Lockhart Shire Council and The Rock RSL Sub-Branch officially opened The Rock Avenue of Honour Extension, a project honouring the service and sacrifice of Australian Defence Force personnel.
This significant event coincided with Chauvel’s Anniversary Light Horse Memorial Ride, bringing together history, remembrance, and community spirit in a powerful tribute to Australia’s military heritage.
Adding to the solemnity and grandeur of the occasion, The Australian Army Band Kapooka performed throughout the event.
The Avenue of Honour extension was made possible through funding from the Australian Government Local Roads and Community Infrastructure (LRCI) Program, with over $113,000 was invested in the project, ensuring that this historic site along Urana Street continues to serve as a place of reflection and tribute for generations to come. In kind contributions from Lockhart Shire Council and The Rock RSL Sub-Branch were also made.
Member for Riverina Michael McCormack spoke at the opening.
Pat Leary, of Coolamon, came up with the initiative to raise awareness and funds for the Lighthorse movement.
“Australia shipped more than 120,000 horses overseas during The Great War of 1914-18 – and we know that no war is great but that’s how termed it. They served with Australians and other Allied troops in Egypt and the Middle East,” Mr McCormack said.
The Army preferred Waler horses because they were well suited to the desert conditions in Egypt and Palestine.
Walers had been used by stockmen and mounted units in Australia for a long, long time.
Australian Light horsemen usually fought dismounted. They were considered to be “mounted infantry” rather than “cavalry”.
Soldiers rode horses to a battlefield where they engaged with the enemy on foot and then departed quickly on horseback when disengaging. Using horses made the force more mobile and faster than infantry units and horse-drawn artillery.
During combat, they rode in sections of four light horsemen with one trooper holding the reins of all four horses. The other three men in his section dismounted and then fought and engaged with the enemy on foot. The horse handler had a dangerous task because enemy aircraft could target him.
One Australian was General Sir Henry George (better known as “Harry”) Chauvel GCMG, KCB. He was the very first Australian to rise to the rank of Lieutenant General and later General and the first to command an entire Corps.
His name is a constant in the annals of World War I and especially the deeds of the Light Horse.
Chauvel was born 160 years and 12 days ago in Tabulam, a tiny regional village in the far north east of New South Wales, so he was a country boy. His life is now legendary.
In 1945, on the death of Sir Harry at age 79, a letter to Lady Sibyl Chauvel, read:
“In 1941 when General Cyril White died in that tragic (air) crash at Canberra, I happened to be speaking with the door keeper at the Army Department at Headquarters in Melbourne, who was saying that “they would never get another one like him” and then he added: “Do you know, the best loved man that ever we had here was General Chauvel.”
“Great leaders are revered. Great men are remembered. Harry Chauvel was one of our greatest.”
This article appeared in Narrandera Argus, 20 March 2025.
