April 25 is ANZAC Day in Australia and New Zealand. it is the day when we all stop to remember those who have served & those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for their nation.
Ninety Nine years ago today Tens of thousands of British, French & ANZAC (Australian & New Zealand Army Corps) troops stormed ashore along the Gallipoli Peninsular in Turkey. it was a poorly conceived & ultimately ill-fated attempt to clear the Dardenelles of Turkish forces & clear the way for Anglo-French ships to sail to Istanbul & force Turkey out of the war. Unfortunately an attempt to force the straits in February 1915 by a largely naval taskforce had not only failed, it alerted the Turks to the vulnerability of the Dardenelles.
When those soldiers landed months later 60,000 Turkish troops awaited them. The ANZAC landings, carried out under cover of darkness, went well. The British landings, during the day and at the southern tip of the peninsular, were bloodier. Neither force was able to push far inland, and by the end of the first day the ANZAC commander was requesting that his troops be re-embarked. On the other side a 34 year old Lieutenant Colonel commanding a division had correctly anticipated the likely landing sites. He immediately saw that the smaller ANZAC landings further north. Gathering all available troops he counter-attacked. At this point any chance of success for the invasion ended.
The campaign itself took 9 months to play itself out. In the nature of WW1 campaigns there were lots of trenches, pointless charges & bloody fights over a few square meters of ground. In the end the most successful aspect of the campaign was the brilliantly disguised evacuation that saw thousands of troops removed at virtually no cost. From a Turkish point of view the campaign brought to greater prominence the man who would become Kemal Ataturk, founder of modern Turkey. Perhaps it wasn't a total waste.
In the end 56,000 Allies soldiers were killed, 123,000 wounded & 7,000 missing & captured. Turkey may have lost as many as 87,000 killed. This was not Australia's first war as an independent nation, but the scale of the undertaking was immense. During the years of the Boer War perhaps 16,000 Australians served and 600 died. Something like 30,000 ANZAC troops were assembled for the initial landings alone and of the dead 8700 were Australian & 2700 New Zealanders. Orders of magnitude beyond anything we had ever experienced and a shock to the psyche of a young nation.
By the end of WW1 330,000 Australians had served overseas, over 250,000 were casualties & over 60,000 of those were dead. Drive through any small town in Australia & you will see memorials to those who died. The impact on the nation has been permanent.
My own family's relationship with ANZAC Day is odd. My grandfather's birthday was April 25, and as a kid I found it strange that the whole nation stopped on that day. He was 15 on the first ANZAC Day. He later tried to enlist, but was rejected by a local doctor for reasons that have never been clear (could have been under age, medical or 'protected occupation'). I have always wondered what he thought as he saw the returned men marching on his birthday every year past his bakery. My other grandfather served in WW2. It wasn't something he talked about or much cared to remember. He didn't march on ANZAC Day. His brothers, one of whom was a Japanese POW, marched on occasion. My parents were part of the generation that reacted against the long shadow of their parents WW2 service and the Vietnam War by turning their backs on ANZAC Day & what they saw (not without some justification) as a glorification of values they did not share.
By the late 70s it seemed that the whole tradition might die off altogether. Instead it has undergone a revival as the grandchildren of the WW2 generation took a different view. There are key elements of this with which I have deep reservations, but that is a discussion for another day. I am pleased that the tradition of commemorating our veterans has been kept alive. We should honour their service.
Whenever I think of ANZAC Day two remarkable pieces of writing.
The first is an ode we would recite as schoolchildren every year:
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.
The second is the words of a one time enemy who found it in his hear to forgive, on behalf of his nation, those who had sought to invade it. The words of Kemal Ataturk in 1934 are a remarkable testament to the ability to forgive, to the universal experience of the soldier & to something fundamentally human that transcends conflict:
“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 far away 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”.
Ninety Nine years ago today Tens of thousands of British, French & ANZAC (Australian & New Zealand Army Corps) troops stormed ashore along the Gallipoli Peninsular in Turkey. it was a poorly conceived & ultimately ill-fated attempt to clear the Dardenelles of Turkish forces & clear the way for Anglo-French ships to sail to Istanbul & force Turkey out of the war. Unfortunately an attempt to force the straits in February 1915 by a largely naval taskforce had not only failed, it alerted the Turks to the vulnerability of the Dardenelles.
When those soldiers landed months later 60,000 Turkish troops awaited them. The ANZAC landings, carried out under cover of darkness, went well. The British landings, during the day and at the southern tip of the peninsular, were bloodier. Neither force was able to push far inland, and by the end of the first day the ANZAC commander was requesting that his troops be re-embarked. On the other side a 34 year old Lieutenant Colonel commanding a division had correctly anticipated the likely landing sites. He immediately saw that the smaller ANZAC landings further north. Gathering all available troops he counter-attacked. At this point any chance of success for the invasion ended.
The campaign itself took 9 months to play itself out. In the nature of WW1 campaigns there were lots of trenches, pointless charges & bloody fights over a few square meters of ground. In the end the most successful aspect of the campaign was the brilliantly disguised evacuation that saw thousands of troops removed at virtually no cost. From a Turkish point of view the campaign brought to greater prominence the man who would become Kemal Ataturk, founder of modern Turkey. Perhaps it wasn't a total waste.
In the end 56,000 Allies soldiers were killed, 123,000 wounded & 7,000 missing & captured. Turkey may have lost as many as 87,000 killed. This was not Australia's first war as an independent nation, but the scale of the undertaking was immense. During the years of the Boer War perhaps 16,000 Australians served and 600 died. Something like 30,000 ANZAC troops were assembled for the initial landings alone and of the dead 8700 were Australian & 2700 New Zealanders. Orders of magnitude beyond anything we had ever experienced and a shock to the psyche of a young nation.
By the end of WW1 330,000 Australians had served overseas, over 250,000 were casualties & over 60,000 of those were dead. Drive through any small town in Australia & you will see memorials to those who died. The impact on the nation has been permanent.
My own family's relationship with ANZAC Day is odd. My grandfather's birthday was April 25, and as a kid I found it strange that the whole nation stopped on that day. He was 15 on the first ANZAC Day. He later tried to enlist, but was rejected by a local doctor for reasons that have never been clear (could have been under age, medical or 'protected occupation'). I have always wondered what he thought as he saw the returned men marching on his birthday every year past his bakery. My other grandfather served in WW2. It wasn't something he talked about or much cared to remember. He didn't march on ANZAC Day. His brothers, one of whom was a Japanese POW, marched on occasion. My parents were part of the generation that reacted against the long shadow of their parents WW2 service and the Vietnam War by turning their backs on ANZAC Day & what they saw (not without some justification) as a glorification of values they did not share.
By the late 70s it seemed that the whole tradition might die off altogether. Instead it has undergone a revival as the grandchildren of the WW2 generation took a different view. There are key elements of this with which I have deep reservations, but that is a discussion for another day. I am pleased that the tradition of commemorating our veterans has been kept alive. We should honour their service.
Whenever I think of ANZAC Day two remarkable pieces of writing.
The first is an ode we would recite as schoolchildren every year:
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.
The second is the words of a one time enemy who found it in his hear to forgive, on behalf of his nation, those who had sought to invade it. The words of Kemal Ataturk in 1934 are a remarkable testament to the ability to forgive, to the universal experience of the soldier & to something fundamentally human that transcends conflict:
“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 far away 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”.
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