The 11th of November commemorates the signing of the Armistice between the Triple Entente and Germany in 1918, which formed the basis for peace after the First World War.

For Australians and French people alike, this day is used for a number of commemorations. In Melbourne, the Shrine of Remembrance organises various ceremonies including one for the French people to commemorate this day together. Major Margie Moore started the proceedings. Claude Midon, President of l’Association des Anciens Combattants Français du Victoria spoke about the importance of remembering, and thanked the Governors of the Shrine of Remembrance for their hospitality.

Myriam Boisbouvier-Wylie, the Honorary Consul of France for Melbourne, then gave a moving speech about the friendship between the two countries, speaking specifically about how French people owed so much to the Australian soldiers who gave their lives on French soil.

Students from Camberwell Primary School and Auburn High School, both of whom offer a bilingual English and French programme, were present in order to commemorate this armistice. Each school laid a wreath of flowers at the foot of the commemorative stone, and a representative of the Union des Francais de l’Etranger (UFE) also presented a wreath. The ceremony was ended with the students meeting French veterans, where they shared their memories.