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We awoke this morning ın a new location; how exciting! And it wasn't raining either which was just top! I headed downstairs and booked us on to a tour of Gallipoli. It was quite a long day - running from 12pm to 7pm.
Marcus and I went out and grabbed a kofte for breakfast - in the absence of eggy-weggs - this is rapidly becoming our staple diet. We took a boat from Canakkale harbour over to Kilitbahir the main port on the peninsular. On the way, etched into the hillside, is a huge poem and a picture. The poem translates into English:
Traveller, Halt! The soil you headlessly tread
once witnessed the end of an era
Listen! In this quiet mound - there once beat the heart of a nation.
We landed and were immediately presented with lunch - the fat b*stards strike again! after which our Tour guide took us to the museum to begin the tour. There were about nine of us on the tour - four Australians, two Canadians, two Americans, and us two English.
He started by explaining the background behind the war fought at Gallipoli. This was something I have to confess - I knew nothing about. In 1915 the Allied forces accused Turkey of entering the war and siding with Germany; up until this point the were neutral. There was some odd things that were never explained properly: such as why to German battleships with Turkish markings and a Turkish flag were moored off Istanbul. However, in the main, the Allies wanted to nip in the bud what Mr Churchill considered 'The Turkish menace' They also wanted to, I believe, take control of the Dardanelles, Istanbul, and the Bosphorus Strait. The main shipping route between Europe and Asia and a key strategic military point.
The launched a naval attack into the Dardanalles expecting little resistance. Turkey kicked their arses. The allies had a bit of a rethink of their strategy and, on April the 25th that year, they sent a invasion fleet to the Gallipoli peninsular to attack overland. That day is now known as ANZAC day.
The strategy was to march into Turkey and to Istanbul. A massive force of British, Indian, French, Australian, and New Zealand forces, were deployed all the way up the coastline and two Naval destroyers were sent north to provide a diversion for the troops. It nearly worked - the entire plan was foiled by a couple of factors: the initial thrust of the ANZAC forces were thrown into confusion because they landed a mile north of their intended landing point - a place known now as ANZAC cove. Also a minor officer in the Turkish army managed to guess the strategy of the Allies and, with only a tiny force of Turkish troops, held off the ANZAC forces until reinforcements arrived. He then went on to single-handedly to lead the defense strategy for the entire war - whilst suffering from malaria. He later re-formed the government, created Ankara as a new capital, and changed the fate of his nation. His name was Mustafa Kemal; the Turks know him as Attaturk (Father Turk). I really want to read his biography - he sounds amazing. Currently the one I am after is going for £168 on Amazon. He also died at the age of 58 of liver cirrhosis from chronic alcoholism; quite a human character!
So this was the lowdown we were given. There is a lot more. Much more. The guide kept on saying that the beeg mistake was from the Allied forces messing up the landing point for the ANZAC troops. I really think that was a moot point, however I am no tactician, and I am certainly not being patriotic. I was thinking whether or not the landing party was successful was irrelevant. The big guns raining down from Kabatepe, further down on the south coast, cut down any subsequent landing parties and forced them to land at ANZAC cove anyway. The Allies were striving to take the high ground - the objectives were the ridges at the top of the peninsula and Chanuk Bair - the highest point. They got as far as what is now known as lone pine. Three or four times that day this point exchanged hands. It is said wars are won on both decisions and indecisions. Maybe then, the battle would have been different if they landed on the right cove. Maybe. Then Turkish reinforcements arrived and the trench lines were dug in. For the next nine and a half months these lines budged no more than maybe forty metres each way along. Trench warfare is horrific. Wilfred Owen knew all about it: Dulce et Decorum Est. That summer was supposed to be the hottest summer and coldest winter in over a hundred years. Five hundred thousand Turkish troops lost their lives; over forty thousand ANZAC troops; forty thousand French troops and over one hundred and fifty thousand British troops.
We were shown around a number of the battlefields and strategic points. We saw the trenches and the graves of so many troops, mainly ANZAC, who ranged between 14 and 48. The average age seemed to be around 24. We also visited a Turkish graveyard, the average age was much younger - 21. Most Turkish troops fought with a ration of five bullets a day. After that, it was bayonets.
The Allies finally gave up the pointless carnage and gave orders to retreat. By January 1916 it was all over. Apart from it took many Turkish people nearly two years to get home. The final list of casualties was over two million.
There is something profoundly quiet about this place. Mainly because, apart from a small population of farmers and people working on heritage and conservation, it is uninhabited. It was a profoundly moving and humbling experience, and one I am glad I experienced. I am still pretty certain that the elderly American lady stood on my foot and kicked me over seven times on purpose. I nearly started kicking her back at one point.
Going back past the poem this time really made a lot of sense. We got back to Canakkale and went out and played Tavla - that is Turkish for backgammon. Turks love it. We decided to go to visit the ruins of Troy in the morning. I have to say, in my ignorance, I had no idea Troy was in Turkey; I thought it was in Greece. But then there are so many things about Turkey I had no idea about. I'll update you in a little while.
When to bed - nobody farted. Bonzaa!
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