Sailing into war, 1914
For many Anzac soldiers, their outward voyage on a troopship was their first overseas experience. The excitement of departure was soon replaced by seasickness on one of the world’s roughest seas. On the long voyage to Egypt they took part in leisure activities and routine training exercises like those shown here. Officers organised physical training programmes, inoculations, lectures and target practice sessions to keep the troops occupied.
Sailing into war, 1914
For many Anzac soldiers, their outward voyage on a troopship was their first overseas experience. The excitement of departure was soon replaced by seasickness on one of the world’s roughest seas. On the long voyage to Egypt they took part in leisure activities and routine training exercises like those shown here. Officers organised physical training programmes, inoculations, lectures and target practice sessions to keep the troops occupied.
Year: 1914
Length: 02:14
Source: National Film and Sound Archive of Australia
Catalogue Reference: NFSA title: 45988
Location: Albany WA, Australia
Tags: Australia, departure, troopships, AIF, exercising, training
Subject: Troopships, departure
The first troopships of WW1 containing Australian and New Zealand soldiers departed from Albany, Western Australia on 1 November 1914. ‘In no other port of the Commonwealth were the ships seen together… in the full magnificence of their numerical strength,’ wrote The Advertiser (21 Nov 1914).
For many of the men assembled on the troopships, the picturesque and historic coastal city of Albany was the last Australian anchorage they ever saw. A total of 38 transports and their escorts, known as Convoy 1, steamed out of King George Sound bound, they thought, for Europe. In fact, their journey was to take them, via Colombo and Aden, to Egypt.
On the way they had a near-miss encounter with the German cruiser Emden (sunk by HMAS Sydney) and suffered the awful heat of the Indian Ocean. Horses died – and a few men. They would have been enormously relieved to finally drop anchor off Suez to prepare for the passage through the canal.
Sailing into war, 1914
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Albany, Australia
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0:00
Wide shot of the convoy
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0:19
Ships at sea
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0:37
Soldiers on deck resting
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1:40
Soldiers assembled on deck
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2:02
Soldiers joking to the camera