11 Nov 2016
Our SRC seniors are pictured lowering our flags to half mast at 11am on 11th November, to commemorate Remembrance Day 2016. This has taken place during the deeply significant centenary commemorations for World War I. Shoalhaven High School honours our glorious war dead and those who have served nobly in all theatres of war, in defence of our nation.
Mrs J McDonald DP.
Why is this day special to Australians?
At 11 am on 11 November 1918 the guns of the Western Front fell silent after more than four years continuous warfare. The allied armies had driven the German invaders back, having inflicted heavy defeats upon them over the preceding four months. In November the Germans called for an armistice (suspension of fighting) in order to secure a peace settlement. They accepted allied terms that amounted to unconditional surrender.
The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month attained a special significance in the post-war years. The moment when hostilities ceased on the Western Front became universally associated with the remembrance of those who had died in the war. This first modern world conflict had brought about the mobilisation of over 70 million people and left between 9 and 13 million dead, perhaps as many as one-third of them with no known grave. The allied nations chose this day and time for the commemoration of their war dead.
