Anzac poppy

The Anzac poppy is the most powerful symbol relating to the impact of war in New Zealand society. The red poppy is an international symbol of war remembrance, and is usually worn in New Zealand the day before and on Anzac Day, 25 April, and can also be seen at major commemorative events, military funerals, war graves and cemeteries in New Zealand and around the world. (Anzac Day is the anniversary of the landing of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps at Gallipoli in 1915, and is observed in New Zealand as a day of commemoration for those who died in the service of their country and to honour returned servicemen and women.)

History

The red or Flanders poppy was one of the first flowers to grow in the mud and soil of the First World War battlefields in Flanders. This was famously observed by Canadian Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae in his poem 'In Flanders fields' ('In Flanders fields the poppies blow / Between the crosses row on row...'). After his death in 1918, the poppy became a symbol of regeneration and growth in a landscape of blood and destruction.

New Zealand took up a French idea to wear poppies as such a symbol. In 1921, the New Zealand Returned Soldiers' Association (now known as the Returned Services' Association) placed an order for thousands of silk poppies made by the French Children's League. The first Poppy Day appeal was going to take place around Armistice Day in November 1921 (as other countries were doing), but the ship carrying the poppies from France arrived in New Zealand too late, so the RSA decided to wait until Anzac Day, 1922. This first Poppy Day was a huge success, with some of the profits being sent to the French Children's League to help relieve suffering in the war-ravaged areas of northern France. The RSA used the remainder to assist needy, unemployed returned soldiers and their families. This tradition continues today with the funds providing welfare services to war veterans and the returned service community.

Manufacture

Over time, New Zealand's supply of red poppies has been sourced both overseas and locally. The RSA began producing its own poppies in 1931, with disabled former servicemen in Auckland and Christchurch making them. The current 'opened' or 'flat' paper design was adopted for Poppy Day in 1978.

Despite widespread concern, poppy production was moved to Australia in 2010. There was further controversy when Chinese-made poppies were imported in 2012. In 2015, poppies were once more made by members of the Christchurch RSA.