Gallipoli

For the first time showcasing a unique and extensive range of Australian War Memorial photographs, ‘Gallipoli: a Ridge too far’ describes the pivotal events of that momentous year as they affected all the countries involved. The book combines fresh perspectives from the world’s leading authorities, including Turkish and German historians, together with soldiers’ letters and diary accounts.

In early August 1915, after months of stalemate in the trenches on Gallipoli, British and Dominion troops launched a series of assaults in an all-out attempt to break the deadlock and achieve a decisive victory. The ‘August offensive’ resulted in heartbreaking failure and costly losses on both sides. Many of the sites of the bloody struggle became famous names: Lone Pine, the Nek, Chunuk Bair, Hill 60, Suvla Bay. Debate has continued to the present day over the strategy and planning, the real or illusory opportunities for success, and the causes of failure in what became the last throw of the dice for the Allies.

This new book about the Gallipoli battles arises out of a major international conference at the Australian War Memorial in 2010 to mark the 95th anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign. Keynote speaker Professor Robin Prior led a range of international authorities from Australia, New Zealand, Britain, France, Germany, India and Turkey to present their most recent research findings. The result was significant: never before had such a range of views been presented, with fresh German and Turkish perspectives offered alongside those of British and Australasian historians. For the resulting book, the papers have been edited and the text has been augmented with soldiers’ letters and diary accounts, as well as a large number of photographs and maps.

Ashley Ekins is Head of the Military History Section at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra. He specialises in the history of the First World War and the Vietnam War. He has published widely on the role of Australian soldiers in the First World War and contributed chapters to several books, including the volume he compiled and edited, ‘1918 Year of Victory: The end of the Great War and the shaping of history’ (Exisle 2010), and ‘War Wounds: Medicine and the trauma of conflict’ (Exisle 2011), which he co-edited with Elizabeth Stewart.

The following distinguished historians from around the world have contributed to this book: Robin Prior – University of Adelaide, Australia, Stephen Bradley – University of Wolverhampton, UK, Ashley Ekins – Australian War Memorial, Australia, Peter Burness – Australian War Memorial, Australia, Peter Pedersen – Australian War Memorial, Australia, John Tonkin-Covell – New Zealand Command and Staff College, New Zealand, Kenan Çelik – Formerly at Onzekiz Mart University, Çanakkale, Turkey, Holger Afflerbach – University of Leeds, UK, Harvey Broadbent – Macquarie University, Australia, Colonel Frédéric Guelton – French Military Archives, Vincennes, France, Elizabeth Greenhalgh – University of New South Wales, Australian Defence Force Academy, Australia, Rana Chhina – India Centre for Armed Forces Historical Research, India, Rhys Crawley – Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University, Australia, Janda Gooding – Australian War Memorial, Australia, Robert O’Neill – Former Chichele Professor of the History of War, University of Oxford, UK