New research finds twice as many Kiwis as thought served at Gallipoli

The Wellington Infantry Battalion preparing to board a troopship bound for Gallipoli in October 1914. Photo / Alexander Turnbull Library

Defence Force historians John Crawford and Matthew Buck have found that more than 16,000 New Zealand troops served at Gallipoli, almost double the accepted number of 8556.

They have published their research in an e-book, Phenomenal and Wicked: Attrition and Reinforcement in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force at Gallipoli.

The book is informed by the notebooks of the deputy assistant adjutant general of the New Zealand and Australian Division in Archives New Zealand which Crawford found in the files of Archives New Zealand.

Another key to the research was the more recent discovery of financial records that show exactly how the New Zealand forces were distributed over the course of the campaign.

The book also provided insight into the planning undertaken prior to the main body of soldiers leaving New Zealand in 1914, Crawford said.

"New Zealand's political and military leadership were well aware that losses in a major war were likely to be extremely heavy," he said.

"However, their extensive preparations were almost overwhelmed by the scale of the losses that were actually experienced – more than 2700 killed and many thousands more becoming sick and wounded."

By late September 1915 the infantry had typically suffered about 170 per cent attrition, of which about half were caused by a dysentery epidemic that raged through the Allied forces on the peninsula.

The financial records confirmed that relatively few of the thousands of men who became sick or wounded at Gallipoli returned to their units during the campaign.

The remnants of the Canterbury Mounted Rifles on the Greek Island of Lemnos on 14 September, 1915. Photo / Alexander Turnbull Library

"The only way that the New Zealand Expeditionary Force could stay in the battle was by pouring in thousands of fresh reinforcements," Crawford said.

"We now know that up to 17,000 New Zealand Expeditionary Force personnel had a direct connection with the campaign. Twice as many New Zealand families as previously thought had at least one member on the peninsula in 1915.

"We think that this goes a very long way towards explaining why Gallipoli had such a profound effect on contemporary New Zealand society, and why it continues to have such a central place in our national memory."

Defence Force Historian John Crawford receives an award for his work from Air Marshal Kevin Short. Photo / Supplied

The book is the result of cooperation between the Ministry for Culture and Heritage, the NZDF, Archives New Zealand and Statistics New Zealand.

The book is available free at: https://nzhistory.govt.nz/war/gallipoli-campaign-numbers