The Adelaide War Memorial will be an interesting stop during a trip to the South Australian capital of Adelaide. Located in the North Terrace of Kintore Avenue, the war memorial pays tribute to fallen heroes of World War I. Adelaide holiday apartments such as the well placed Oaks Embassy lie within easy access to the war memorial. While the government holds war memorial services frequently, one of the major services falls on Anzac Day on 25th of April. On this day, a travelling exhibition is set up to relate Australia’s part in World War I.
The very architecture of the construction depicts the prologue and the epilogue of World War I with the two sides displaying reliefs crafted from Angaston marble. The two sides are called the reverse and the observe. The steps leading to the monument are made of granite. The monument architects have taken great care with symbolism. The observe side of the monument representing the prologue, sports a relief of the spirit of duty which features a group of ordinary Australian citizens and symbols of their day to day craft in preparation for the war.
The reverse side (epilogue of war) is somewhat sombre and sorrow inducing where in the spirit of compassion, a winged woman holds a fallen young man. Below this image pours the fountain of compassion with a constant flow which symbolizes the memories that flow. While the bill to construct the memorial passed in 1919 with unanimous support, construction of the war memorial commenced in 1928 after a few delays in the prior years; the monument officially opened in 1931. During World War I, over 5,000 south Australians succumbed which approximately came up to 37.7% of the male population between the ages of 18 to 44 years. It was Archibald Peake, then Prime Minister of Australia that requested the parliament to pass a motion to fund the project in memory of the fallen Australians.
