

On Monday 11 November, people all over Australia and all Commonwealth Countries in the world will pause for a minute’s silence to remember the end of WWI, and also to reflect on all those that served and died in this terrible conflict.

For Australians as a young nation in 1915 with a population of five million, soldiers were full of enthusiasm to serve Mother England in time of need.

From the 330,000 Australians that served in WWI, just over 62,000 lost their lives either killed or died from various of diseases.

From Victoria 89,000 went to war and 19,000 did not returned back home – that is one in five died from Victoria.

All wars are catastrophic, but for me WWI stands out as Australia’s youth went to be slaughtered. The correct age to enlist in 1915 was 18, but young men aged as young as 15, 16, 17 raised their hands to enlist and to serve their Country.

On this day at the Melbourne Shrine of Remembrance, a wreath laying Service will take place, with the Premier of Victoria attending with other Politicians, and Defence Force Personnel.

For me personally, my thoughts will go to my service in the Vietnam War, the men I served with, and the men we lost with 521 Australians killed in that terrible War.

No matter where we might be on Monday the 11th, we all should sacrifice one minute, to remember all those that served,and died for our freedom.

LEST WE FORGET

* Steve (Anastasios) Kyritsis OAM is the President of the Hellenic Sub-Branch of the Returned and Services League of Australia.