The Gallipoli Campaign and the Anzac legend:

 The Gallipoli campaign and the Anzac legend which emerged from it have had a
significant impact on ideas about Australia's national identity.
 Although a military defeat, the bravery and sacrifices associated with the eight-
month struggle have had a profound effect on how Australians view this period.
 For many people, both then and now, the participation of Australian soldiers in the
Gallipoli campaign was the symbol of Australia's coming of age as a nation.
 The experience on the Gallipoli Peninsula formed the framework for a view of the
characteristics which identified the 'true Australian'. It also reinforced the 19th
century image of the unique attributes of the Australian 'bushman'.

Why Gallipoli?

By 1915 the war on the

western front had reached a
stalemate, while on the
eastern front things were
going badly for Russia.

The Gallipoli campaign was part of a British plan to gain control of the Dardanelles and the
city of Constantinople in order to:
1. Force turkey to withdraw from the
war
2. Open sea access to provide
supplies to Russia
3. Gain access to land from which to
open a new front against Austria
hungry.
The Gallipoli landing- 24th April, 1915
 The campaign started badly because:

1. The failed British and French naval

attack in the Dardanelles in February
and March 1915 had alerted the Turks
to the likelihood of a land attack.

2. The Turks had organised

reinforcements, strengthened
defences, laid mines, constructed
trenches and established themselves
on the high ground.

3. The Anzacs were landed two

kilometres out of position. They faced
steep cliffs and machine guns placed
along the cliff tops.

 By the end of the first day, the Anzacs had advanced about 900 metres at a cost of
around 2,000 casualties, including 621 dead.

 Over the course of the next week, 27,000 more soldiers landed at Anzac Cove where
they tried to gain control of the beach and construct trenches, all under constant fire
from Turkish defenders armed with machine guns.

 Soldiers armed with entrenching tools and sandbags had to quickly construct
trenches and dugouts to provide some protection. The task was difficult because the
men mainly had to lie on their stomachs to dig.

 The situation quickly became a stalemate.

Conditions at Gallipoli:
 Both sides faced horrendous conditions at Gallipoli.

 In summer, it was extremely hot, dry and dusty. In winter, freezing and wet.

 Water was short and there were plagues of flies and rats.

 By May 2015, No Man’s Land was clogged up with decomposing bodies. A temporary
armistice was agreed to allow each side to retrieve and bury their dead.

 Disease was everywhere. Most men had diarrhoea, some had dysentery. Lice,
frostbite and dehydration were common.
The August offensive:

 In August a concerted effort was made to break the

stalemate at Gallipoli. On 6th August 1915, 20,000
British troops were sent to land at Suva Bay.

 The allies launched diversionary attacks at Sari Bair

and Lone Pine to distract the Turkish forces from the
landings at Suva Bay.

The battle of lone pine- 6th-10th Augusr,1915:

 At 5.30pm on 6th August, Australian troops charged

140 metres across No Man’s Land to attack the Turkish trenches.

 They found the trenches covered by logs, so had to force their way in and engage in
ferocious hand-to-hand fighting.

 By nightfall, most of the Lone Pine trenches were in Australian hands. However, the
Turks staged a sustained counter-attack. Over the next three days a vicious
subterranean battle raged.

 Lone Pine was one of the bloodiest battles of the Gallipoli campaign. Although the
Australians were victorious, they lost over 2,000 men – 60% of the total involved in
the attack. The Turks lost over 6,000.

 Seven Australians were awarded the Victoria Cross for their part in the battle .
The battle of Nek- 7th august, 1915:

 At 4.30am on 7th August, Australian troops were ordered to attack Turkish trenches
at a thin ridge known as the Nek.

 The attack was a disaster. Four waves of Anzac troops were mowed down as they
made a suicidal charge towards the Turkish trenches just 27 metres away.

 Several attempts were made to cancel the attack but failed due to poor
communication and ineffective leadership.

The attack failed for a number of reasons:

 The allied artillery barrage ceased 7 minutes before the attack, giving the Turks time
to regroup and prepare.
  The Australians were ordered to push on despite the failure of the early waves.

 Around 240 Australians were killed. The battle is considered to be the most senseless
and tragic waste of Australian lives at Gallipoli

Evacuation- December 1915:

 By December, the allies realised the futility of the Gallipoli campaign and began
preparations to evacuate all troops. They devised a number of tricks to prevent the
Turks realising they were moving out.

