Overview
During World War I, some 330,000 Australian men and women served overseas. More than 60,000 of them never came home.
The letters and postcards they wrote – often under terrible conditions, such as in trenches on the Western Front – became treasured keepsakes for their families and friends.
The war years of 1914–18 coincided with the ‘golden age’ of the postcard, and saw the production of millions of embroidered silk postcards. France was the largest source of these, and hundreds of designs catered specifically to members of the Australian, New Zealand, British, French, Canadian or South African armed forces.
Particularly popular themes were remembrance, liberty, unity, souvenirs of France and Belgium, and regimental badges and crests. Others were of more sentimental design, with flowers and foliage, birds and butterflies, or charming scenery.
Technical specifications
- Issue date
- 15 April 2025
- Issue withdrawal date
- 1 November 2025
- Denomination
- 1 x $1.50, 1 x $2.85
- Stamp & product design
- Jo Muré, Australia Post Design Studio
- Paper: gummed
- Tullis Russell 104gsm Red Phosphor/Blue PVA Stamp Paper
- Printer: gummed
- RA
- Printing process
- Offset lithography
- Stamp size (mm)
- 37.5 x 26
- Perforations
- 13.86 x 14.6
- Sheet layout
- Module of 50
- FDI postmark
- Canberra ACT 2601
- FDI withdrawal date
- 14 May 2025
$1.50 The Glory of Anzac
Featuring a coat of arms, national flag, wattle blossom, map of Australia and a kangaroo, this postcard is typical of those sent home by Australian soldiers.
Stamp image: State Library Victoria, Shirley Jones Collection of Military Postcards
$2.85 (International Post) Souvenir from France
When writing home from the trenches, soldiers were often prohibited from stating exactly where they were located, for reasons of military security. Many soldiers on the Western Front headed their letters and postcards as being from ‘Somewhere in France’ or ‘Somewhere in Belgium’.
Stamp image: State Library Victoria, Shirley Jones Collection of Military Postcards
