The iconic State War Memorial is visited by more than 40,000 people each Anzac Day Dawn Service, with numerous wreath-laying ceremonies held every year.
View image slideshowThe State War Memorial Precinct is located on Mount Eliza overlooking Perth Water. The precinct comprises of the Cenotaph, Court of Contemplation, Flame of Remembrance and Pool of Reflection; with memorials to various battles, military units, prisoners of war and other groups found throughout the parklands.
Memorial services or film and photography bookings within the precinct require joint approval by the Botanic Gardens and Parks Authority and the Returned and Services League (RSLWA).
Cenotaph
An 18 metre granite obelisk honours all Western Australians who gave their lives in the service of their country. The design is almost a replica of the Australian Imperial Force Memorials erected in France and Belgium. The heavy concrete foundations are supplemented by heavy brick walls which enclose an inner crypt. The internal walls of the undercroft list the names of more than 7,000 members of the services killed in action or who died of wounds or illness in WWI. Construction of the Cenotaph began in 1928 by honorary architect General Sir J. Talbot Hobbs. It was officially unveiled on 24 November 1929, the year of the Centenary of Western Australia, by the State Governor Sir William Campion.
Bronze plaques on the outside walls of the undercroft list the names of nearly 4,000 Australians who lost their lives in WWII. Names of the fallen from subsequent conflicts are also included here. Underneath the Cenotaph is the Roll of Honour - marble tablets with the names of all servicemen and women from Western Australia who passed away in the Boer War, World War I, World War II, Korean War or Vietnam. Glass cases enclose the colours of the 1st, and 2nd, 11th, 16th, 28th and 44th Infantry Battalions and of the 10th Light Horse Regiment.
Over 1800 of these Western Australian service personnel are also represented in plaques along Kings Park's Honour Avenues.
ANZAC Bluff Commemorative Plaque
This plaque is dedicated to the 2,500 men of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps known as ANZAC, who lost their lives in the Gallipoli campaign of 1915.
The area below the Cenotaph was renamed Anzac Bluff in 1974 as it resembles the site where the soldiers first landed at Gallipoli.
Court of Contemplation
The Court of Contemplation is located at the western side of the precinct and was unveiled on 6 November 1955 by Sir Charles Gairdner. It commemorates the conflicts in which Western Australians have fallen, with the walls featuring the names of major battlefields.
The Flame of Remembrance within the Pool of Reflection was inaugurated by Queen Elizabeth II on 1 April 2000 and burns continuously. It symbolises the promise of all Western Australians:
"We will remember them"
