New Zealand soldiers at Gallipoli. Photo / Supplied
Editorial
Bravery and resolve of New Zealand's troops' supreme feat of achievement deserves August 8 commemoration.
On another military ceremonial matter, there can be no such qualms. That is this weekend's national service to mark the centenary of the Battle of Chunuk Bair at Wellington's new Pukeahu War Memorial Park.
The taking of the heights by the Wellington Battalion, and the holding of them against fierce
Turkish counter-attacks, was the supreme achievement of the ill-fated Gallipoli campaign. Arguably, it is also the crowning achievement in this country's military history.
In many ways, therefore, August 8 is a date of more relevance to New Zealanders than April 25, when the Anzacs first landed at Gallipoli. The claiming of Chunuk Bair was an exclusively New Zealand feat, as recognised by the towering memorial atop it.
No other structure stands so high at Gallipoli or has a view of the Dardanelles, the taking of which was the objective of the campaign. For a time, the New Zealanders and the British forces that relieved them held the key to a free passage by the British Navy to Constantinople.
