Have I Told You About WWI? ANZAC Edition.

Tomorrow is ANZAC Day, a national holiday celebrated in Australia and New Zealand. I know what you’re thinking: what is ANZAC Day and how does it relate to the fascinating story of World War I? Here’s a bite-sized history lesson to sum it up for you.

When? April 25, 1915.

What? An amphibious landing of Allied forces at Gallipoli, in modern day Turkey. It was part of a larger, highly ambitious campaign of combined naval and infantry might to try to capture the Dardanelles. This campaign was intended to open shipping routes for Russia, shift focus from the stalemate on the Western Front and from the bloody Eastern Front, and weaken the Ottoman Empire. Ultimately the campaign failed, and Allied troops withdrew.

Allied forces in ANZAC Cove after the Gallipoli landing. From Encyclopedia Britannica.

Who? Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) troops. These men, by their courage and endurance in a doomed campaign, laid a foundation for the national identities of Australia and New Zealand. The Turkish soldiers who defended Gallipoli likewise established a basis for national pride and identity. Mustafa Kemal (later Atatürk), destined to become the first president of Turkey, won widespread recognition as the lieutenant colonel in command of the defending Turkish division. Lastly, the young British lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill, championed the amphibious landing as his pet project. Though the battle was lost and forced his resignation, it provided lessons he would remember almost 30 years later when planning D-Day.

ANZAC troops in Gallipoli in August 1915. From the Australian War Memorial.

How did it end? After several months, Allied troops conceded the failure of the campaign and withdrew. The evacuation itself was arguably the least costly Allied maneuver of the war, resulting in only one man wounded. It was aided by the ingenious deception of rifles rigged to continue firing from empty trenches, and a refusal by Turkish forces to attack the last remaining Allied soldiers after they figured out what was going on.

Famous one-liner? “I do not order you to fight. I order you to die.” — Mustafa Kemal to the Turkish soldiers serving in his division.

Is there a blockbuster movie? Yes, Gallipoli starring Mel Gibson.

On April 25, Australia and New Zealand honor all their war veterans, and remember the ANZAC invasion of Gallipoli.