Community invited to Stratford Chunuk Bair commemorations

Stratford District Council (SDC) invites community members of all ages to commemorate the WWI battle of Chunuk Bair in Gallipoli at a wreath laying ceremony on Thursday 8 August 2024 from 9am until 9.30am at Stratford’s Malone Memorial Gates.

After the ceremony, light refreshments will be available to all attendees in the Centennial Rest Rooms, where the birthday of the 5th/7th Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment (5/7 RNZIR) will also be recognised.

Before dawn on 8 August 1915, under the command of Stratford’s Lieutenant-Colonel William George Malone, the Wellington Infantry Battalion captured Chunuk Bair, a high point of the Sari Bair range, and desperately held the position against repeated waves of attacks. By the time the Wellingtons were relieved that night, only 70 of the battalion’s 760 men were still standing and Colonel Malone had been killed. Ottoman forces later recaptured the position from British reinforcements.

Erin Bishop, Acting SDC Community Services Director, says the local connection to Colonel Malone makes the commemoration even more poignant.

“On the eighth of August 1923, eight years after Colonel Malone fell at Chunuk Bair, the Malone Memorial Gates were opened to honour our district’s fallen hero and his outstanding bravery and leadership. 101 years later and we still gather at the gates to remember those who, like Colonel Malone, didn’t make it home,” Erin says.

“The eighth of August also holds special significance to the 5th/7th Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment and we’re pleased to celebrate their birthday after the commemorations. All are welcome to join us for a cuppa and scones.”

The West Coast company of 5/7 RNZIR descends in part from the 11th (Taranaki Rifles) Regiment, which was led by Colonel Malone before WWI. An infantry company from the 11th Regiment was part of the Wellington Infantry Battalion under Malone’s command at Chunuk Bair. The significance of the battle led to the adoption of 8 August as the birthday of the Taranaki based regiment. After the Taranaki regiment was amalgamated and later became part of the 5/7 RNZIR, the Battalion embraced 8 August as their birthday too.

Did you know?

• Colonel Malone created the iconic ‘Lemon Squeezer’ hat, adopted by the New Zealand army. The distinctive shape was made to mirror Taranaki Maunga and deflect the rain.
• The Malone Memorial Gates are the largest war memorial to an individual soldier in New Zealand.