A reminder of a far off war in a Glasgow graveyard. This is a memorial in the city's Sighthill Cemetery for a 26 year old Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve officer who died near Achi Baba in the Dardanelles on the 4th of June 1915. The Dardanelles is one of the world's narrowest navigation straits which connects the Black Sea to the Mediterranean, and it was the site of one of the most controversial campaigns of World War I.
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Following a proposal by Winston Churchill, then the First Lord of the Admiralty, the British and French navies tried to force access through this narrow strait to, amongst other things, help secure British oil interests in the Middle East. It began on the 19th of February 1915, but the strength and the resouces of the defending Ottoman troops had been greatly underestimated, and this initial attempt failed, with heavy losses of British and French ships due to mines laid in the channel.
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When it became clear that the campaign could not be achieved by sea power alone, troops were landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula in April 1915. These were repelled with heavy losses, and by January 1916, all the allied forces had been withdrawn and the campaign was abandoned.
Over 100,000 people died in the campaign, and another 400,000 were injured, and by the end of 1915, Churchill was no longer the political head of the Royal Navy.
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The majority of the information in this post comes from the Imperial War Mueum's article on this campaign, which can be found here: https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/a-short-history-of-the-dardanelles-campaign
The Dardanelles, a narrow 60-mile-long strip of water that divides Europe from Asia, has been of great strategic significance for centuries. Carefully secured by international treaty, it was the closing of the Dardanelles that eventually brought the Ottoman Empire into the war as a German ally at the end of October 1914.
Most towns/suburbs in Australia have an RSL (Returned Services League) club. These generally have a bar and bistro, so are well attended. Every night at 6pm, all stand silently as the Ode of remembrance is read.
Every 25th April, Australians and New Zealanders commemorate the Gallipoli landings, with dawn parades and a national public holiday (ANZAC day) to remember the fallen.
We don't forget, yet still we repeat the same mistakes.
This Is My Glasgow
UkeleleEric
Mr E McKissock