Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives ...

You are
now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace.
There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us
where they lie side by side here in this country of ours ... You, the
mothers who sent their sons from faraway countries, wipe away your
tears; your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace. After
having lost their lives on this land they have become our sons as
well.

- Mustafa Kemal Ataturk 1934

WHY WERE THE ANZAC’S
SENT TO GALLIPOLI?
•At the outbreak of war, Ottoman Empire was on the verge of ruin.
• Lost territory in devastating wars (Italo-Turkish War, Balkan War).
• Economy close to ruin.
• People were demoralised.
• Lacked resources to recover, inadequate weaponry and machinery - no finances to buy new ones.

•Only option as recorded by Talat Pashs, Minister of Interior:

“… to join one of the country groups so that it could organize its domestic
administration, strengthen and maintain its commerce and industry, expand its
railroads, in short, to survive and to preserve its existence.”
•Unable to negotiate alliances:
• Most European powers were not interested in joining an alliance with the ailing Ottoman Empire.
• Only Russia seemed to have an interest but under conditions that would have amounted a Russian
protectorate on the Ottoman lands.
• It was impossible to reconcile an alliance with the French: as France's main ally was Russia, the long-
time enemy of the Ottoman Empire since the War of 1828.
• Britain declined an Ottoman request.

• Ottoman Sultan Mehmed V specifically wanted the Empire to remain a non-belligerent nation.
• However, he was largely a figurehead, without real control of the government.
• Pressure from some of Mehmed's senior advisors led the Empire to enter an alliance with Germany and the Central Powers.
• Tipping point – loss of dreadnought battleship order:
• Ship 1: Reşadiye
• Completed in August 1914; she was seized by the British Royal Navy and commissioned as HMS Erin
• Ship 2: Fatih Sultan Mehmed
• ordered in April 1914 and little work had been done by the start of the war
• broken up for scrap
GERMAN INTEREST IN
OTTOMAN EMPIRE
•Geographically important position for Germany.
• Imperial ambitions
• 1909 – clear will not will naval arms race
• Technologically superior – infrastructure unable to support battleships
in distant waters.

•Sought strategic alliance with Ottoman Empire.

• Baghdad Railway – German settlement and Persian Gulf access –
opens attack options on British-occupied India.
• Access to Afrian colonies
• Access to trade markets in Inida

•To discourage the Ottoman Empire from joining the Triple

Entente (Allied Powers), Romania and Bulgaria being
pressured to join Central Powers.
(SHHHH IT’S A SECRET)
TREATY WITH GERMANY
•Signed August 2 1914 - Ottomans to enter the war on German side ONE day after
war declared on Russia.
•Internal disagreement about the alliance – the Sultan and Cemal Pasha (cabinet
member and military leader) did not sign the treaty.
ALLIED INTEREST IN THE
GALLIPOLI PENINSULAR
•Geographically important position.
•Goals of the Gallipoli Campaign:
1. To get control over the Dardanelles and Bosporus straits
2. With control over this 67 kilometre stretch of water, it
would be much easier to invade Constantinople and,
eventually, Turkey
3. To open a supply route via the Black Sea to Russia, a
British ally.
4. Eventually attacking Germany’s main other ally, Austria-
Hungary
5. Shortening the war by taking down Germany’s allies
 THE
DARDANELLES
• Narrow channel that was a major supply route for
Russia, an ally of the British.
• Turkey closed the Dardanelles to Russian ships
and entered the war on the side of the Germans in
November 1914.
• The British planned to reopen this passage so their
navy could capture Constantinople, the capital of
Turkey.
• They hoped Turkey would then surrender and Russia would
no longer be isolated.
• However, the British and French navies failed to get through
the Dardanelles in February and March 1915, and so the
decision was made to attack by land.

Dardanelles at its narrowest point. Photograph taken in April 1915

from Canakkale looking west to Eceabt. Ferry docks in Canakkale
looking across to Kilid Bahr. Two points had the highest concentration
of defensive guns in the Narrows.
GALLIPOLI CAMPAIGN (CANAKKALE
SAVASLARI ) AND AUSTRALIA
• 25th April 1915, the Australian and New
Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) landed on the
Gallipoli peninsula of Turkey.
• This was the beginning of the first major
campaign in which Anzac troops fought
together as Australian and New Zealand forces,
rather than as British Imperial forces.
• As part of this Allied invasion of Turkey,
Australia suffered 26 000 casualties in eight and
a half months. This was 12% of the total
Australian casualties in World War One.
 THE LANDING
• 0100 - British ships stopped at sea, and thirty-six rowing
boats towed by twelve steamers embarked the first six
companies, two each from the 9th (QLD), 10th (SA) and
11th (WA) Battalions.
• 0200 - Turkish sentry reported seeing ships moving at sea
• 0330 - larger ships stopped, 46 m to go,
• 0430 - Turkish sentries opened fire

At the same time, the British landed at Cape Helles and the
French landed at Kum Kale. Here they were stopped by the
determined Turks who surrounded both beachheads with
trenches.

Contested history: Did Australia land in the correct location?

