Do you have a relative who was entitled to the Anzac Commemorative Medallion?
Every Anzac soldier who served on the Gallipoli Peninsula, or in direct support of operations there - or his family if he did not survive until into the late 1960s - was entitled to be issued with the Anzac Commemorative Medallion.
(shown below).

The medallion was issued in 1967, and as a result
MANY HAVE NEVER BEEN CLAIMED.

For Australian Soldiers' Medallions

If you are the descendant of an Anzac soldier, you MAY still be entitled to claim the medallion.

Mailing address for all Medals applications
Directorate of Honours and Awards
T-4
Department of Defence
PO Box 7952
CANBERRA BC ACT 2610

Email www.defence.gov.au/medals
Website: http://www.defence.gov.au/medals
Toll-free Medals Inquiry Phone line:
1800 111 321 (Operating Hours: 8:30am-5:00pm, Monday to Friday)


Include as many details as possible regarding the soldier on whose behalf you wish to claim the medallion.
Full name, rank and unit, and service number
are generally required

For New Zealand Soldiers' Medallions

For claiming the Anzac Commemorative Medallion for a New Zealand soldier,
write to:

Staff Officer Medals,
New Zealand Defence Force,
Private Bag 905,
Upper Hutt, New Zealand.

______________________________

OBTAINING A COPY OF THE SOLDIER'S DOSSIER (New Zealand)

For a copy of a soldier's WW1 service dossier, contact the Personnel Archives of the New Zealand Defence Force (Te Ope Kaatua O Aotearoa). The cost for this service varies depending upon how much material must be photocopied, up to a maximum of $28.00 NZ.

All Requests Must Be In Writing (letter or fax: [04] 527 5275) to:


Personnel Archives / Enquiries & Medals
Trentham Camp, NZDF
Private Bag 905
UPPER HUTT
NEW ZEALAND

Include the following information in your request:

Enquirer's details:
Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms:
Name:
Address:
Phone number:

Soldier's Details:
Supply as many of the following details as possible

Surname:
Full Given Names:
Any other names known by:
Date and place of birth:
Living or deceased:
Service Number:
Rank:
Unit:
Period of service:
Next-of-kin at time of enlistment:
Address at time of enlistment:
Occupation at time of enlistment:

REMEMBER - This is to receive a copy of the soldier's service file - NOT the Medallion.

DIGITAL COPIES OF SOLDIERS' DOSSIERS (Australia)

If you would like more information on the soldier, digitised individual's service dossiers are available from
National Archives. You will need to log in and then conduct a Search.



_____________________________________________________________________


A little background reading...

Statement by the Prime Minister [of Australia],
the Rt. Hon. Harold Holt,
in the House of Representatives

16th March, 1967
The Minister for Defence announced that it had been decided by the Australian Government, in consultation with the New Zealand Government, to issue a medallion and lapel badge to the veterans of the Gallipoli Campaign.

I am glad to be able to announce that arrangements have now been completed for the production of the medallion and badge. The Minister for the Army will be arranging distribution to those wishing to receive them as soon as possible.

The Government hopes that production of the medallion and lapel badge will be sufficiently advanced to permit at least some of them to be distributed by Anzac Day.

The medallion (with the name of the recipient inscribed) will be issued to surviving members of the Australian Defence Force who served on the Gallipoli Peninsula, or in direct support of the operations from close off-shore, at any time during the period from the first Anzac Day in April, 1915, to the date of final evacuation in January 1916. Next of kin or other entitled persons will be entitled to receive the medallion on behalf of their relatives, if their relative died on active service or has since died.

For surviving members, a lapel badge will also be available for wearing. This will be a replica of the obverse (or front) of the medallion and will be about 1" high and 2/3" wide, the same size as the R.S.L. badge.

The medallion is the work of Mr. Raymond Ewers, the well-known Australian artist, based on a suggestion by Mr. Eric Garret, a staff artist with the Department of Army. It has been endorsed by both the Government of New Zealand and ourselves. It will be approximately 3" high and 2" wide. The obverse of the medallion depicts Simpson and his donkey carrying a wounded soldier to safety. It will be bordered on the lower half by a laurel wreath above the word ANZAC. The reverse (the back) shows a map in relief of Australia and New Zealand superimposed by the Southern Cross. The lower half will be bordered by New Zealand fern leaves.

The medallion will be cast in bronze and the lapel badge will be a metal of bronze colour