First World War Cheops Pyramid photo: debunking the myths and bringing men to life

THESE were the first men thrust into the cauldron of destruction that was Gallipoli — and this was to be their last photograph together.

Weeks before they stormed ashore, and into the pages of history, on what would become Anzac Day, these 703 Australians were ordered to perform a quite different action — one that has contributed to their legacy as much as the acts of frontline courage that followed.

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Camped in Egypt before being shipped to the Dardanelles, the men of the Australian Infantry Division’s 11th Battalion were ordered to a nearby landmark, for a group photo. It was likely the last ever image taken of many of them.

“After Church this morning the whole Battalion was marched up to the Pyramid (Old Cheops) and we had a photo took or at least several of them,” wrote Captain Charles Barnes in his diary for Sunday, January 10, 1915.

With most officers in the front, the men clambered up the ancient steps to pose.

Legend has it that amongst them was a dead body — dressed and propped up for the photo in a grim example of larrikin humour.

It is one of several stories around the image; many of them myths that are being debunked by a determined group of researchers as a side project on their painstaking mission to identify the men gathered there.

WAS YOUR ANCESTOR THERE?

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While 154 have been identified — those that have been coloured in our version of the picture — many more remain unnamed. And today we are asking readers to help identify their ancestors.

They came from families all over the country and the world, although the battalion was raised in Western Australia, and set sail from there to Egypt in November 1914.

As a starting point, we are running a full list of the battalion’s roll online — log on to our website, find the picture and see if your name is there.

If you think your relative was present and can help identify him, contact the Western Australian Genealogical Society (wags.org.au), who have led the way in naming the men. Some of them are verified, others on balance likely.

FIRST INTO ACTION ON A DAY OF HORROR

The 11th Battalion was among the first infantry units raised for the Australian Infantry Force during the First World War; its men were among the first soldiers to land in the face of enemy fire on April 25, 1915; ten days later company they mounted the first raid of the war against Turkish positions at Gaba Tepe.

It lost 57 men in that first awful day of action at Gallipoli, among 620 Aussies killed.

After the withdrawal from Gallipoli, the battalion sailed for France and the Western Front – and from then until the armistice of 1918, it took part in bloody trench warfare.

There are many true tales of bravery beyond compare in the battalion’s history. As for those stories of the pyramid? Over to the experts at WAGS.

DEAD BODIES AND A FAMILY TRAGEDY - THE MYTHS

1. There’s a dead body hidden among the men

“Can you imagine that?” laughs WAGS researcher Chris Loudon. “With all those officers about? There’s not a bit of evidence to prove that”. The WAGS site adds: “This is a myth of mammoth proportions. There is no record of any 11th Battalion soldier having died in the days prior to the photo being taken. No soldier in his right mind would have treated his mate with such disrespect.”

2. Those linking arms in the row behind the officers were a father and sons all killed the next day

WAGS: “There is plenty of evidence that this is wrong. The photo was taken on Jan 10 1915 and the battalion did not see action at Gallipoli until April 25th. The nominal rolls do not support the contention that there was a father and three or four sons in the original enlistments. We know that at least one of these men returned to Australia and raised a family and that he was unrelated to the others. They are merely good mates and used this method to stand out in the photo.”

3. All of the men who have their arms folded are married

WAGS: “There is no evidence that this is correct. Amongst those men whom have been identified and have their arms folded there are certainly some who are married, but there are many men who do not have their arms folded that were married. Likewise there are numerous men who have their arms folded who are single. Again, the soldiers used this as a way to stand out from the crowd.”

4. The men who have their bayonets drawn or crossed are all in the same company

WAGS: “Untrue. Whilst only a limited number of men who have their bayonets drawn have been identified they are from four different enlistment companies, and three different companies that were in existence at the time that the photograph was taken. Soldiers used this, along with many other methods, as a way to stand out from the crowd.”

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