Abroad WWI
Australians earned a ferocious reputation as troops in the First World War.
They also earned a reputation as larrikins that paid little attention to military traditions like the observation of rank.
After a disastrous landing at Anzac Cove, a legacy was salvaged by a successful retreat and evacuation.
The Australian’s first action in France at Fromelles would also be among their most costly with more than 5000 casualties.
The Western Front settled into a line 20km wide and 800km long, running from the English Channel to the Swiss Alps.
Away from the front, soldiers were keen to live for the moment and indulge in the freedoms of a 10-day leave pass.
The correspondence of Anzac troops hints at tragedies kept to themselves; later revealed in diaries and memoirs.
For those who survived the war, initial relief gave way to a new set of problems.
