Its still incredible to know that those horses were without water for almost two or three days and still managed to charge at full gallop across that hot field. Its a testament to that breed of animal that they had the strength to carry out the job.

“They wont charge.” Australians: “Fuck it. lets charge.”

A side story on the Charge concerning an Aussie Victoria Cross recipient. Following the O Group (orders group) conducted by Lt General Harry Chauvel which resulted in the Beersheba Charge later that day, a commanding officer who was at the group, Lt Colonel Leslie Maygar VC (CO, 8th Light Horse Regiment - the same regiment whose men including their then CO Lt Col Alex White were slaughtered at the Battle of the Nek on Gallipoli in August 1915) galloped back to his Regiment. As he galloped away, an aerial bomb from a German aircraft exploded close by him, his horse bolted. He was found the next day, with a mangled arm. He was conscious and chatting with those present during the amputation, but died on the operating table. Leslie had been awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions in 1901 in South Africa during the Anglo-Boer War for rescuing one of his men under heavy gunfire from the Boer Commando. If you are driving along the Hume Freeway South of Euroa, Victoria, perhaps spare a thought as you traverse a hill named in Leslie's honour - Maygars Hill, just north of Tubb's Hill (also named after a Victoria Cross recipient Lt Fred Tubb, a local farmer). In Euroa, at the RSL Sub Branch, Kirkland Ave, there are bronze statues to three local recipients of the Victoria Cross. Lt. Col. Maygar, Lt. Tubb, and Cpl Alex Burton (Killed in Action, Battle of Lone Pine, August 1915, Gallipoli). Thank you for reading my comment

4:48 If anyone is wondering why two of the shoulder flashes have an 'A', while the other doesn't. The 'A' signifies they are original ANZACs, who fought at Gallipoli.

I'm from nearby Beersheba (we call it Be'er Sheva)! We have people do re-enactments of this battle (and memorial ceremonies, etc) almost every year

Can you imagine being one of those men in this shot. Your riding a horse in the greatest reaction of one of the most pivotal horse charges in history, dressed in period accurate gear, it would be something you remember forever.

I was an American civil war reactor. Cavalry & mounted artillery wheel driver for thirty years. I also did mounted cowboy shooting, gymkana,& team penning. The best athletes in the world have 4 legs. Horses are spectacular. I love these animals,& this a fantastic movie.

"What are we doing here mate?" "I dunno lad, but someone mentioned 'beer' and 'sheilas'."

Nothing is more terrifying then a dehydrated Aussie

I want to be completely honest: For sheer guts and courage I rate no one above men who attack without regard for themselves - Aiussies are in the top of the league That charge was conducted in a way that demonstrated the grit and determination of Aussies them, and now. My Dad fought alongside side them in WW2 and he respected them all tremendously...untill they got pissed and nicked his rum ra\tion.

Let's note how good the cinematography is for this. Those shots of that charge, before they are in contact... Amazing stuff.

The accuracy of the filming of the Charge sequence is due to the wonderful planning by expert light horse historian Ian Jones, writer and co-producer of the film.

I'm so glad they did this epic charge justice in the film. The victory would help the allies win the whole region.

My History teacher, John Fox Russell had a grandfather of same name, Capt.John Fox Russell who was awarded a VC/MM in this Battle- He is buried at Beersheba War Cemetery ..He was a medic. {Royal Army Medical Corps}..He kept rescuing injured men under heavy machine gun fire....until killed himself. Rest in Peace, Men and horses.

my Grandad was part of this charge.. one of the few who was only armed with a sabour and he lived through it. his horse was downed but he took another and carried on.

When a bunch of Aussies come charging at you on horseback, bayonets in hand, make your peace quick.

Those Aussie boys were brave as hell, so much respect!. I absolutely love the tension that this scene was able to build.

Great film. WW1 is not something anyone can find comfortable to watch, but this was a masterpiece.