 They stayed silent for long periods then, when the Turks appeared to see what was
happening, they opened fire.

 They made dummies and dressed them in uniforms.

 They created “self-firing” rifles using water dripping into a pan and set these up
along the trenches.

 By 20th December the evacuation was complete, with only two casualties and no
losses of life.

The Anzac Legend:

 For many people, both then and now, the participation of Australian soldiers in the
Gallipoli campaign was the symbol of Australia's coming of age as a nation, even
more so than Federation.
 The Gallipoli campaign and the Anzac legend which emerged from it have had a
significant impact on ideas about Australia's national identity.
 Look at next page 
The Western Front
 Main theatre in WW1
 German army opened the western front by marching through Belgium and deep into
France
 Confined to trenches
 Troops used machine guns, barbed wire and artillery to defend their position
 Stalemate meant that war on Western Front became a series of attacks and counter
attacks, achieving nothing but the lives of soldiers.
 Attacks followed a pattern, one side launching a long and sustained artillery attack,
enemy trenches would be bombarded with explosive shells.
 Aim was to force the defending troops underground and clear the way for attacking
troops to cross No Man’s Land - Narrow strip of land between opposing trenches
that belonged to neither army.
 No Man’s Land was hard to cross  soldiers weighed down by heavy equipment
 If enemy’s fortifications were not destroyed than the enemy could emerge from
bunkers and fire with machine guns
 Only real result that took place was death and injury

Australians on the Western Front - 1916 to 1918

 The Battle of Fromelles
 The Battle of the Somme in Northern France
 Assaults on the towns of Pozieres and Villers-Bretonneux
 The Battle of Passchendaele in Belgium
 The Battle of Hamel
 The Battle of Amiens
Why Australians Enlisted
 AIF - Australian Imperial Force - 50 000 men enlisted
 Loyalty: To give back to what the country has done
 Adventure: To see the world and have an adventure
 Money: Good income
 2562 Nurses joined the AIR as members

The Treaty of Versailles

 Jan 1919, nations met in France to come up with a plan for rebuilding Europe. The
French had suffered during WW1 and wanted revenge and compensation for the
damage done to their country. 28th June 1919, they all signed a Treaty of Versailles
which brought an official end to the war.
Armistice: agreement to stop fighting
11 November- 1918 at 11am
it ended because Germany was running out of supplies at home, things were getting bad
America joined the triple entente tipped in the balance of power in favour in the ally. This
forced a weakening Germany to surrender after its last big effort to drive back the allies
failed.
Conscription
 Conscription Is compulsory military service.
 The legislation did not allow soldiers to be conscripted overseas service.
 By 1916 the initial enthusiasm for the war effort resulted in the realisation that war
meant suffering and death
 Decline in the number of Australian volunteers and heavy losses from the stalemate
on Western front  PM Billy Hughes announced there would be a referendum for
Conscription
 If bill is passed the Government had the power to force men of military age to join
the army for service in the war
 First referendum Oct 1916 did not pass
 Second referendum Dec 1917 did not pass

The conscription debate:

 By may 1916, Britain had introduced universal military conscription for all eligible
males.
 It was expected that Australia would soon follow.
 However, the issue of conscription provoked a debate in Australia that divided the
country.
 The Australian prime minister William marris (Billy Hughes) proposed conscription as
a solution to falling recruitment rates following a visit to Europe in 1916.
 The proposal divided both the federal and state parliaments prompting the issue to
be put to a referendum.

The referendum:
 The referendum campaign was waged in an atmosphere of extreme tension &
hysteria.
 Both sides made particularly emotional appeals to women.
 Enormous rallies were held and there were frequent episodes of street violence.
 Arguments became more extreme and irrational as the referendum date grew
closer.

The conscription debate:

For-
 The Anglican church: it has close links to the church of England. The war was fought
for god, king, and country.
 Business leaders and the media: the media used the patriotic and pro-conscription
line. Business saw more profits from a continuation of the war.
 Conservative political parties who identified with the mother country and the glory
of empire. These included the liberals and Hughes new nationalist party.
 Some women- please help to my husband/sweetheart/brother/son who is fighting.
 Some Anzacs- we need help over here and why should we be the only ones fighting.
  A majority of the upper class and middle class. Australians often linked to the church,
business and British in their outlook.

