On November 19, 1941, the Royal Australian Navy suffered the worst loss in its short history since Federation, with the sinking of the light cruiser HMAS Sydney and the loss of her entire ship's company of 645, in action against the German raider SMS Kormoran.

This loss of officers and men represented some 35 percent of the total losses suffered by the RAN during World War II.

The debate still continues, in different arenas, about the circumstances surrounding Sydney's loss, it has been subject to a Senate Inquiry in 1999 and more recently was the subject of a symposium in Fremantle on November 16, 2001 to narrow down possible search sites for the remains of the Sydney and the Kormoran.

Some three years ago the Rotary Club of Geraldton was looking for a significant activity to undertake in their community, situated 420 kilometres north of Perth.

Following a talk to the club about the loss of Sydney, the Rotarians decided it would be a most appropriate undertaking to build a memorial to the memory of those lost in the ship.

HMAS Sydney was a regular visitor to Geraldton and her last visit was only a month before her loss. The intentions of Rotary were to work towards dedicating the memorial on the 60th anniversary of the loss of HMAS Sydney.

The $1.1m dollars needed for the memorial was raised through grants from the three levels of government, donations by both money and work in kind by locals and local tradespeople.

The memorial sculptors and concept designers were Mrs Joan Walsh-Smith and her husband Charles Smith. This couple also designed/sculpted the Army Memorial in Anzac Parade, Canberra.

The memorial has been constructed on Geraldton's Mount Scott and is a significant landmark. Features of the memorial are:

A black granite wall of remembrance complete with the 645 names of the ship's company from HMAS Sydney as well as photo-engraved images of the ship and history.

A structure featuring a seven-tonne dome made from 645 silver seagulls placed on top of seven stone pillars representing Australia's states and territories is the centrepiece of the memorial. Hanging from the centre of the dome is an anchor shape with red and green lanterns at the end of the anchor flukes. From both lanterns the eternal flame flickers.

The statue of a bronze woman looking eternally out to sea represents all mothers, daughters and wives of the lost ship's company.

A stele depicting the bow of HMAS Sydney and her mast will be added to the memorial by early December. The function of the stele is as a symbolic grave marker. The stele at 19 metres is some half higher again than the memorial dome and will be visible for many miles, particularly for those seafarers off the coast.

It is a pity that RAN ships no longer call at Geraldton frequently, as the huge efforts of this city to commemorate the memory of arguably our most significant loss, can not be appreciated by the wider navy family.

By Gary Booth