The Tale of a Trooper: a Classic Account of the New Zealand Mounted Rifles During the First World War

A mounted rifleman's war against the Turkish Army



Several accounts of the famous Australian mounted infantry, the Lighthorsemen, are well known and highly regarded. Far fewer accounts exist concerning their counterparts from New Zealand, the Mounted Riflemen, who served during the same campaigns during the First World War. This account by Clutha Mackenzie, a trooper in the Wellington Mounted Rifles, notably follows 'Mac', its principal character, through the deployment of his regiment in Egypt to the landings and gruelling battles of the disastrous Gallipoli Campaign, conceived to force the narrow Dardanelles Straits to expedite the assault on the Turks in Istanbul. Mac fought in the trenches until the night battle at Chenak Bair, during which he was wounded and subsequently evacuated. This is an invaluable account of New Zealanders at war that gave birth to the legend and spirit of Anzac.

Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket.