David John Garland

As senior army camp chaplain in Queensland from 1914 to 1917, Garland experienced the World War I both at home and at the front.

[14] At the outbreak of war Garland was in Brisbane, and served as chaplain to soldiers in training camps, as they prepared for active service overseas.

[16] Garland is specifically credited with initiating the Anzac Day march, the wreath-laying ceremonies at memorials and the special church services, the two minutes silence, and the luncheon for returned soldiers.

[18] Through this period, Garland was an active correspondent with his fellow priest and army chaplain William Maitland Woods.

[15] The wartime letters cease in August 1917, with Garland's news that he would be joining Woods in the Middle East, having been appointed representative of the Church of England in Australia to inquire into the "moral and social" needs of the Australian men in Egypt.

With a large sum of money at his disposal, Garland had been placed in charge of the Church of England Fund for Soldiers at the Front.

[15] Garland travelled to Egypt and served 1918–19 in the Middle East where he founded eight clubs for Australian troops, and was the first chaplain to celebrate the Eucharist in the Anglican chapel of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre following the expulsion of the Turks from Jerusalem.

[2] Upon his return to Queensland in 1920, Garland became rector of Ithaca and continued a diverse and illustrious career of community involvement, including presidency of the New Settlers’ League from 1926.

[2][20] The Canon Garland Memorial Society was established on 9 July 2013 at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church at Woolloongabba, Brisbane.

[21] In November 2015, the Brisbane City Council officially opened a lawn garden called Canon Garland Place at Toowong Cemetery with a commemorative information board.

[24] This collection consists of letters received by Garland from Australian army soldiers, nurses and chaplains serving abroad during World War I, as well as carbon copies of his replies.

Also included are letters from his colleague The Reverend William Maitland Woods regarding the discovery, evacuation and transportation to Australia of the Shellal Mosaic.

[27] This Wikipedia article incorporates text from Digitised@SLQ: Letters of army chaplain David John Garland (14 October 2015) by Robyn Hamilton published by the State Library of Queensland under CC BY licence, accessed on 17 February 2016.