Gallipoli
Gallipoli (Feb 19 1915 - Jan 9 1916) was an Allied campaign to capture the Turkish capital Constantinople and wrest control of the strategically invaluable Dardanelles straits, thus allowing supply lines to run through the the cut-off Russians.The first planned attack was a British/French naval assault on February 19 1915. It bombarded Turkish artillery along the coast but had very little effect. A new attack was launched on March 18 targeting a bottleneck in the Dardanelles. It suceesfully destroyed many Turkish artillery targets, but the fleet ran into an uncharted minefield and lost three battleships, prompting the allies to withdraw their naval force.After the deemed failure of the naval campaign, the allies decided to attempt a land invasion. Australian and New Zealand soldiers stationed in Egypt formed the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, and were sent to land on a point approximately one mile north of Gaba Tepe. However, poor planning caused them to land a mile and a half further north than planned, in a cove today known as Anzac Cove.The Anzacs were faced with a difficult battle from the onset - cliffs and ravines forming the terrain made it difficult to progress. They were beaten to the high ground by M
Snipers worked in pairs, one using a periscope to scan the land for targets. Clever tactics such as maintaining silence until Turks came to investigate, and then opening fire. Strangely, the Anzacs and Turks shared camaraderie - they fought fair, shared food, cigarettes and sometimes communicated with each other. But it wasn't just the threat of the enemy that the Anzacs had to face. Rifles were rigged to automatically fire by use of a sponge and water dripping into a pan attached to the trigger. The Battle of the Lone Pine was part of a diversionary attack for a British landing in Suvla Bay. The Anzacs were pinned on the beaches and lost a third of their forces, but maintained their position. The rain caused Trench Foot, painfully swelling their feet. The attack consisted of four waves - the first was mowed down by machine gun fire but tragically the second and third waves continued before the attack was finally called off. Gallipoli was a military disaster, caused by poor planning/commanding, and an utter lack of effective co-ordination. As the war progressed, the weather turned to the opposite extreme, and storms, strong winds, pelting rain hit Gallipoli and filled trenches with water to do the lack of sheltering. It soon became apparent that success was impossible, and General Charles Monro suggested evacuation. His death had as great an impact on the Anzacs as his presence did. Afterwards, the soldiers concentrated on sanitation, and then an evening meal. During the day, it was risky for soldiers to raise their heads above the parapet line even for a second, because most snipers were exceptionally skilled at noticing movements in enemy trench positions.
Common topics in this essay:
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Charles Monro,
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Bay August,
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19 1915,
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