Commemorations, memorials and war graves

On 25 June 2025, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) held a National Commemorative Service at the Australian National Korean War Memorial in Canberra to mark the 75th anniversary of Australian service in the Korean War.

The Office of Australian War Graves (OAWG) is part of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. It has three distinct roles: to maintain war cemeteries and individual war graves within Australia and the region, as agents of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission; to officially commemorate eligible veterans who have died post-war and whose deaths are accepted as being caused by war service; to provide and maintain national memorials overseas... Official commemoration of eligible Veterans The authority for the post-war commemoration of veterans whose deaths are accepted as due to war related causes is a War Cabinet Decision of 10 March 1922. Successive governments have reaffirmed their commitment to official commemoration...

On Friday 20 September 2024, the Department of Veterans' Affairs delivered a nationally televised commemorative service to mark the 25th anniversary of Australian service in Timor-Leste.

An Australian journey across the First World War battlefields of France and Belgium.

The national commemorative service not only marks the 75th Anniversary of Australian Peacekeeping, but will provide an opportunity for all Australians to pause, reflect and appropriately acknowledge the service and sacrifice of the more than 66,000 Australians - made up of Australian Defence Force (ADF), Australian Federal Police (AFP), and civilians - who have served in peacekeeping roles.

Sandakan Memorial Park is located on the site of the former Sandakan Prisoner of War (POW) camp. Within the park, an interpretive pavilion provides information on the history of the park. This booklet has been designed to allow visitors to explore the park at their own pace. It contains information about the Sandakan POW camp, war relics used by the prisoners and important points of interest that convey the experiences of Sandakan POWs. Numbered posts on the ground correspond to the numbered information in this booklet.

A national commemorative service marking the 50th anniversary of Operation Ivanhoe and the Battle of Nui Le was to be conducted at the Australian Vietnam Forces National Memorial on Monday 20 September 2021. With the current health restrictions in place and to ensure the health and safety of veterans, their families and the community, this service was unable to take place. However, a ‘virtual’ commemorative service was broadcast on the ABC.

Many Australians travelling abroad visit Commonwealth War Graves Commission war cemeteries where Australian Service personnel are buried or commemorated. However, few of the 70 Commission war cemeteries, scattered throughout Australia, attract similar interest among Australians at home. These cemeteries, which range in size from several hectares to small plots, are comparable with any found throughout the world. In Australia, the Office of Australian War Graves maintains 11,651 war graves. Of these, approximately half are in war cemeteries and the remainder are distributed among some 900 civil cemeteries throughout the nation. There are also memorials to 1,033 missing personnel...

Nominal Roll of Australian Veterans of the Korean War.

Australia, as a member nation of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission conferred official commemoration upon Service personnel who died during the two World Wars.