ANZAC Day 2026: Communities Prepare for 111th Anniversary of Gallipoli Landings

Communities across Australia and New Zealand prepared for ANZAC Day 2026 (April 25), marking the 111th anniversary of the Gallipoli landings on April 25, 1915. Since ANZAC Day falls on a Saturday in 2026, New South Wales, Western Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory declared an additional public holiday on Monday, April 27. Dawn services were planned in hundreds of communities, including along the Upper Spencer Gulf in South Australia. ANZAC Day commemorates the first major military action by Australian and New Zealand forces during WWI, when troops landed at what became known as ANZAC Cove under heavy Ottoman fire. The Gallipoli campaign, which lasted eight months and cost over 250,000 Allied casualties, has become one of the most powerful national memories for both Australia and New Zealand.