The National War Memorial (South Australia) is a monument on the north edge of the city centre of Adelaide, South Australia that commemorates South Australians who served in the First World War and those who gave their lives. It was opened in 1931. The memorial is on the corner of North Terrace and Kintore Avenue, next to the grounds of Government House. Observances are held at the site throughout the year, with major services on Anzac Day (25 April) and Remembrance Day (11 November).
Themes
The two themes of the monument – one visible on each side – show respectively the prelude and the epilogue to war, exemplifying both the willingness of youth to answer the call of duty and the sacrifices they had to make. Symbols of war itself and its participants are left out. This symbolism, according to the designers, does not represent victory in the traditional sense but a spiritual victory, in which is displayed a "willingness to serve and to sacrifice": It is the collective personal sacrifice of victory over self which is expressed in the ... two scenes. The renunciation of all that made life sweet, of life itself, by the men who enlisted, toiled, fought, and died; by the women who waited, worked, succoured, and suffered.
History
First proposed in 1919, the memorial was funded by the Parliament of South Australia, making it the first Australian state war memorial to be confirmed after the war. The design was selected through two architectural competitions. The first competition, in 1924, produced 26 designs – all of which were lost before judging could be completed after fire destroyed the building in which they were housed. A second competition, in 1926, produced 18 entries, out of which the design by the architectural firm Woods, Bagot, Jory & Laybourne-Smith was selected as the winner.
Almost 35,000 South Australians served in the First World War. This number amounted to 8.5% of the South Australian population at the time, or 37.7% of men between the ages of 18 and 44. Of those who served, more than 5,000 South Australians died. In response to these deaths, Archibald Peake, the premier of South Australia, asked the state parliament to fund a memorial commemorating the victory and the sacrifice of those who had fought and fallen. The motion, presented in March 1919, received unanimous support in the House of Assembly and the Legislative Council. With the passing of this motion, the South Australian Government became the first in Australia to elect to build a memorial to the soldiers of the First World War.
Parliament decided that the new memorial should be referred to as the "National War Memorial", even though it was to be a purely South Australian monument and in spite of the term already being used to describe the memorial to the South African War of 1899–1902. At least two perspectives have been offered as to why the term "national" was employed. First, as Donald Richardson observed, the name may have been chosen to emphasise the government's intention that the memorial should commemorate all who served during the war, not just those who came from South Australia; and second, Ken Inglis argued that the name may have reflected the perception (still held in spite of federation) that the "province is a nation".
1924 competition
The National War Memorial Committee was formed in order to bring the proposal to fruition, and in February 1924 the committee announced an architectural competition to find the design of the new memorial. In the preamble to the conditions of entry, it was stated that the new memorial was to serve the purpose of "perpetually commemorating the Victory achieved in the Great War, 1914–1918, the Supreme and personal sacrifice of those who participated in that War, and the National effort involved in such activities".
Entry was open to South Australians who were British subjects, A one-guinea entry fee was imposed and those intending to submit designs were required to file a statement of intent before 29 February 1924. The competition closed on 30 September 1924. Three assessors were nominated to judge the entries: the South Australian Architect-in-Chief, A. E. Simpson; local architect Herbert Louis Jackman (representing the South Australian Institute of Architects); and Sir William Sowden.