The last gasp: centenary of the August Offensive on Gallipoli

This month the Australian War Memorial is involved in a number of activities to commemorate the centenary of the August Offensive that took place on Gallipoli during the First World War.

In early August 1915, after three long months of stalemate, Australian, New Zealand, British, and Indian troops launched a series of assaults against Turkish strongpoints on the Gallipoli peninsula. This was an all-out attempt to break the deadlock and force a decisive victory. It would become known as the August Offensive.

The ensuing battles were the largest and most costly in the eight-month Gallipoli campaign. All the allied attacks ended in heartbreaking failure and resulted in heavy losses on both sides. Many of the sites of the bloody struggle – Lone Pine, The Nek, Chunuk Bair, and Hill 60 – became sadly familiar names in Australia and New Zealand.

To this day many questions remain about the tactics employed, the actions of allied commanders, and the Turkish responses to the offensive. What ultimately became the allies’ last throw of the dice on Gallipoli has been called both a lost opportunity and an inevitable tragedy.

Thursday 6 August, 12 noon – Dr Brendan Nelson, National Press Club Address

Dr Brendan Nelson, address: The August Offensive: Last Throw of the Dice

National Press Club Address, Barton, ACT

Thursday 6 August, 4.30 pm – Last Post Ceremony, Lone Pine

Commemorating the 100th anniversary of the battle of Lone Pine 

Last Post Ceremony featuring Private Mark Alexander Smith, 4th Battalion, AIF

Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra

In attendance: Dr Brendan Nelson and Australia’s Federation Guard

Friday 7 August, 4.30 pm – Last Post Ceremony, charge at The Nek

Commemorating the 100th anniversary of the charge at The Nek

Last Post Ceremony, Trooper Gresley Tatlock Harper, 10th Australian Light Horse Regiment, AIF

Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra

In attendance: Dr Brendan Nelson and Australia’s Federation Guard

Monday 10 August, 4.30 pm – Last Post Ceremony, battle of Chunuk Bair

Commemorating the 100th anniversary of the battle of Chunuk Bair

Last Post Ceremony, Corporal Robert Reginald Chapman, 13th Battalion, AIF

Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra

In attendance: Australia’s Federation Guard

To request an interview with a Memorial historian in the gallery spaces of the Australian War Memorial, please contact us via media@awm.gov.au.

For more information on the August Offensive, including the Victoria Crosses awarded during the action and the Memorial’s Last Post stories, please visit /media/kits.