The battle lasted 12 hours and as the General said 50000 men couldn't take the town but they did weaken the defence the Turks didn't put any barbed wire in the trenches you nullify a charge. Very accurate and brilliant filming. Lest we forget

Proud to be an Australian. Thank you to the men who charged that day.

A horse lover and late 'Nam era Veteran, I cry every time I see this clip.

This battle reenactment is quite different to what really happened.... Every story I heard and research i've done about the charge of Beersheba, especially in my experience in the army, was that the Ottoman's were completely taken off guard that they were being charged towards at the crack of dawn; 05.30am. By the time many of them had time to react and stand-to, the horses had already dashed their way 2kms towards the city. Despite the ottoman artillery's best attempt of firing, the horses were already underneath the effective range of the cannon fire. Many other horsemen were already approaching trenches before the ottoman soliders could take a proper sight picture. The Australians knew that night, if they didn't take Beersheba by the morning, the horses wouldn't survive the day. This desperation created a radical plan of sending the 67th and 81st Regiments (27th Division), a total of 2,408 rifles, to charge at the city, many of whom were Arab. The concept was overwhelming for the Ottoman's as it was the last thing they'd expect from a group of withered disbanded Australian regiments. It was truly an miracle from God and many believe Australia is blessed because of the heroic actions of the ANZAC's. God blesses those who bless Israel.

As a United States of America retired Cavalry Dragoon, I found this charge to be quite inspirational! Thank you for posting it. SCOUTS, OUT!!

Mr. Von Lindemann...you're right. I've seen this film before but after 70+ years of watching movie depicted calvary charges...this is the best. Still gets my heart going.

Visited Bersheeba whilst serving(NZ Army) in the Middle East… To pay respects. Some Kiwis were also involved in the charge. Also, the original water well is still there…

Unfortunately, on the very last day of filming, the young actor @1.40 Jon Blake, who was considered to be a rising star was involved in a car accident that left him paralysed and suffering brain damage, though he lived to 2011 a very promising career was cut short.

Oddly, mounted infantry was probably the best type of unit to do this. The mission was to capture a town - street fighting which is an infantry job. The cavalry bit was simply (yes, stupid word, I know) to get across 3 miles of open countryside in reasonably good order.

I received a reply to my comments on the 13th Aug 2023 from a New Zealand Warrant Officer which brought to mind that us Aussies must never forget that NZ in ANZAC is New Zealand and we Aussies must never forget our brothers in arm across the Tasman Sea. The New Zealand Mounted Rifles were in the Beersheba area at the time of the Charge as were several other Aussie Light Horse Regiments. Thank you to our Kiwi brothers and sisters in arms from a retired Aussie digger.

I lived near Beer Sheva. Visited the cemetery to pay tribute. This battle opened access to Jerusalem and galvanized the British dominance in what was then "Palestine" and the trans-Jorden for thirty years.

Those Aussie boys were brave as hell, so much respect!

The Artillery attached to the Light Horse were 8th Perthshire and 9th Inverness-shire batteries RHA (TA) My Great grandfather served in 9th battery

Every year here in Israel we go to the Australian and NZ Soldiers buried there to remember the great things they did. Since my Israeli army unit used to do anti-tank maneuvers in that very area often as well as Gaza, there are no mountains or high hills like here but the ground scenery is similar.

My grandfather was there. He was looking after the Supply Horses & Mules. He was observing the charge when a stray bullet went over his head & took the heal of boot off.

The Lighthorse still wear the same head dress. I actually met some of them on my way to a job interview in Sydney once in 2006 & shook their hands. My dad's father chose to move here from South Africa in the early 1900's having heard of their bravado, and having already seen a war or two himself.

I don’t know what is better, the charge or Sir Harry’s quick comebacks.

My Grandfather served in the 2nd light horse - he died when I was 3, I would have loved to have spoken with him.

All the captured Turkish artillery were German guns manufactured by Krupp of Essen, the Beersheba guns and all the other captured guns were collected at the end of the war and shipped to Australia as "War Trophies" and subsequently allocated to towns all over Australia as war memorials, unfortunately no records was kept of where the guns were captured and to this day, the Turkish Government won't reveal what guns were where. Tragically, during WW2 most of the captured guns were collected as scrap because the scarce gun metal was needed to make new weapons to defend Australia, some still survive with Turkish writing but there is no way of knowing if they were Beersheba guns or not...

