Gallipoli essays

Gallipoli essays 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 Mustafa Kemals reinforcements, who launched a counter-attack. The Anzacs were pinned on the beaches and lost a third of their forces, but maintained their position. Soon enough, trenches were established and both sides quickly began to reach a stalemate. The soldiers daily routine included breakfast, rifle and ammo cleaning, patrol and trench maintenance, and then a midday meal. Afterwards, the soldiers concentrated on sanitation, and then an evening meal. During the night when soldiers patrolled enemy positions, repaired or extended barbed wire, or dug new trenches, Turkish snipers were most active. During the day, it was risky for soldiers to raise their heads above the parapet line ...