In short yes, they did.
•Advance stopped by a combination of:
1. incredibly steep terrain
2. aggressive Turkish defence

Photograph from 2015 of the beach at Anzac Cove. The road leading to
the memorial site can be seen to the right of the image.
Photograph taken in 2015 showing aspects of the terrain the Anzacs faced when they landed.
Anzac Cove and the commemorative site can been seen on the shore line.
 THE BEACH AT ANZAC
View of the beach at Anzac Cove, with Australian soldiers unloading
supplies and setting up camp. Painted in 1919 by Frank Crozier.
ANZAC AREA
MAP
Map of the Anzac Area on Gallipoli peninsula in
1915

The names on this map became so familiar to

Australian and New Zealand families as they read
daily accounts of the battles on Gallipoli.
STRATEGIC
MAPS OF
GALLIPOLI
Map of the ground held by Allied forces on
Gallipoli from April 1915 to January 1916
STRATEGIC
MAPS OF
GALLIPOLI
Map of the Anzac area on Gallipoli from April to
December 1915
AUGUST OFFENSIVE
•Plan to break the stalemate
•Series of coordinated attacks
•Few gains -> high casualties
•Main objective: capture the two peaks on
the Sari Bair Range (Chunuk Bair and
Hill 971)
•Key objectives:
1. Protect the troops at Anzac from enemy
observation and fire
2. Provide a clear view over the eastern
approaches to the peninsula
•Key components of the plan:
• British troops would break out at Helles, at the
tip of the peninsula
• Australian troops would create a diversionary
attack at Lone Pine on 400 Plateau, south-east
of Anzac Cove
• Australian, British, Indian and New Zealand
troops would assault Sari Bair
• New Zealand Infantry Brigade would assault
Chunuk Bair
• Australian 4th Brigade would assault Hill 971
• British troops and 300 Australian engineers
would land at Suvla Bay, 8km north of Anzac
RESULTS OF THE AUGUST
OFFENSIVE
•Engineers from the Royal Australian Navy Bridging Train 6-15 August – Suvla Bay
(RANBT) stayed at Suvla Bay after the landing - created a new
beachhead and dock. They also assisted the attacks on the high 6-21 August – Battle of Sari
ground to the north of Anzac. Bair
•Lone Pine, the Australians achieved a measure of success, but the 6-10 August – Battle of Lone
fighting went on for days.
Pine
•The Turks defeated other attacks before any gains could be made.
The Ottoman Empire had received warning of a possible attack in 7 August – Battle of the Nek
early August, and reinforcements were in place to respond.
21-29 August – Battle of Hill
•At Pope's Hill, Quinn's Post and the Nek, Australian light 60
horsemen (on foot) displayed supreme bravery. Faced reinforced
Turks with machineguns and rifles. The men were cut down, with
devastating losses.
THE CAMPAIGN
FAILS
• Number of failed breakouts by the Allies were
attempted
• Last attempt was on 6–7 August 1915.
• Eventually, it was decided to evacuate the
Allies from Gallipoli.
• Using various means of deception, Anzac Cove was
evacuated by 20 December 1915, and Cape Helles was
evacuated by 8 January 1916.
• The Allies suffered few casualties in the evacuation

Image from 2015 of graves at Lone Pine Cemetery

CASUALTIES OF GALLIPOLI
ANZACs
Australia: 50,000 served in Gallipoli
campaign, 5482 killed in action, 2012
died of wounds, 665 died of disease, total
deaths 8159, 17,924 wounded, 70
prisoners of war.
New Zealand: 8556 served, 2721 died,
4752 wounded, total casualties 7473.
Allies and Central
Britain: 410,000 served, 41,148 killed, 78,000
wounded, total casualties 119,148.
India: 5000 served, 1350 died, 2700 wounded,
total casualties 4050.
France: 79,000 served, 9789 killed, 17,371
wounded, total casualties 27,169.
Newfoundland: 1000 served, 49 killed, 300
wounded, 349 total casualties.
Turkey: estimated 85,000 dead, 250,000
casualties.
CREATION OF A LEGEND
Overall the campaign was a disaster and a defeat
BUT
It also became the foundation of the Anzac legend of fighting men renowned for
endurance, humour in adversity and courage against all odds.

The campaign is also sacred to the Turks who see it as important to the movement
that saw Turkey emerge as a modern, independent republic.
Shell Green
A game of cricket was played on Shell Green in an attempt to distract the Turks from the imminent departure of allied
troops. Major George Macarthur Onslow of the Light Horse in batting, is being caught out. Shells were passing
overhead all the time the game was in progress.
Fox and Anderson

Studio portrait of 1462 Private (Pte) Marshall Trigellis Fox, 11th

Battalion of Subacio, WA (left) and 1504 Pte (later Lance
Corporal) John Shaw Anderson, 11th Battalion of Fremantle, WA
(right). Pte Fox and Pte Anderson were friends and prefects of the
Perth Modern School before they enlisted in January 1915.

Correspondence received by the school from a member of the

11th Battalion which read: "I feel particularly sorry for two boys
who had just left the Modern School who I am sure, had great
careers before them...They died side by side, the second one while
looking at the first one's wounds. All who know say the same as I
do, that they feel sorrier over their loss than anybody else's". Both
Anderson and Fox were aged 19.
COMMEMORATED IN FILM
2014 – The Water Diviner
2012 – Canakkale 1915
2010 – Beneath Hill 60
2008 – Gallipoli Submarine (Documentary about the AE2)