The Battle for Lone Pine

Most Australian have heard of Lone Pine. Too few know why. Over four days in August 1915, Australians and Turks were thrown into some of the fiercest fighting of the war, on a small plateau in Gallipoli known as Lone Pine. Thousands of lives were lost. Seven of Australia's nine Gallipoli VCs were earned during brutal hand-to-hand combat in dark tunnels and in trenches just meters apart, bombarded by terrifying volleys of grenades. The Battle for Lone Pine is the first book devoted to this cornerstone of the Anzac legend, drawing on unforgettable first-hand accounts scratched into diaries and letters home. The stories of the diggers, as well as the engineers, nurses, sappers, commanders, and more, provide an invaluable record of the battle and serve as moving testimony to their courage in appalling conditions. Today, pine trees are planted in remembrance around Australia. In Gallipoli, the Lone Pine Cemetery and Memorial attracts large crowds to commemorate Anzac Day. David W. Cameron's absorbing history reveals the fate of those who fought on the ground where they gather.

David W. Cameron is a biological anthropologist and was formerly an Australian Research Council QEII Fellow at the Department of Anatomy & Histology, University of Sydney. In early 2003 he conducted a preliminary archeological survey of the Anzac Gallipoli battlefields and held discussions with Turkish and Australian government officials about conservation issues relating to the Anzac area. He is the author of several books on the Gallipoli Campaign, including 'Sorry, Lads, But the Order is to Go'—The August Offensive, Gallipoli: 1915.