Letters and Stories
Read the stories of the brave men and women who went to war
and their connection to the region.
The first week
Unable to achieve their objectives on the heights of Chunuk Bair and Achi Baba, the Anzacs and the British dug in. Gallipoli.
The Middle East
‘Throughout history, mounted troops have been known as the elite men of arms and the Australian Light Horse is a part of that legendary tradition.’
The first night at Anzac
Less than 24 hours after the landing, the Gallipoli expedition leader Sir Ian Hamilton was sound asleep in his cabin aboard the warship Queen Elizabeth.
The Nek
Below to the right lay the Australian trenches at The Nek, the narrow strip of flat land about the size of a football field.
I never expected to get out of this place
‘… there is nothing but shell holes in this part …’
Disease, heat and flies
As the summer swelter set in, the Anzacs cursed billions of flies drawn by unsanitary conditions.
Pozieres II
The Pozieres map is stylised to represent the relative position of opposing forces on the Western Front and the locations of some major battles fought by Australians.
Angels of mercy and brave bearers
More than 3,000 Australian civilian nurses volunteered for active service during the First World War.
A catastrophe Pompey Elliot predicted
200 metres of open ground was twice the distance recommended for a frontal charge at defences.
A few minutes creeping
The lads from Wide Bay District in the 15th Battalion made a brilliant bayonet charge on May 9.
These continual frontal attacks
Two brigades of Australians and New Zealanders were taken from Anzac Cove to Helles for the Second Battle.
1917 - No kin left
William Harold Wilson, who was accepted for active service yesterday, enlisted under most remarkable circumstances.