This was an incredible achievement by these brave heroes, especially taking the enemy by surprise by not dismounting like the British officers made them do. The sad part about the light horsemen and their animals they brought from Australia 🇦🇺 and had gone through so much together was, being told at the end of the war that the government wouldn’t pay for the horses return to Australia and they would have to be turned over to the locals. But seeing how they treated their own animals, many took their horses out into a field and shot them so they wouldn’t be abused . Such a terrible fate for these brave horses 🐎

The Aussies had the best looking uniforms in WW1

Props to the cameraman who filmed this back in 1917 in such quality! 🙌

Of course, the whole point of why they were successful was because they weren't actually cavalry. They were mounted infantry - the horses and camels were to make them highly independent and mobile (having a similar function to the SAS and Commandos in WWII). Their actual fighting style was, as with other Commonwealth light infantry forces, on foot with rifle and bayonet. They didn't have lances, nor did they have sabres or carbines (the standard fit of cavalry in WWI). The Turks and Germans thought the Light Horse would, as per their normal tactics, ride to a launch point, dismount and charge. Hence, the guns were laid for an infantry charge, not a cavalry charge. When they didn't stop riding in, it was too late to re-lay the guns, and so the charge went into history as the resounding success it was. But unlike the Light Brigade of the Crimean infamy, the Light Horse (as with other Commonwealth Mounted Rifles, such as the NZ Mounted Rifles) was not cavalry, it was mounted infantry.

I absolutely love the tension that this scene was able to build

One of my favorite movies, this. Perhaps the best Australian movie ever? I stayed in a hostel near their cemetery in Beersheva. A few years later, they put up that nice memorial statue.

Filmed by Dean Semler , who went on to be director of photography on Dances with Wolves.

Me step kid did a a Anzac Day tribute history school project to his great grand father and he was apart of the camel brigade that was a ambulance on this charge , pretty crazy ,

retired US Cavalryman here....absolutely awe inspiring.....FIDDLERS GREEN...SCOUTS OUT!

I had the honour to serve with the descendant regiment from one of the two regiments - of the Beersheba chargers (4th Light Horse Regiment AIF, the regiment shown in the movie) - I served with the 4th/19th Prince of Wales's Light Horse Regiment (Royal Australian Armoured Corps) in the 1980s and 1990s who proudly display this battle honour on the Regimental Guidon (sacred battle flag). The Troopers' club at PWLH Regt barracks at Watsonia Army Base, Victoria Australia is named in Honour of WO1 Alex Wilson, RSM of the 4th Light Horse Regiment at the time of the 1917 Charge. Alex was Killed in Action during the Charge, He was aged 24. Alex grew up at Drouin, Victoria. In 2016, long retired from the Army, I was asked to create a display on Alex for the Alex Wilson Club which at the time, the Regiment had almost no information on Alex. I tracked down the relatives of Alex in the Melbourne suburbs and found out a lot about Alex who had kept a diary from when he joined the AIF in August 1914 up until a couple of days before the Charge, they told me that his Commanding Officer, Lt Col Sir Murray Bourchier had visited the family after the war and told them a lot about Alex during his war years. Alex Charged side by side with Lt Col Bourchier in front of the lead squadron during the Charge at Beersheba. Before the Charge, Alex confided in his mate in the 4th Light Horse, Sgt Jim French (from Maffra, Victoria) - 'I think there is bullet for me at Beersheba'. Soon after the Charge and the Battle, Alex was found astride his horse, dead, from gunshot. It appears a Turkish soldier in the trench had spun around as Alex galloped over him and shot Alex from behind. Alex is buried at Beersheba War Cemetery. Alex's relatives told me that Alex had planned to become a Methodist preacher following the War. RSM Alex Wilson, may you Rest in Peace. To gain some understanding of what the defending Turkish soldiers were faced with during the Charge and how frightening it is to face charging men and horse coming straight for you, I recommend visiting a horse race, stand as close as the fence allows to the galloping horses and hear and feel the ground tremble with 15 or so horses, then try to imagine what 700 - 800 galloping horses of the 4th and 12th Light Horse Regiments, charging side by side must have sounded and felt like. It must have been terrifying for the Turks, keeping in mind the Turks had not trained for, nor had any experience in defending themselves from a horsed charge. BTW, in 2022 in Shepparton Victoria near the RSL Club, a full size bronze statue was unveiled of Lt Col Bourchier. The statue depicts Sir Murray on his horse, revolver drawn, his horse at full gallop during the Charge.

