
Stratford Chunuk Bair commemorations and 5/7 RNZIR birthday
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We invite 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.
Please gather outside of the gates, safely away from the road.
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.
About Chunuk Bair
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 left un-wounded and Colonel Malone had been killed. Ottoman forces later recaptured the position from British reinforcements.
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.
Join us for a cuppa and scones after at the Centennial Rest Rooms and help us to celebrate the birthday of the 5/7 RNZIR
The West Coast company of 5/7 RNZIR descends in part from the 11th (Taranaki Rifles) Regiment, which was commanded 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.