On 12 August 1915 the 1/5th Battalion Norfolks advanced on Kuchuk Anafarta Ova on the Suvla Plain at Gallipoli. They never returned. An official report stated they had been ‘lost to sight and sound’. Using previously unseen records, photographs, diaries, accounts and letters, Steve Smith has conducted the first thorough investigation into what truly happened at Kuchuk Anafarta Ova on 12 August 1915. His research has led him to Turkish archives, where he has uncovered accounts of troops who faced the advancing 1/5th Battalion—accounts that debunk the myth of a mass slaughter in cold blood. To substantiate the written sources, Smith has combed the battlefield on foot, charting the course of the day’s events in a series of new maps. The Norfolks at Gallipoli 12 August 1915: Truth and Myth is the definitive account of what became of the 16 officers and 250 men of the 1/5th Battalion who climbed over the parapet on that fateful day. It is also a battlefield guide for those who want to explore, down at trench level, the ground on which this extraordinary episode of the Gallipoli campaign took place.

Steve Smith’s fascination with military history stems from his family’s experiences in the two world wars, which he has traced in detail. His initial interest soon developed into a passion, and then a calling. Steve served in the RAF from 1985 to 2003 as an RAF Police NCO, and settled in Norfolk, where he and his wife have brought up three daughters. He is now an accredited battlefield guide and author of three books relating to subjects in both world wars. His favourite pastime is guiding groups around battlefields, where he is constantly learning and developing his knowledge.