Australian Army Veterinary Corps in World War One: Recent Episodes
Michael
This is the first of a series of 15 minute talks about the Australian Army Veterinary Corps in World War One.
Our focus is on 1918 - the last year of a war which devoured and disfigured men and animals in the nightmare that was warfare on a modern, industrial scale.
effort. In the last episode I looked at the Middle East in 1916 and 1917 so in this segment I will focus on the work of veterinary units on the Western Front over the same period.
In this episode I will focus on the work of veterinary units in the Middle East in 1916 and later Syria in 1917. The environment and the opposing Ottoman forces threw up many challenges in managing animals in wartime. And yes, you will be hearing about camels!
We will look at the deployment of units of the 1st Australian Imperial Force and their animals in the Middle Eastern theatre, with a brief word about Gallipoli; and the movement of Australian troops and horses to the Western Front in early 1916.
In this segment I will look at the preparation and deployment of AIF units overseas and the challenges in 1915 that awaited those dealing with animals during, for what was for Australia, the first year of war.
In this, the first of six 15-minute podcasts, I will tell you something about the Australian Army Veterinary Corps during the Great War of 1914 -1918: what it was, what it did, where it deployed and the challenges it faced in the field. I will also touch on animals, mainly horses and mules, and their contribution to the war effort. T