ADELAIDE RIVER Adelaide River War Cemetery | Darwin Australia | WWII

The Adelaide River War Cemetery is a solemn reminder of the impact World War II had on this part of Australia. After Darwin suffered its first air attack on 19 February 1942, Darwin became the heart of the operational base. The Northern Territory contained the largest operational base in the South West Pacific. Adelaide River and Alice Springs were the headquarters of large base establishments and the main north south road from Darwin to the railhead at Alice Springs was built during the war.
There are 434 military burials in total and the adjoining Civil Cemetery honours 63 civilians including the nine post office workers who were killed in the 19 February 1942 bombing of Darwin. Also visit the Memorial to the Missing, where 292 service personnel are remembered, who lost their lives in Timor and other northern regions. The Adelaide River War Cemetery was created for the burial of servicemen and women who died in this area of Northern Australia. The cemetery was opened in February 1942 in the immediate aftermath of the first Japanese air raids on Darwin.
After the war the Army Graves Service moved graves from civil cemeteries, isolated sites and temporary military burial grounds, into the Adelaide River War Cemetery. In September 1947, the Adelaide River War Cemetery was taken over by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and is now maintained by staff of the Office of Australian War Graves. The Northern Territory Memorial to the Missing was erected in the cemetery, as a memorial to those who have no known grave.
This Memorial was erected to commemorate those of the Australian Army, the Royal Australian Air Force and the Australian Merchant Navy who lost their lives in the South West Pacific region during the Second World War. The Adelaide River Civil Cemetery adjoins the War Cemetery. In the Civil Cemetery are 63 civilians who died as a result of war service, including nine Post Office workers killed on 19 February 1942, as a result of a direct hit on the original Darwin Post Office by Japanese bombs.
The Cemetery is divided into two main sections. The eastern section is a military cemetery, containing 434 burials of service personnel who died in and near north Australia during World War Two, and memorials to persons who died in the north Australian theatre but whose bodies were not recovered. The burials comprise 14 airmen of the Royal Air Force, 12 unidentified men of the British Merchant Navy, one soldier of the Canadian Army, 18 sailors, 181 soldiers and 201 airmen belonging to the Australian forces, and seven men of the Australian Merchant Navy.
The graves are laid out in formal straight lines with bronze plaques on low concrete plinths. A small plant shrub is located between each plaque. Located centrally in the cemetery between the entrance building and the Cross of Sacrifice (at the rear of the cemetery) is the Northern Territory Memorial to the Missing, constructed of sandstone. The total number honoured on the Memorial is 293, of whom 103 belong to the Australian Army, 164 to the Royal Australian Air Force and 26 to the Australian Merchant Navy.
Included in the Army honours is a sister of the Australian Army Nursing Service. A Cross of Sacrifice is located at the rear of the cemetery in a direct line behind the entranceway and the Memorial to the Missing. It is constructed of stone against which a bronze sword stands out. Its symbolism is open to various interpretations - to some the sword itself is the "Cross" and the stonework merely the frame; to others the sword symbolises the offering up in sacrifice for those who perished by the sword.
The western section of the cemetery contains the burial places of 64 civilians who died while involved with war service, including a common grave with low set memorial to Darwin Post Office personnel who were killed during the first Japanese air raid on 19 February 1942. The other civilian graves are laid out in formal straight lines with bronze plaques on low concrete plinths, no planting is located in the lawn area. The Cemetery provides evidence of the impact of WWII on northern Australia and is associated with the first bombing of Darwin on 19 February 1942.
The Adelaide River War Cemetery is typical of the design used by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission for war cemeteries around the world. In the Adelaide River War Cemetery the standard design is reflected in the lay out of the graves in formal straight rows with bronze plaques on low concrete plinths, used in tropical areas, and the Cross of Sacrifice within a landscaped garden. Music is A Quiet Thought by Wayne Jones

 

So glad you have included this...

One thing though...paragraphs man, paragraphs! A wall of words doesn't invite the reader.

 

Oops didnt even notice that. I copied and pasted from my YT description and didnt even notice it changed the formatting.

 

Thanx for sharing! God bless their souls! R.I.P.