They brought over 1 million horses, donkeys and mules over to WW1 and yet only 1 came home and for those others that made it through the war they were sold, left alone or shot.yet after all they did for us carried us helped us through pulled guns and if it wasn't for them we wouldn't have won the war. They brought the dogs home but not the horses.
well that depends Jack master on what you count.. the total figure for UK and empire was about 1.5 million or so but for Australian animals it was less and the reasons why they only brought one back are various and frankly justified at the time.. both Australian quarantine rules then in place plus a lack of Shipping in 1918/19 as well as the need to ship men home after 4 long years of war as quickly as possible ( mutinys had already broken out in Europe and elsewhere by men not getting home quickly enough) its very simplistic to say they just sold or shot them and after 25 years of research on the subject although I love the song the facts sadly do not corroborate the story.. those fit enough stayed with the army in occupation.. others where sold or given to local forces or to help rebuild the battle zones a d only those to old or unfit where shot and often eaten. why not with a world wide food shortage in 18/19. as for the story told in the Bogle songwriter strongly believe it was often a story made up by Australian horsemen to in some way excuse the fact that they simplely got on a ship and went home, leaving their horses behind.. after years of looking their is simply no evidence to support the idea that mass unauthorised shootings of animals took place anywhere in the middle east .
@boofheadrules The horses were shot under local, unofficial arrangements, as an act of mercy, cruel as it sounds. The official order was, as the songh says, "no horses to return". They were to be sold off locally, where, at least by Australian standards, (and mine) they would have been wickedly abused. The bean counters who ordered that should have indeed sufferred a crtual death. As allour dogs says, a few were sdaved later by Lady Brooks. on her own initiative.
I cried watching this - what a horrible thing to do to the comrades of our soldiers. Did they leave any soldiers behind? Of course not so why did their equine soldiers not deserve the same privilege? I know it was a logistical decision but nonetheless grossly unfair to these brave animals who carried our men and showed such valor in the face of unspeakable times. Lest we forget ... the horses too :' (
Boofa they were better off shot, those that didn't were given to the locals and flogged and starved to death. Dorothy Brooks was there years later, and one poor starved hors heard and English voice and did a trick of trying to shake hands. She formed the Brroks Home for horses which still goes on today. the ones shot were the lucky ones, the others were cruelly worked to a dreadful death
