Cenotaph Stories

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A Year in Review: Online Cenotaph 2025
As 2025 comes to a close, we look back on a year shaped by connection and continuity. Online Cenotaph, grounded in its role as a living memorial, continued to bring people together across Aotearoa New Zealand and beyond. Whakapapa research, volunteer mahi, digital contributions, community events, and record enhancement all contributed to another significant year.
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Lest We Forget Poetry Competition: Resilient Bonds
Online Cenotaph Staff
Our annual Lest We Forget poetry competition was held in Hall of Memories II on Anzac Day. The 2025 theme, Resilient Bonds: War’s Human Legacy, called for poems that explored the lasting relationships forged in times of conflict—connections that span generations, geography, and loss. Here are our finalists reading their winning poems.
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Remembering the Fallen: Memorials and Memory in post-War New Zealand
Matthew Nickless
Collection Technician - Research Support
In towns and cities across Aotearoa New Zealand, war memorials stand as quiet witnesses to sacrifice, loss, and remembrance. The story of a lamp-post in Rakaia, gifted in memory of one young soldier, reminds us of the deeply personal motives behind these public memorials.
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A Year in Review: Online Cenotaph 2024
Online Cenotaph team
As another year draws to a close, the Online Cenotaph team at Auckland War Memorial Museum reflects on a year of community-driven commemoration. In this end of year review, we've compiled some highlights showing how, together with our community, we have honoured New Zealand's veterans in 2024.
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A message home: Connecting whānau through Online Cenotaph
Victoria Passau, Online Cenotaph & Enquiry Service Manager
In 2024, sound history researcher Sarah Johnston shared a poignant story about a World War II sound disc that reconnected the family of Daniel Joseph Clifford, a young New Zealand airman, with the voice of their long-lost loved one.
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Online Cenotaph: Connecting communities through collective memory
Victoria Passau, Online Cenotaph & Enquiry Service Manager
This article summarises how Online Cenotaph fosters social cohesion by engaging communities in shaping New Zealand’s military history through digital interaction. Drawing from research by Liew and Passau (2024), it highlights how user contributions transform military history into a living heritage, connecting people and strengthening communal ties.
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New Zealand's post-WWII conflicts in South East Asia
Matthew Nickless
Collection Technician - Research Support
In the period between World War II and the Vietnam War, New Zealand was involved in a number of engagements in South East Asia that are often forgotten. This blog is a short explainer of those conflicts.
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A Year in Review: Online Cenotaph 2023
Online Cenotaph, Sophie Elborough and Matthew Nickless
The Auckland War Memorial Museum’s Online Cenotaph team has had another impactful year in 2023, marked by sharing poignant stories, and enhanced community engagement. This review highlights the key achievements and milestones of the year, showcasing our commitment to honouring New Zealand’s military history.
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25 Years of Online Cenotaph
Victoria Passau
Online Cenotaph and Enquiry Services Manager
Online Cenotaph has been commemorating the experiences of Aotearoa New Zealand’s military service for more than 25 years. Online Cenotaph is a collection of data relating to Aotearoa New Zealand’s operational military service including personal, biographical, demographic, social and military information. But it is much more than a collection of datapoints.
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Support Online Cenotaph
December 2021 marked 25 years of Online Cenotaph. The Museum is working hard to expand the voices being shared on Online Cenotaph so that more of our communities can access this taonga. We are so excited to recognise this significant milestone in digital commemoration, but we need your help to fulfil our potential for years to come.
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