The Anzac corpse was sent to Gallipoli because they were in Egypt and had not yet taken any part in the war. They landed and fought hard to gain the heights by the end of the first day, but yet only succeeded in making it half-way up the cliff range. By the end of the day they were told to dig in and withstand the Turkish attacks throughout the night (Darlington, 2012).
Anzacs soon became known as jolly, hard fighting men that could get over any obstetrical they were faced with. They saw war as a change to prove their worthiness to be Australian and fight for their motherland Britain. Because of this view on war they were eager for battle, always ready to go to the front lines and shoot down some Turks, even if they were severely injured. Below are some quotes from the diary of Ashmead-Bartlett (Bartlett, 2013):
Anzacs soon became known as jolly, hard fighting men that could get over any obstetrical they were faced with. They saw war as a change to prove their worthiness to be Australian and fight for their motherland Britain. Because of this view on war they were eager for battle, always ready to go to the front lines and shoot down some Turks, even if they were severely injured. Below are some quotes from the diary of Ashmead-Bartlett (Bartlett, 2013):
We publish today a brilliant description of the landing of the Australians and New Zealanders on Gallipoli Peninsula by that experienced war correspondent, Mr Ashmead Bartlett. It is a thrilling story, a story that will make us all feel proud of our soldiers. They have shown that, though transplanted to these southern skies, the breed is still the same as that of the men of Mons and Waterloo, and a hundred other great battles. They were in a desperate position when they landed on the narrow beach in the dawn, but they did not hesitate. They carried the Turkish trenches on the beach and on the cliffs, and, without the support of artillery, held on all day of Sunday, April 25. Their dash and courage saved the situation, and no troops that ever marched have done better.
"It required splendid skill, organisation, and leadership. The huge armada got under way from Mudros Bay, on the Island of Lemnos, without accident. The warships and transports were divided into five divisions. Never before has an attempt been made to land so large a force in the face of a well-prepared enemy."
"The boats returned, and a pinnace came alongside with two recumbent figures on deck, and a small midshipman, who cheerfully waving his hand said, "With shot through the stomach." The three had been wounded in the first burst of musketry. The boats had almost reached the beach when a party of Turks, who were entrenched on shore opened a terrible fusillade from rifles and Maxim guns. Fortunately, most of the bullets went high."
"The country in the vicinity of the landing looked formidable and forbidding. To the sea it presents a steep front, broken into innumerable ridges, bluffs, valleys, and sandspits, rising to a height of several hundred feet. The surface is bare, crumbly sandstone, covered with shrubbery about six feet in height."
All of these passages from Ashmead-Bartlett diary reveal the true extent of what the Anzacs went through in their time at Gallipoli. From the forbidding landscape to the skill, organisation and leadership desplaid by fellow corps members. The Australian and New Zealand soldiers went through tough times but even thought they did they kept their heads high and continued to be cheerful even with a bullet wound in the stomach. These were the experiences and perspectives of the Australian and New Zealand army corps.
A brief quote from Bill Gammage explains why the soldier wrote home and what they wrote about (Vic, 2013).
A brief quote from Bill Gammage explains why the soldier wrote home and what they wrote about (Vic, 2013).
Soldiers […] wrote for varying purposes. Some were writing home, others deliberately recording the climax of their lives. Some hardly mentioned the war, others rarely ignored it. Some minimised their discomforts, a few exaggerated them. Many, when it came to the point, described just what they saw and felt, because the tumult of the hour denied them an alternative, because they wanted an exact account for themselves if they lived or for their relatives if they died, or sometimes because they realised that the thoughts they wrote down might be their last on earth.
- Bill Gammage