🇦🇺🇦🇺😃👍 What glory, what honor, what absolutely heroic & unwavering dedication to duty, what exhilarating awesomeness & cathartic exaltation (& what a superb recreation!), as that spectacular Australian Cavalry Charge will resonate down through the ages in this properly immortalized & rightfully romanticized fashion (also, at least half those splendid fighting men were Irish or of Irish lineage☘☘☘)😜😜😃🇦🇺🇦🇺

Not one of these beautiful horses ever made it back to Australia. With the fear of foot and mouth they were put down rather than being left for whatever fate. My Grandfather b. 1898 was in the 2/9th light horse. He rode through Palestine and onto Jerusalem. Their victories over 100 years ago still reverberate and shaped the world we live in today.

I'm trying to apply for a job while still recovering from COVID. Then, procrastinating, I watch this film, and see a bunch of ANZACS in a far worse plight, trying the most outrageous tactics, and winning! Bloody miracles do happen! Alright. I'll do it. I'll get myself that job!

Amazing thing is the Aussie really did take the place with a mounted infantry attack with short bayonnets.

My grandfather was witness to the events and charge at Beersheba he was in the Staffordshire yeomanry and guarding the right or left flank (can't remember which).

ANZAC troops were brave in all wars. My father fought with them in the South Pacific and had the highest respect for the ANZACS.

Not only the best filming of a cavalry charge the real charge was the greatest cavalry charge ever and they were not even cavalry and the casualties were amazingly low.

You Australians know how to ride damn they put u.s cavalry to shame because that was amazing

A great film, BUT to be clear the NZ Mounted Rifles were there as well. In the original edit of this movie (back in the day of initial release) the dismounted ground attack on a Turkish dug in position (in the scene preceding the Charge) were NZ Mounted Riflemen attacking and securing a hill that had not been taken in 2000 yrs. By doing so they secured the Right flank of the charge from Turkish fire. i.e. instead of getting fired for the front AND the right , the Australasians only had to deal with the frontal fires. TAKE NOTHING away from the brilliance and bravery at all. 100 % Kudos to the AU LI. In the ORIGINAL release, the during that preceding attack, one digger says to the other " The kiwis are doing it hard" (or words to that effect) - NOW it has been overdubbed as " The ANZACs are doing it hard" (or words to that effect) FFS credit where due gentleman , the parochial BS is unnecessary, Australia claim, many kiwi icons LOL and we laugh about it !!!!! - BUT I wish whoever over-dubbed the voices (in later versions) of this movie would remember that: KIWIS died in the same location, same day , accomplishing a near impossible task - that arguably enabled the success of the final charge and DEFINITELY saved Australian Light horsemen from death from that flanking fire. So WHY over - dubb NZ out of the "collective consciousness" ? Bit insecure are we? I was a Kiwi Infantry man and ANZAC includes us - not excludes us. See in the scene with the Staff Officers contemplating options, the Kiwi is the guy with the "Lemon squeezer" hat with RED pugree (Hat band). So it acknowledges at least we were part of a plan and supporting action. Must have been an over- parochial Au Civilian in Editing! By the way FROM the NZ Mounted Rifles - you are welcome. Cheers. Great Movie, Great AU Bravery, Great Aussies ..........................just remember your mates !

