Day of Solemn Homage

Northern Advocate, 23 July 1938, Page 5

Day of Solemn Homage

(Received 1 p.m.) PARIS, July 22. A u FRANCE TODAY TURNED ITS THOUGHTS NORTHWARD, ACCOMPANYING KING GEORGE AND QUEEN ELIZABETH TO VILLERS BRETONNEAUX TO THE CEREMONY OF UNVEILING THE AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL. The festivities which marked Their Majesties’ visit to Paris were replaced by the more solemn mood of the Australians who had successfully helped to liberate the farm lands on which the memorial stands. To thousands of Australians and Britishers turning their steps to Villers Bretonneaux from dawn, it was a day of sacred homage to France, which was represented by the greatest military display seen in the north for many years. It was an opportunity not only to pay tribute to Australia’s dead, but to endorse the accord between Britain and France. There was a light haze when Their Majesties arrived. The Queen was wearing a white hat and gown, and the King a morning coat with medals. They passed through ranks of a guard of honour of Australian veterans, and approached the Memorial while Grenadier Guards played “God Save the King” and the “Marseillaise.” M. Le Brun, President of France, joined Their Majesties on the dais, and the ceremony began with the singing of the hymn “Maker of Earth and Sea.” The’ King, after his speech, stood to attention for a few moments facing the Memorial, then pressed a switch, and vast Australian flags covering the central tower fluttered down. The Memorial, which dominates the countryside like a "“beacon, was revealed in white splendour to the watching crowd.