The Gallipoli Flag at St John’s Cathedral – a national treasure

Displayed in St John’s Cathedral in Brisbane is an ancient “Union Jack”, one of Australia’s most significant and symbolic war treasures.

The flag was used throughout the Gallipoli campaign by an Anzac chaplain, the Reverend Alexander Maxwell. Maxwell was one of 22 priests from the Brisbane Anglican Diocese who served alongside Australian troops during World War I. He spent much of the Gallipoli engagement as a hospital ship chaplain, caring for more than 5,000 sick, wounded and dying Anzacs.

On Sunday 19 December 1915, Maxwell was at Anzac Cove where he had gone ashore from his hospital ship. It was the last full day of the evacuation from Gallipoli - all remaining Australian and New Zealand troops would be withdrawn by 4.10 the following morning.

Maxwell had taken a Union Jack to the war, which he used for his chaplaincy duties throughout the Gallipoli engagement.

On 19 December, Maxwell had gone ashore to visit Hell Spit cemetery, one of 20 gravesites established by the Anzacs on the Peninsula. At about 1.30 that afternoon he was returning from the cemetery, carrying the flag with him, when he and the flag were fired on three times by Beachy Bill.

“Beachy Bill” was the nickname for a battery of Turkish guns located south of Anzac Cove, near Hell Spit cemetery. Throughout the Gallipoli campaign, Beachy Bill’s gunners fired at will onto the Cove, inflicting over 1,000 casualties. The shells fired at Maxwell and the flag fortunately missed their mark, though shrapnel from an exploding shell grazed one of the padre’s pockets.

In April 1916, Maxwell returned to Brisbane from war duties. In 1920, he was invited to show the flag that he had flown on the last day at Gallipoli to General Sir William Birdwood who was on a visit to Brisbane.

Birdwood had been commander of the Anzac sector at Gallipoli. Maxwell showed Birdwood his flag at Government House in Brisbane where the General was staying. Birdwood expressed great interest in the flag and he signed his name on its top right hand corner.

On Anzac Day 1929, Maxwell formally presented the flag to St John’s Cathedral and was interviewed by the Brisbane Courier before the event. Maxwell told the newspaper that the flag was the last one flying at the evacuation.

There is another Union Jack at the Australian War Memorial which was previously thought to be the last flag at Anzac. It was removed from one of the signals offices by official war correspondent, Charles Bean.

However, Bean removed his flag on 18 December, the second last day of evacuation, approximately 24 hours before Captain Maxwell took his flag ashore and carried it along the Cove. Maxwell’s flag was the last known flag to be displayed at Anzac and was done so just before the final group of soldiers departed in the early hours of 20 December. 

• Taken from "St John's Cathedral and the Anzac Legend" by Denzil Scrivens Publis… https://www.stjohnscathedral.com.au/discover-st-johns/