Gallippoli — Why is it important?

Gallipoli – Why is it important? By Paul Oates The 100th anniversary of the landing at Gallipoli has become a defining moment in Australia’s history. Given that we can now look past the hyperbole of war and wartime propaganda, let’s take a more reflective quick look at what actually happened 100 years ago. The world 100 years ago was politically just as unstable as it now appears to be. European nations had been jostling for power and prestige during the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. Far away from this imbroglio, the new nation of Australia, had only just federated in 1901. As an identified member of the then British Empire however, most Australians were very firmly in favour of the ‘mother country’. Britain had been gradually drawn into a European conflict by entering into an alliance with France who had already allied itself with Czarist Russia. Russia saw herself as the big brother of the Balkan Slav peoples who together with Greece had been battling the decaying Turkish Ottoman Empire for over 100 years. Prior to 1914, Britain had agreed to build two new modern battleships for Turkey to defend the Bosporus and the entrance to the Black Sea in the event of a dispute with Russia. The Turkish people had been asked to personally contribute to the cost of building these two battleships and national pride was running high about this project. Germany had only recently been brought together as one nation under Kaiser Wilhelm the Second and was keen to expand her influence. She had ethnic and treaty ties with the Central European Empire of Austria / Hungary. The Austro/Hungarian Empire was known as the ‘sick, old man of Europe’. It was then run by the old Hapsburg Emperor, Franz Joseph. It did have however a very progressive and modern thinking successor, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, ready in the wings to take over. The Austro/Hungarian Empire had nominally taken over influence in some Balkan countries as the Ottoman Empire withdrew. This created in the Balkans, an overlay of three religions, Catholic, Russian Orthodox and Muslim, on top of what is still today, a very complex web of cultures and ethnicity. Ethnic tensions were then rife when with Serbian assistance, a Bosnian gunman assassinated Archduke Ferdinand in the Bosnian city of Sarajevo in August 1914. A ‘tipping point’ had then been reached and the lingering tensions boiled over. Indignant Austria declared war on Serbia but then Russia stood up to defend her Slav neighbours. Austria then called on her ally Germany to help defend her from Russia and then Russia called on France to help defend herself against Germany. Britain was an unwilling participant who then had to declare war on the central European powers, given her new treaty with France and Russia.

While Turkey was still neutral, the British First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill, decided Turkey should not have her two new battleships even though Turkish naval crews were already in place to take delivery. He cancelled the contract and took the two new battleships into the British navy. This one act helped turn Turkey and her people against Britain and significantly resulted in her eventually joining Germany and Austria in a war against the allies. Incredibly, Australia was the nation who fired the first shot of World War 1. A German ship the ‘Pflaz’ was trying to escape Port Phillip Bay before being impounded and the Fort at the mouth of the bay fired a shot across her bows to prevent her from leaving. Given the time differences, it has since been established that this was the first shot fired in the World War 1. After war had been declared in August 1914, there was a surge of patriotic spirit throughout Australia. Many young men enthusiastically rushed to ‘join up and do their bit for the mother country’. Many thought the war would be over by Christmas and they might miss out altogether. Each Australian State assembled a contingent of troops by enlisting volunteers. Australia did not have regular army infantry and relied on the many State militia regiments for defence. This meant that those who enlisted were given in today’s terms, a bare minimum of training before being hurriedly dispatched to fight overseas. On the 11th of November 1914, a convoy of ships left the Western Australian harbour at Albany. The convoy contained the first Australian and New Zealand Army Corps and the initials were afterwards used to create the acronym ‘ANZAC’. During the trip from Australia to Europe via the Suez canal, the convoy passed within 50 nautical miles of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. By an incredible coincidence, the German raider the SS Emden had chosen that very time to attack the cable station on the Island. One of the escorts for the ANZAC convoy, the heavy cruiser HMAS Sydney, was dispatched to take care of the Emden. This she did and then caught up with the convoy as it stopped in Colombo in what was then the colony of Ceylon. Winston Churchill, had maintained that an attack on the ‘underbelly’ of Europe through the Dardanelles would knock the Ottoman Empire out of the war. This plan coincided with the arrival of the ANZACs in Egypt and these fresh troops were diverted to help with the ground attack on Ottoman Turkey. Such was the amazing lack of Allied security and coupled with a previous unsuccessful naval attack on the Dardanelles, the Turkish and German military leaders were well aware an attack was coming and made their preparations accordingly. On the 25th of April 1915, ANZAC troops landed and attacked Turkish positions at what is now known as ANZAC Cove. The Military leaders on each side could not have been more contrasting. The British allied commander, General Sir Ian Standish Monteith Hamilton was 62 and partially disabled from previous service long ago and a horse riding accident. He believed he could run the campaign while staying in a battleship anchored safely away out to sea. The Turkish Commander, Mustafa Kemal, at 34 led his forces from the front line. The key objective of the campaign was to occupy the heights that commanded the whole narrow Gallipoli peninsular. Within two weeks, the New Zealanders had captured the heights and Hamilton, who was asleep on board a battleship was reportedly awoken in the middle of the night and told of this success. He reportedly said: “They’ve gone too far. Pull them back!” and then turned over and went back to sleep. After two days of heavy fighting, the New Zealanders were pushed off the heights and the campaign then wound down into a series of skirmishes that went nowhere and only used up men and resources. There was a distinct lack of overall leadership and objectivity that didn’t seem to have any real imagination except to throw more men at the previously untaken objectives. On the 22nd of November 1915 after 7 months, the allied forces at the Dardanelles were withdrawn. Each side suffered around 200,000 casualties and the war went on for another three years. In the Gallipoli campaign, Australia lost over 8,100 men killed. Gallipoli is actually a corruption of the name of a small town on the peninsular called Gelipolu. When you go to Turkey today and visit the Gallipoli battlefields, you are struck by how close each front line is to each other. On the way to Lone Pine, the ditch on the left of the road is the Australian front line and the ditch on the right hand side, the Turkish front line. At the landing site of ANZAC Cove there is a stone memorial and many graves where those who first came ashore fell. There are also many well cared for graves at other battle sites. A tree at the Lone Pine memorial has been grown from a seed from the pine tree at the Melbourne War Memorial that was in turn, grown from a seed in a pine cone sent home from the original lone pine tree that gave its name to the battlefield. Although the Dardanelles campaign included troops from Britain and France, Mustafa, a Turkish guide told us only Australians and New Zealanders ever come to visit. At least two memorials at Gallipoli have a statue of a Turkish soldier carrying a wounded ‘Digger’ to safety. Where else could one see such a magnanimous gesture? Heroes who 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 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.