Expert rough-riders – Australian Light Horse
By 1914 Australian horsemen had proved themselves as expert rough-riders and good shots in wartime. Untrained colonial cavalry had distinguished themselves in the Boer War, and Australia had 23 regiments of volunteer cavalry at the outbreak of WW1. Many men from these regiments joined the Light Horse Regiments of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF). Some are seen here in training with their horses, and in a military parade. Troops are also shown departing on the troopship A2 Geelong, farewelled by a huge crowd as the ship leaves the dock.
Expert rough-riders – Australian Light Horse
By 1914 Australian horsemen had proved themselves as expert rough-riders and good shots in wartime. Untrained colonial cavalry had distinguished themselves in the Boer War, and Australia had 23 regiments of volunteer cavalry at the outbreak of WW1. Many men from these regiments joined the Light Horse Regiments of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF). Some are seen here in training with their horses, and in a military parade. Troops are also shown departing on the troopship A2 Geelong, farewelled by a huge crowd as the ship leaves the dock.
Year: c. 1915
Length: 00:28
Source: National Film and Sound Archive of Australia: from the George Campbell Collection
Catalogue Reference: 719
Location: Australia
Tags: Recruitment, Training, Horses
Subject: Recruitment, Training, Horses
When Australia joined the war against Germany in 1914, the Light Horse regiments of militia volunteers were seen as the “national arm of Australia’s defence”. Young men, especially from rural areas, flocked to join the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) mounted regiments. Many brought their own horses and some even brought their dogs. The recruits’ riding skills were tested by, for example, taking a bareback army horse over a water jump and sod wall, or jumping a log fence.
The A2 Geelong troopship was part of the first convoy which assembled at King George’s Sound, Albany WA on 1 November 1914 to transport the first detachment of the AIF and New Zealand Expeditionary Force to the battlefields of Europe. The Geelong transported further troop convoys from May to November 1915 before being sunk after colliding with another vessel in the Mediterranean in January 1916.
Expert rough-riders – Australian Light Horse
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Australia
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0:00
AIF horsemen (not in uniform) jump an obstacle by the shores of a lake. Mounted uniformed troops look on
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0:25
Mounted uniformed troops in a group