Against-
 The roman catholic church, led by archbishop of Melbourne Daniel mannix. Most
Irish were catholic and opposed conscription.
 Trades unions and worker’s groups. They saw the war as a bosses’ war and believed
it was always the working class who ended up being cannon fodder,
 The Australian labour party. It had similar views to the trade unions. The ALP drove
Hughes from the party when he tried to bring in conscription.
 Some women- please don’t send my husband/ sweetheart/ brother/ son over to get
killed.
 Some Anzacs- don’t send any more blokes over here to suffer this. I would not have
volunteered if I had known.
 Working class Australians tended to follow the trade union line for the same reasons.

Why Conscription didn’t pass

 Australian people did not believe that Australia was at risk

 The war was half a world away
 For the size of its population, the country had done more than its fair share to
support Britain and the Empire
 Supporters of Conscription were usually upper class people of British or Protestant
background
 Opponents of Conscription were usually working class or of a Catholic or Irish
background
 Impact on supply of workers: Some farmers and employers with skilled workers
opposed Conscription because they feared it would hurt their business
 Labour Party split over the issue: Those with strong links to the Trade Union
movement opposed Conscription. Cause they feared that if even more able bodied
Australians were taken into the army then the country would have to rely on non-
union labour at lower wages

World war 2 began in 1939

In which year did world war 2 end? 1945
The event that led Europe to the beginning of world war 2 is Germanys invasion of Poland.
Which two countries declared war on Germany followings it invasion of Poland? Britain and
France

Causes of WW2:
Short term causes:
 Policy of appeasement-
- From 1938, Germany, under Adolf Hitler, began seizing territory in Europe-
first Austria, then parts of Czechoslovakia.
- Britain and France followed a policy of appeasement- they gave Hitler what
he wanted in order to keep the peace.
- The policy failed because it made Britain and France appear weak, which
encouraged Hitler to continue his expansion.
 German invasion of Poland-
- One September 1939 Germany invaded Poland as another step in Hitler’s
foreign policy of lebensraum (creating living space for German people).
- Britain and France had by now abandoned the policy of appeasement and
warned Hitler that they would declare war on Germany if Poland was
invaded.
Long term causes:
 the great depression-
- the great depression began with the US stock market crash in 1929 and
quickly spread throughout the world.
- It resulted in high unemployment and a feeling of insecurity among people.
- It also distracted the worlds democratic powers from international affairs.
- People looked for leaders who offered strong leadership and a chance to
recover.
 The failure of the league of nations-
- The league of nation was set in 1919 to help keep the peace between nations
- However, its powers were limited as it had no military force and the united
states was not a member.
- It proved to be ineffective in preventing the aggression of countries like Italy,
which ignored the leagues attempts to stop its expansion into Africa during
the 1930’s.

 American isolationism-
- The failure id peace efforts such as Kellogg Briand treaty during the 1920’s
disillusioned many Americans about international involvement.
- The U.S was in a major depression throughout the 1930’s and was mostly
concerned with its own problems
- Conflict in Europe seemed distant, and the U.s tried to remain neutral. The
policy weakened the European democracies.

 The treaty of Versailles-

 - the treaty of Versailles had imposed a harsh economic, military and political
sanctions on Germany:
- -Germany blamed for ww1
- forced to pay reparations
- -demilitarisation
- -loss of European territory
- -loss of colonies in Africa and the pacific
- the German people bitterly resented the treaty, which they felt was unfair.
- He terms of the treaty led to economic difficulties such as hyperinflation
during the 1920’s.
 Italian, Japanese’s and German aggression-
- Several countries attempted to expand their territories by invading other
countries:
 Japan invaded china in 1931
 Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1935
 Germany invaded Austria, Czechoslovakia and Poland during the late
1930’s.
 The rise of fascism-
- Fascism is a political movement that involves:
 Authoritarian rule by one person
 The use of force to overcome opposition
 A belief in the superiority of one’s own nation
 A desire to expand territory.
- Fascism grew under the Italian leader, Benito Mussolini during the 1920s and
spread to Germany, Spain and Portugal.
 Militarism-
- The glorification of war, in which nation strengthens its military and
stockpiles weapons in preparation for war.
- An important aspect of militarism is that the glorification of war is
incorporated into all levels of society, including education of the nation’s
youth.
- Militaristic societies have existed throughout human history.
 Nationalism-
- Nationalism is the belief in the superiority of one’s own nation over all
others.
- In the extreme, it can lead to major conflicts between nations.
- Hitler, Mussolini and japans Tajo each touted their nations ability to
dominate all others in the years leading up to ww2.