History of Gallipoli Peninsula
Gallipoli peninsula (Turkish: Gelibolu Yarımadası,
Greek: ??????????/Kallipolis) is located in Turkish Thrace, the European part of
Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east.
The name derives from the Greek Kallipolis, meaning "Beautiful City".
Kallipolis, was a city in the southern part of the
Thracian Chersonese now known as the Gallipoli Peninsula, on the right shore,
and at the entrance of the Dardanelles.
The region covers 33,000 hectares (330 square kilometres).
The geological, archaelogical and environmantal features of the Gallipoli Peninsula
have stimulated the region as a popular tourist spot. The Peninsula has been a bridgehead,
a barrier and meeting place for different cultures over the centuries.
dFor nine months in 1915, British and French forces battled
the Ottoman Empire - modern Turkey - for control of the Gallipoli peninsula, a small
finger of Europe jutting into the Aegean Sea that dominates a strategic waterway, the
Dardanelles. By opening the Dardanelles to their fleets, the Allies hoped to threaten
the Ottoman capital, Constantinople (now Istanbul) and knock the Turks out of the war.
 Among the British forces were the Anzacs - the Australia and
New Zealand Army Corps - who landed on the peninsula on 25 April. The landing ,
was ambitious and ultimately unsuccessful: the peninsula remained in its defenders' hands.
The campaign was a costly failure for the Allies:
44,000 British and French soldiers died, including over 8700 Australians.
Among the dead were 2721 New Zealanders - approximate one-quarter of those
who fought on Gallipoli. Victory came at a high price for the Turks: 87,000 men
died in the campaign which became a defining moment in Turkish history.
Map of the southern section of the Gallipoli Peninsula, Turkey, showing main features, landing beaches and approximate front lines as of August 1915.
The objectives for the first day were the line Gaba Tepe - Hill 971 - Mal Tepe in the Anzac Sector and a line through Achi Baba to the coast east
and west in the Helles sector. The Anzacs were intended to have been landed south of Hell Spit.
Yellow indicates landing places. The large arrows indicating the beach represent the direction of attack.
Showing the Anzac and Helles sectors, where landings took place on 25th April, 1915, and the Suvla sector (north of Anzac) where landings occurred in August 1915.
The distance from the Helles sector to the Anzac sector was aprroximately 20 kilometres (13 miles).
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