We are on one of the greatest battlefields of history..The lads are enduring fighting suffering and dying with courage that cannot be eclipsed if I ever reach home I'll give definite instances. -
Chaplin- Major John Alfred Luxford. Died six years after his return from home from the effect of his service.
The soldiers of New Zealand were of great significance to the Empire, New Zealand had to show loyalty to the crown and while most of the country saw themselves as British they felt it was their duty to serve in the British name. New Zealand was also fighting for their security, if NZ hadn't gone to battle we would be left separated from the crown. The social pressure put on men young and old meant some signed up with little choice. Those that disagreed faced social shame and those that did agree thought they would be going overseas for an adventure and see the world along the way. Lives were deeply effected at the time of the war, men were going on planes and to different sides of the world for the first time, men and women were away from their family's which was still a foreign concept for most people, even the war itself was a new concept this was the first world war that anyone had ever seen, most of the men involved had normal everyday jobs before hand, being thrown into the battlefield was unfamiliar and scary for almost everyone involved. The war was meant to be over by the time Christmas came around but ended up lasting four years. 103,000 men served, 18,500 died and 500,000 injured. In a letter from an unknown solider sent to his family he said '' I am here having the time of my life, it is a wonderful place and i didn't know i was alive until i got here'', he was injured soon after this letter was sent. Life in the trenches was far from what the soldiers had in mind. Not only were the men constantly at risk of being shot at and bombed they were also at constant risk of disease, they had rationed basic food and little water. The soldiers had to eat while they ran and were constantly exposed to the harsh heat of the day and the freezing cold of the night. The trenches themselves were bad as well, in some places they were only the width of approximately one or two men and rain meant their food was constantly soaked and their feet were always under water causing trench foot. After the war soldiers were left with many disabilities. Some soldiers suffered from post traumatic stress after the constant bullet and bomb fire, some soldiers also had to return from the war with severe injuries including ambulations. This affected the quality of life that the soldiers went back to after the war, it meant that they couldn't return to their jobs or do the everyday activities that they were used to such as play with their children. Due to the false idea of what the war was like many young men lost their lives early.The image above shows the comradeship the ANZAC's shared, this image which is a primary source shows the risks they took to look out for each other and the bravery that New Zealanders were known for years after the world ended. Some Psychological affects of the were were that the men sometimes got to chummy with the other troops and refused to shoot each other, then when they were forced into fighting they often thought they were killing their friends and became depressed. Moral was low after a couple of months too, for example in Gallipoli the soldiers were beginning to come of their patriotic high and were beginning to miss their familys, become sick of the killing and start to question what they were doing there. The Turks had the mental drive of defending their family and their home land however the ANZACs went into gallipoli because it was an order and didn't have the fear of having their lives ripped from under them pushing them to carry on. Seeing their comrades that they had bonded with for months being blown up or killed right in front of them caused the soldiers a lot of trauma and effected they way of life that they went back to after the war also. The post traumatic stress that the soldiers faced when they got back included reliving the war involuntarily. Alot of ex soldiers turned to alcohol and became alcoholics. Some soldiers also committed suicide after the war because they were unable to stop seeing what they had gone through. A soldier talks about seeing shell shock for the first time ''he screamed and raved, and it took eight men to hold him down on the stretcher. With every shell he would go into a fit of screaming and fight to get away'' ''Shell-shock was brought about in many ways; loss of sleep, continually being under heavy shell fire, the torment of the lice, irregular meals, nerves always on end, and the thought always in the man's mind that the next minute was going to be his last." Because this wasn't a known disease in these days people didnt know how to treat the soldiers that were effected.
I went down to Auckland and joined up, supposed you would say i was looking for adventure. Today people say we were brainwashed with patriotism. Britain rules the waves on our side and Deutschland allies on the other. Now we go out and kill each other. - Tony Fagan.
In hindsight the ex soldier believes he was brainwashed. From what he says it doesn't seem like he ever wanted to kill but the false idea of adventure drew him to the war.
In hindsight the ex soldier believes he was brainwashed. From what he says it doesn't seem like he ever wanted to kill but the false idea of adventure drew him to the war.
The Gallipoli Campaign saw 8500 soldiers leave to Turkey, 2721 were killed and 5000 were left injured. The Gallipoli Campaign were some of the harshest conditions New Zealand faced. The photo to the right is a primary source of a soldier visiting one of his comrades grave, the soldier looks exhausted and stressed. Many soldiers never recovered from the events at Gallipoli and most people that experienced it said that they would never forget it. The conditions in Gallipoli were a lot worse then those in the trenches. 40,000 ANZACS were crammed into land the size of 16 rugby fields. They constantly had the Turks above them on higher ground and Turkish snipers. Rats flies and sickness covered the trenches and the lack of medicine ammo water and good food caused the soldiers to become malnourished. Supplies came by sea the soldiers struggled to get to the waters unnoticed by the turks. The ANZACS were limited to half a liter of water a day in scorching head and many of the soldiers that were wounded died in their stretchers because they were unable to be attended to. Most of the soldiers died of dysentery a painful gut disease caused by a bacterial infection or worm parasites. Charlotte Lee Gallais a nurse at ANZAC cove describes what it was like miles away from the front line ''We anchored about half a mile from the firing line guns going off all around us..startling the life out of me each time.. dreadful place Gallipoli..to my dying day i'll never forget the last six weeks''. In a diary of a Gallipoli soldier he describes the horrible living conditions of Gallipoli. He talks about the amount of food he consumes in 24 hours which is two biscuits, the snipers being awake all night limiting the actions he can make daily. The soldier hasn't washed in four days and is delighted by the idea of him changing his socks. There is heavy shrapnel while they drink tea and there is a huge culture shock between New Zealanders and the Turkish. He talks of thousands of Turks storming their camps screaming Allah Allah. The hand grenades used to attack the ANZACS so brutal they couldn't even recognize the dead and the 500 troops and no chance of burial. It also showcased the comradeship New Zealanders had for each other, a Kiwi lying in no mans land just about to die and two ANZACS go to help and get wounded themselves.
Upheld the finest traditions of our race - |
It was a matter of disorganized mess. No-one in charge, no orders, no officers taking charge and no planning. |