Students are to read the following two articles and answer the questions in detail at the bottom of the articles. Students should then complete at least one of the tasks at the bottom of this document. If finished early they can complete more than one task.
GALLIPOLI LANDING – ASHMEAD BARTLETT’S FIRST HAND ACCOUNT
Ellis Ashmead-Bartlett was British newspaper writer who was there during the ANZAC landings at Gallipoli.
"At 3 o’clock it was quite dark, and a start was made towards the shore with suppressed (hidden) excitement. Would the enemy be surprised, or be on the alert…
"Not a sound was heard, not a light seen, and it appeared as if the enemy had been surprised. In our nervy state the stars were often mistaken for lights ashore.
Enlarge
Portrait of Ashmead-Bartlett from Despatches from the Dardanelles (In the collection of the State Library of NSW)
THE ENEMY’S FIRST ALARM.
"At 4.53 came a sharp burst of rifle fire from the beach. The rifle fire lasted a few minutes, and a faint (small) British cheer came over the waters, telling us that the first position was won.
"At three minutes past 5 the fire was intensified…
A TERRIBLE FUSILLADE.
… The boats had almost reached the beach when a party of Turks, who were entrenched (dug into trenches) on shore (the beach) opened a terrible fusillade (storm of bullets) from rifles and Maxim (machine) guns. Fortunately, most of the bullets went high.
RUSH FOR THE TRENCHES.
"The Australians rose to the occasion. They did not wait for orders, or for the boats to reach the beach, but sprang into the sea, formed a sort of rough line, and rushed at the enemy’s trenches. Their magazines were not charged (guns were not loaded), so they just went in with the cold steel (bayonets), and it was over in a minute for the Turks in the first trench had been either bayoneted or had run away, and the Maxim guns were captured.
A CRITICAL MOMENT.
"Then the Australians found themselves facing an almost perpendicular (going straight up) cliff… Somewhere half-way up the enemy had a second trench, from which there poured a terrible fire on the troops below… but these Colonials (Australians) are practical above all else, and went about it in a practical way. They stopped for a few minutes to pull themselves together, got rid of their packs and charged the magazines of their rifles. Then this race of athletes proceeded to scale the cliffs, without responding to the enemy’s fire. They lost some men, but did not worry. In less than a quarter of an hour the Turks had been hurled out of their second position, all either bayoneted or fled.
SNIPERS AT WORK.
"It is an ideal place for snipers, as the Australians and New Zealanders soon found to their cost. On the other hand, the Colonials proved themselves adept (good) at this kind of warfare.
AT DAYLIGHT.
…the Australians, whose blood was up, instead of entrenching, rushed to the northwards and to the eastwards searching for fresh enemies to bayonet. It was very difficult country in which to entrench, and they therefore preferred to advance.
THE COVERING FORCE CHECKED.
… "The Turks continued to counter-attack the whole of the afternoon, but the Colonials did not yield a foot on the main ridge.
NOT FOUND WANTING.
"The courage displayed by these wounded Australians and New Zealanders will never be forgotten…
"In fact, I have never seen anything like these wounded Colonials in war before. Though many were shot to bits, and without hope of recovery, their cheers resounded throughout the night… They were happy because they knew they had been tried for the first time, and had not been found wanting.
Questions
- How does Ashmead Bartlett describe the ANZAC landings?
- Write/highlight quotes that shows the ANZACs in a positiveor negativeway.
CECIL ASPINALL’S VERSION
Cecil Aspinall'swas a British staff officer during the war, Aspinall had helped to plan the Anzac landing.
According to Aspinall’sdraft, the initial Australian landing at Anzac Cove was relatively easy and successful, but in the afternoon confusion among the Australian forces prevented anorganized attack which should have been successful. Furthermore, towards the end of the afternoon the “severe strain to young and untried troops in their first day of battle' was beginning to tell. For many, the breaking point had now been passed, and numbers of unwounded men were filtering (coming) back to the beach' in an 'endless stream' so that 'the gullies in the rear were choked with stragglers and men who had lost their way'.
Questions
- What does Aspinall say about the ANZAC landings?
- Write/highlight quotes that shows the ANZACs in a positiveor negativeway.
BIG QUESTIONS
- Why do you think the two accounts are so different?
- What does this tell us about the study of history?
