Australian War Memorial’s dawn of a new era
The Australian War Memorial marked the opening of its new Anzac Hall with an official ceremony on 23 June 2026.
This follows the staged openings of the main works components including the Atrium, Southern Entrance, Parade Ground, and the CEW Bean Building and Charles Bean Research Centre.
Visitors now can visit 3 major new galleries on modern conflicts: Afghanistan, Peacekeeping, and the Middle East. The new space also houses dynamic reimagined displays from the Second World War including “Australians in Bomber Command 1939–45” featuring the “G for George” aircraft, “Milne Bay” and “Sydney Under Attack”.
The Memorial’s Director, Matt Anderson, highlighted the commitment and hard work of 1,948 construction workers, which included more than 257 apprentices who were inducted into the Anzac Hall project. ‘More than 100 veterans were part of this development project,’ Mr Anderson said. ‘They have been here from the beginning and from the ground up.’
He added that the Memorial always wanted the new Anzac Hall to reflect, but not imitate, the heritage building: ‘The roof design was inspired by the iconic Rising Sun badge worn by the Australian Army. We used copper cladding to mirror the original copper dome silhouette.’
The completion of the third and final major works component represents 5 years of planning, 4 years of collecting, 3 years conserving, 2 years of detailed exhibition design and one intensive year of installation.
‘The Australian War Memorial has a mission unlike any other cultural institution in the country,’ Mr Anderson said. ‘We have a unique and enduring purpose and are 3 things at once – a shrine, an archive, and a museum. This allows us to explore more deeply each of the stories entrusted to us. That is how we help our visitors to understand the causes, conduct and consequences of conflict.
‘It is a tribute to our staff that we were able to stay open throughout a once-in-a-generation development while still delivering a world-class visitor experience. It is truly a remarkable achievement with hard work and ambition realised.’
Among the thousands of tasks undertaken, the movement of collection items into the new Anzac Hall stood out.
‘One of our collection managers, Kassandra Hobbs PSM, oversaw the relocation of more than 3,700 objects into Anzac Hall. Every one of those objects, from the giant Lancaster G for George bomber to a tiny lucky cat smuggled into a prisoner of war camp, helps tell a fundamental story of who we are as a nation,' Mr Anderson said.
The Australians in Bomber Command 1939–45 display in Anzac Hall alone will feature 369 objects, 70 per cent of which will be displayed to visitors for the very first time.