The rohirrim had their charge, we had ours

Most of these horse were Whalers from Northern NSW, of all those shipped only one returned, a horse called Sandy that was Brigadier Bridges horse, he was killed at Gallipoli. They are absolutely amazing horses and highly valued.

I like how you can see the difference in riding style like how some lean further back while others are more forward even see how some continued to spur their horse or very seldom did I know it’s small probably something stupid to point out but smeh I liked to see that

Now THET'S how you do a charge.

Put Grant straight at it! One hell of an Ops order.

I believe that there were more casualties after the charge into/over the trenches than during the charge, as the movie showed the sights of the rifles were lowered too slow due to the speed of the charge and thus most of the bullets were going over the heads of the horses/men. The Light horsemen would ride up close to the action and dismount with the fourth rider having to stay back and hold the reins of the four horses. This was the main reason for the foresights not being lowered in time.

The Charge at the end of 'The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe' was brilliantly done too, totally fictional of course but a brilliantly 'filmed' charge none the less!

Fabulous film and history that should not be forgotten. This is the absolute last cavalry charge that is documented. Enjoy 😊

Don't know what it is like to charge a line of fire on a horse. Do know how it feels charging head on into tracer rounds. Incredible bravery of these men.

A point about your title. As the British and German officers pointed out, there was a distinction between cavalry, who fought from horseback, and mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but fought on foot. This was a great "mounted" charge, but not a "cavalry" one. The Light Horse were mounted infantry.

How did those horses carry the weight of their massive Australian balls.

It's absolutely astounding what the Australian Lighthorse was able to achieve that day. You'd think it might have been worse than Balaklava, even if the Light Brigade did reach the Russian positions at the end of the valley, which most people don't know. Still, all hail the Aussies, mate!

They pulled off that attack against entrenched troops with artillery support and machine guns. All I can say is...dammnn?!?

It's incredible how proud you are to be Australian, when you live overseas for a while. Europeans have no idea. Our soldiers are great.

I love history. I also very much enjoy good movies about epic historical battles!

You got to love those Aussies

At first click I thought this was the charge of the Light Brigade very similar, brave but nuts to attempt. Wonderfully shot

I remember watching this film as a kid! Haven't seen it in decades!

They aren't cavalry, they're mounted infantry

One of my all time favourite films with an incredible cast telling the true story not only of the charge at Bathsheba but of the men of the Australian Light Horse who made the charge that day. We get to know the main characters in the Australian Light Horse we see them as ordinary blokes with there dreams, there aspirations and the brotherhood that bonds them as family and mates. As an audience we laugh with them, smile with them and hope that they all survive together, but in war those hopes are dashed with death of those we are behind to survive not only the charge but the war, unfortunately it doesn't happen and then we shed tears for those we hoped don't. It is one of the most incredible true stories of ordinary men who become heroes of Australia and the free world. The first time I saw this film it gave me so many emotions, but the Australian Light Horse became one of my favourite military units in the world. Even though I am British and many members of my family served in the RAF, British Army and the Royal Navy in WW2, i have a lot of respect and support for the Australian Armed Forces and the Australian Light Horse will always be my favourite. 💂‍♂️💂‍♂️💂‍♂️💂‍♂️🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇮🇪🇮🇪🇮🇪🇮🇪💙💛🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺

As an Aussie, this is a stone paved in the footpath of our heritage that is to be Australian. You'd better fear us.

It was a very entertaining film, just a bit short on the research side. The NZ Mounted Rifles officer in the group is wearing a lemon squeezer hat with a red puggaree. In fact the light horse and the mounted rifles were very simmiarly kitted, the lemon squeezer hat was infantry uniform, the mounteds wore broad brimmed hats similar to that of the Aussie horsemen. The New Zealanders had not failed to take anything, they were the first part of a two phase attack, doing the job that mounted rifles are meant for, closing quickly to a position, dismounting and carrying out an infantry role, in this case, securing a flank and providing covering fire..

I am a proud Canadian, and I have so much respect for the Australians.