War in Afghanistan takes heavy toll on Australian soldiers
- by:Jodie Richter
- From:The Courier-Mail
- August 28, 201012:00AM
SOMBRE WATCH: The overwatch tower was being manned by infantry mentor Private Aaron Marks, Sapper Ryan Bridgesand Corporal Damien Stewart when an improvised explosive device (IED) [bomb] struck nearby in the Baluchi Valley The blast killed two Australian soldiers Picture: Jodie Richter Source: The Courier-Mail
THE stark beauty of Afghanistan's Baluchi Valley is difficult to reconcile from the watch tower of a remote Australian army patrol base.
I'm told this location is one of the most dangerous places on Earth, but the valley below stretching to the mountains beyond looks more postcard than war zone.
It's only 10am, but the blistering heat has already forced the local farmers to seek refuge in the shade.
The valley is silent.
The mood in our watch tower is positive, the two soldiers manning the post exchanging a few small jokes as they stare out over the barrel of their .50-calibre machine gun.
Nestled here, in our secure position beside the gun, and surrounded by confident, experienced Australian soldiers, it is tempting to believe nothing can go wrong.
But on the bare, dusty hill just a few hundred metres in front of us, two young Australians are about to die.
Grant Kirby and Tomas Dale left the outpost hours earlier to provide support while other soldiers search out Taliban fighters and weapons.
Kirby's and Dale's section disappears from view over a dusty finger of high ground.
With the patrol out of sight, those of us in the watch tower have little to do but watch, listen, worry and wait.
The explosion, when it comes a few minutes later, is massive.
"What the f--- was that?" yells the soldier beside me as I dive for cover.
Swearing follows, then a young Digger in the tower beside me jumps behind the gun ...
He then peers down the barrel as he begins searching for a target in the valley below.
The other soldier goes to the roof and scans with binoculars, ready to call targets for his mate.
The radio bursts into life…"Two pers(onnel) down," comes the voice over the radio. And then, "Two casualties, no signs of life, one other casualty ..."
The reaction in the watch tower is harrowing (the soldiers are upset).
A moment's silence as the shocking reality sinks in, and then a four-letter word…
"That's Afghanistan. Things can get turned upside down at the drop of a hat," the machine gunner says simply.
We listen for more radio reports and keep scanning the valley for any further danger.
More hours pass when a sharp crack rings out and the voice on the radio reports a shot has been fired at their position, landing half a metre away.
A Taliban sniper has targeted the troops on the hill…
As dusk starts to crawl across the valley, most of the troops cautiously make their way back to base.
As they near the outpost, another explosion rips through the night air.
This time we see the blast and a plume of dust rises over the patrol manned by Afghan troops.
Confusion reigns for a few seconds.
Was it a rocket attack? Are the Taliban about to launch an assault? Is it another IED?
We strain our eyes and ears to detect where the next danger might come from.
Tortuous moments pass.
Finally, we learn it's another IED.
The Afghan troops make their way back to the outpost and we learn that this time, no one was seriously injured - small relief to end a horrendous day…
[THE NEXT DAY]
A Digger injured in yesterday's IED blast has been released from hospital and is sitting among his mates.
The bloke next to him puts his arm around him and mumbles a few words.
The explosive detection dog, Trent, is sitting at the end of the table looking up at his master, who feeds him from his fork.
Conversation is muted as the soldiers eat their meal and, perhaps, start to come to terms with the loss of their mates. But they know they won't have long to collect their thoughts.
It is the deadliest fighting season so far for the Australians, and they know that very soon they'll be back out there, doing it all again.
Questions
- What are the soldiers’ experiences in the war in Afghanistan? (How are they fighting the war? What is happening to them? How are they dealing with it?)
- What are the differences from these soldiers’ experiences to the ones who fought in World War One, particularly at Gallipoli?
- What are the similarities with these soldiers’ experiences to the ones who fought in World War One, particularly at Gallipoli?
- How would you be feeling if you were a soldier fighting in Afghanistan? Explain why would you be feeling this way?
TASK – CHOOSE AT LEAST ONE OF THE FOLLOWING TO COMPLETE
- Design a memorial that could honour both the ANZACs from past wars as well as soldiers who recently fought and died while fighting for Australia in Afghanistan and Iraq. To get ideas you might want to google ‘war memorials’ and then click on images.
AND/OR
- Write a poem or a speech that honours Australians who have fought, served and sometimes died for our country. Make reference to our ANZAC past and also those soldiers who recently fought in Afghanistan and Iraq
AND/OR
- Create a photo spread/picture story/poster that commemorates Australian soldiers who fought in the following wars amongst others:
- Boer War
- World War One
- World War One
- Korean War
- Malaysian Insurgency
- Vietnam War
- East Timor Peace Keeping Mission
- Afghanistan War
- Iraq War