Wagga Wagga Light Horse Memorial

The memorial is a bronze sculpture located in the Victory Memorial Gardens.  It honours the service and sacrifice of soldiers from the Riverina and South West Slopes who served the nation through the Light Horse. The region’s links to the Light Horse date back to 1889 with the Murrumbidgee Light Horse in Wagga Wagga. Many local men answered the call for King and Country at the outbreak of the First World War and joined the 1^st, 6^th, and 12^th Light Horse brigades. 

The memorial was designed by Dubbo sculptor Brett “Mon” Garling and is inspired by the Anzac ideal of “never leaving a mate behind”, capturing the moment when a Light Horseman on his Waler horse rescues a stranded trooper during battle (Region Riverina, 20 September 2023). 

In 2017 Maria Flinn, together with John Ploenges, Dianna Pilmore and Pat Leary, formed The Riverina Light Horse Memorial Committee, spending six years working on delivering the project and securing funding for the memorial which cost approximately $280,000. Funds included $150,000 from the Federal Government’s Saluting Their Service grant program and an additional $50,000 from Wagga Wagga City Council.

The memorial was unveiled on 16 September 2023 by Michael McCormack MP, before a large crowd which included a parade of Light Horsemen in full historical uniforms.