British landed at Cape Helles,
the southern point of the Gallipoli peninsula. This
force was to push north to the Kilitbahir plateau.
However, determined Turkish opposisition held the
British to a small area at the tip of the peninsula.
In an attempt to break out of to position at Helles,
sezie the village of Krithia and the commanding
hill, Achi Baba, a combined assault by British
Australian, New Zealand and French troops was
planned to begin on 6 May. Little initial progres
was made and on 8 May the Australians and New
Zealanders were ordered forward.Moving over open and
exposed ground towards Krithia (Alçitepe), the
troops found the enemy fire so accurate and intense
that same men raised their shovels in front of their
faces to protect themselves.
However, the Turkish lines were not reached and over
1,000 Australian and 800 New Zealand soldiers were
killed or wounded. The Charce of the 2nd Infantry
Brigade (Australian) at Kritbia (dtail) by Charles
Wheeler.(Australian War Memorial) Countless dead,
countless! It was inpossible to count. Memish
Bayraktir, Turkish soldier By mid May the initial
attempt to size the Dardanelles had failed. The
British clung to small gains they had made.
The Turkish army now mounted a major attack to drive
the Australians and New Zealanders from Anzac. In
the darknes of the arly hours of the early hours of
19 May, Turkish soldiers advanced in waves on their
enemies. The Turks were met with a concentrated fire
that kept them from entering the Anzac trenches,
except in one or two places. For about six hours the
Turks pressed their attack only to be driven back.
Over 10,000 Turkish soldiers were hit and an
estimated 3,000 lay dead between the lines. In this
battle the Australians and New Zealand lost
160 dead and 468 wounded. The Turkish bodies lay out
in the open sun until 24 May when a truce was
arranged to permit burial of the dead.
A Turkish officer is led bilindfolded through the
Anzac lines to discuss a truce to bury the
Turkish dead after the attack of 19 May 1915.
(Australian War Memorial H03952) They lived with
death ,dined with disease. From an anonymous poem
about Gallipoli. When the Gallipoli campaign began
no one expecdet that it would last so long or cause
so many casualties.
The number of wounded from the initial invasion
overwhelmed the poorly organised medical facilities.
During major attacks many hours passed before a
wounded man received adequate care. Eventualliy,
proper lines of evacuation were established to
hospital ship and back to base hospitals at Lemnos
island, Egypt and Malta.
As the summer heat intensified, conditions on
Gallipoli deteriorated. Primitive sanitation led to
a plague of flies and the outbreak of disease.
Thousands of men were evacuated suffering from
dysentery, diarrhoea and enteric fever.
The poor and monotonous diet of bully beef, hard
biscuits, jam and tea made the situation worse. Men
suffered particularly from lice in their clothing.
Morale sank as the prospect of victory receded. Many
came to feel they would never leave Gallipoli alive
Strecher bearers carrying wounded at Anzac. The
soldier on the left is carrying filled water bottles
up to the front line. (Australian War Memorial
C01761)
There is bell waiting here. C.A. McAnulty,
Australian soldier killed in action at Lone Pine,
7-12 August 1915 Aware of the need to seize the
initiative, the British planned a new offensive for
early August.
There would be a British landing at Suvla Bay(Suvla
Koyu) and a major asault to the north of the Anzac
position to capture the high ground leading to
Chunuk Bair and Hill 971. Supporting attack were
plannned at Lone Pine and along a narrow ridge known
as the Nek.
On the afternoon of 6 August at Lone Pine the
Australians attacked and occupied Turkish frontline
positions against determined Turkish counter
attacks. Most of this desperate fighting took place
quarters in the Turkish trenches. On the morning of
7 August at the Nek, four waves of Australians were
cut down before they reached the enemy line.
The Australian official historian, referring to
these light horsemen, later wrote : "The flower of
the youth of Victoria and Western Australia fell in
that attempt" I am prepared for death and hope that
God will have forgiven me all my sins. Lietenant
Colonel Willam Malone, New Zealand soldier, in
letter to his wife before he was killed defending
the position his battalon had seized on the summit
of Chunuk Bair.
The main attack of the Agust offensive was made by a
mixed New Zealand, Australian, British and Indian
force against the heights of Chunuk Bair and nearby
peaks. It was believel that if these positions could
be captured and held, then the Turkish line at Anzac
would be in danger and a breakout towards the
Dardanelles possible.
