figure of a 1915 Turkish soldier carved in white upon the hillside. In one hand he holds a rifle while his other arm is outstretched towards a Turkish inscription: "Traveller halt, The soil you tread, Once witnessed the end of an era" Turkish poet, Necmettin Halil Onan commands us to stop and consider the ‘mound’ of earth that is the Gallipoli peninsula. Here beats the heart of a whole ‘epoch’ or period of Turkish national life. It was here in 1915 that the ordinary Turkish soldier – Mehmet – laid down his life for the freedom of Turkey, Fought during the First World War (1914-18) from 25 April 1915 to 9 January 1916, Gallipoli was the first major amphibious operation in modern warfare. British Empire and French troops landed on the Ottoman-held peninsula in the Dardanelles Straits with disastrous consequences for the Allies.