The death severed Australia's last living link with a horrific event that more than any other helped shaped the character of the nation -- [Gallipoli]. The battle was to Australia what Vimy Ridge was to Canada, another in one of many interesting parallels between our two countries. Like Vimy, Gallipoli marked a great leap forward in the country's sense of self-awareness and laid the groundwork for Australia's reputation as a nation of international repute.

Like Vimy, the word Gallipoli itself stirs up deep emotions within Australians, the military event it represents still celebrated every April 25 as Anzac Day (Australian and New Zealand Army Corp), a national holiday.

Australia's official First World War historian, C.E.W. Bean, wrote that Gallipoli and the Anzac tradition stood for "reckless valour in a good cause, for enterprise, resourcefulness, fidelity, comradeship and endurance that will never admit defeat." The same could be said for the heroes of Vimy.