Between 7 and 9 August the attacking troops made
their way up the steep slopes and through the deep
gullies on the approaches to the heights. Some units
became lost in this wild country and planned
assaults were often carried out too late and with
inadequate support. The New Zealand fighting
desperately and sustaining great losses reached the
Chunuk Bair summit and gazed upon the Dardanelles.
By 10 August New Zealand troops had been replaced by
British units when the Turks determinedly counter
attacked and regained the summit. The August
offensive thusended in failure. New Zealand soldiers
rest in a trech during their assault towards Chunuk
Bair on the niht of 6 August 1915. (National Libary
of New Zealand, F58131)
I hope our poor pals who lie all around us sleep
soundly, and do not stir in discontent as we go
filimg away from them forever : New Zealand soldier
at the evacuation of Gallipoli After August, the
British mounted no further major attacks at
Gallipoli, The British Government grew alarmed at
the failure to break through to the Dardanelles and
there was mounting criticims of the whole venture.
In November, when winter arrived, there were men who
froze at their posts and over 16,000 troops
suffering from frostbite and exposure had to be
evacuated. Eventually it was cided that the campaign
could not meet its objectives and the British and
Dominion force on Gallipoli sholuld withdraw.
Many thought a withdrawal would result in heavy
casualties. However, laborate precautions were taken
to deceive the Turks into thinking nothing unusual
was ppening. Between 8 and 20 December 1915, 90,000
men were secretly embarked from Suvla and Anzac. On
8 and 9 January 1916 a similar evacuation was
conducted at Helles. Only a handful of casualties
were suffered in these well-executed operations.
Their duty was come here and imnvade, ours was to
defend. Adil Shahin, Turkish veteran of Gallipoli,
The British had expected the Gallipoli operation to
conclude quickly and that the Turkish army would be
no match for their soldiers.
Instead they met a determined and resourceful
opponent. At critical moments Turkish and German
commanders took quick and decisive action and at no
time did the British Empire forces manage the
breakthrough which they so desperately sought. On
Gallipoli men of both sides showed bravery and
endurace. After the Turkish counter attack of 19
May, in which the Turks suffered so severely, the
Australian and New soldiers began to regard the
Turkish soldier with great respect.
Something of spirit of the Turks on Gallipoli can be
seen in the response to an Austuralian note thrown
into a Turkish trench unging its occupants to
surrender : the response read!! You think there are
no true Turks left. But there are Turks, asnd
Turks'sons!'' In this defence of the homeland, in
the conflict known here as the Battle of Çanakkale,
Turkish authorities have put their casualties at
between 250,000 and 300,000, of whom at least 87,000
died.
Turkish artillery on Gallipoli. (Austuralian War
Memorial A05287) Insed : Coloned Mustafa Kemal, one
of the principal Turkish commanders at Gallipoli
later known as Ataturk - ''Fatber of the Turks''. He
was to become the first President of the Republic of
Turkey. (Austuralian WAr Memorial A05319)
Anzac stool, and still stands, for reckless
valour in a good cause, for enterprise resource
fulness, fidelity, comradeship, and endurance that
will never own defeat. C.E.W Bean, Australian
official historian The British>Empire, Dominion and
French forces suffered severely on Gallipoli.
More than 21,200 British, 10,000 French, 8,700
Australians, 2,700 New Zealanders, 1,350 Indians and
49 Newfoundlanders were killed. The Allied wounded
totalled over 97,000. In Australian and New Zealand
people looked in disbelief at the mounting casualty
lists. Gallipoli was the beginning of a long road
for the Australian and New Zealand soldiers that
took them to the even more costly battlefields of
France and Belgium.
On 25 April 1916, people gathered througt Australian
and New Zealand to commemorate Gallipoli. Today
Anzac Day has become a time to remember those
who served and died for Australian and New Zeraland
in war. However, it remains a day that recalls
particularly 25 April 1915 when Australians and New
Zealanders landed on the shores of Gallipoli, where
they founded a lasting tradition of courage,
endurance and sacrifice. An Australian officer
visiths a comrade's grave on Gallipoli. (Australian
War Memorial G00149) |