Deepest respect for the soldiers who paid the ultimate sacrifice to breathe freedoms we enjoy. Proud to an Australian.

the best Calvary charge filmed ever, is waterloo undisputed , if that's how you put the title out , as for the Aussies well im English and if they was attacked i be first on the boat out there to give my support. love UK ALWAYS

Must've been crazy being in a dust up this chaotic.

The "best" charge ever filmed is ... debatable. There have been several cavalry charges committed to film that are accorded the description of "the best" depending on the personal opinions of the reviewers - the charge of the light brigade at the Battle of Balaclava, the charge of the British heavy cavalry at Waterloo, the charge of the Rohirrim on the Pelennor Fields, and so on. Everything is relative.

IF you are a TRU BLUE....THIS IS OUR HERITAGE ! I am so proud to be an Aussie !

Assim se dá a conhecer a História!

Now that's some! depiction of a cavalry charge.

It's impressive they found so many actors able to perform a running gallop.

Best? Probably. Longest? definitely! They hardly had the element of surprise did they? Bravery!

This story, and many more including the disastrous Gallipoli campaign are vividly described by light horse soldier Ion Idriess in his great book, The Desert Column. This his not the only time they and their horses, deprived of food and water are called into battle.

The lesson, troops, never, EVER piss off a [mounted] Combat Medic!

Its good, very historically accurate (eg: using bayonets as sabres) and I really like this film, but in cinematic terms (ie: "The best Cavalry Charge filmed ever") I think there are number of even better examples, even though they may be less historically accurate: Michael Curtiz's legendary Charge of the Light Brigade ("bring on the empty horses"), Laurence Olivier's Agincourt Scene in Henry V, Sergei Bondarchuk's two massive cavalry charges (the British "Union Brigade" and the French heavy cavalry) in Waterloo, to name three that spring to mind.

This was Marechal Ney's mass calvary charge but successful

The magnificence and wonder of gods creatures coupled with the insanity of man’s drive to face adversity, with sheer courage is a paradox. Awe inspiring yet heart breaking.

Incredible!Incredible!Incredible! That is what makes a legend !

Not sure if its the best ever filmed. Haven't seen that many. But, nonetheless, it sorta captures the imagination, hey?

gen jeb stuart proud of australia cavalry

I suspect my partners great grandfather was part of the New Zealand Light horse, they were also part of the larger battle for Beersheba. I currently have a copper shell casing that was carved with some "hieroglyphs" in some Bazaar in Cairo after the war siting next to my fireplace which holds a fire poker.

The 4th Light Horse Colour Patch worn during the Charge - According to the 4th Light Horse War Diary 1915 (held by the Aust War Memorial) from approx 30th March 1915 soldiers of the 4th Light Horse Regiment AIF were issued a White over Red rectangle colour patch on the sleeves of their woolen tunic and their great coat. The Regiment split into two entities in early 1916 following withdrawal and regrouping in Egypt after the Gallipoli Operations, A and C Squadron being sent to France to work with two of the 5 Infantry Divisions as divisional mounted troops, B squadron remained in Egypt to rebuild the Regiment back to a 3 sabre squadron regiment. Until August 1917, both the Western Front and the Middle East based Regiments wore the same colour patch - White over Red. In August 1917 the Middle East based Regiment, now with the recently created 4th Light Horse Brigade, were issued new colour patches just a few weeks before the Charge. Light Blue over Dark Blue rectangle - diagonally divided. This colour patch is the same patch shown being worn in the movie. I have actually held one of the colour patches from the original Charge. It was worn during the Charge by 4th Light Horse RSM Alex Wilson, (KIA at the end of the Charge, age 24). His relatives in Melbourne brought it out to show me - it had been sent to them after the Charge and his death. It was moth damaged but it was such a privilege for me to hold. RSM WO1 Alex Wilson, may you Rest in Peace.

I agree best ever

This battle sequence is to me almost as good as the original “All quiet on the Western Front” battle. Remove the music and this scene would be 20% better.