Newsletter No. 12 - Blue Mountains Association of Cultural Heritage ...

The Light Horse InterchangeThe Australian Light Horse hasmade a rich and continuingcontribution to our sense of nationalheritage.Perhaps the latest example of this isthe Light Horse Interchange, thepoint at which the Westlink M7motorway intersects with the M4,west of Sydney.The steel plumage at the top ofeach pole represents the emufeathers of the troopers’ slouch hat.The symbolism is rich in detail,even to the significant absence ofany figure of a horse, reminding usthat quarantine regulationsprevented the return of any of thetroopers’ horses.Here a great sculpture is revealedto motorists as they flash by at 100kph: four sets of red steel poles,radiating from a tall central mast, allrepresenting the Australian LightHorse on parade. The red colour ofthe poles is for sacrifice.MT WILSONWARMEMORIALContinued from page 3“Ours [at Mt Wilson] is one of thesimplest sort, but none the worsefor that. Many of them take the formof utilities — a hospital, acommunity hall, a church, a sportsground, that could be undertaken inthe expectation of getting agovernment grant in terms ofsubsidies and tax concessions forthe donors.“But no such thing happened here.The local impetus was fromgenerous gifts of land and material,plus determined community effort.The crucial gift was the piece ofland cut off from the Dennarqueestate, given for just this purpose byFlora Mann, the mother of the FredMann whose name is with others,engraved on our memorial.”But why put the sculpture righthere? Research has established thesignificance of the local area in thehistory and recruitment and trainingof light horsemen. In World War IIthey were based at a major trainingcamp at nearby Wallgrove.A spokesperson for ConybeareMorrison, designers of the sculptureexplained that it is designed “to letpeople know they are approachinga major intersection but also tospark their interest so they want tofind out more about what thesculpture represents.Source: Sydney Morning Herald,May 2, 2006.The men who made the last great wartime cavalrycharge [Beersheba] were mounted infantry –Australian light horsemen. As “Bushmen” at the BoerWar they had won high praise. At Gallipoli,dismounted, they fought gallantly and diedtragically… The Australian Light Horseman by Ian JonesWoodford Academy studentsurvived Beersheba chargeA former Woodford Academystudent John Lyons was at theBeersheba charge and survived(see story page 5).The charge at Beersheba onOctober 31, 1917 is often reportedas ‘the last cavalary charge inhistory’ although cavalary such asthe Polish cavalary continued toexist into the early phases of WorldWar 2 and took place in operationsbefore being rendered obsolete.The charge at Beersheba tookplace as part of the Sinai andPalestine campaign during WorldWar 1.The battle at Beersheba was thecritical element of a wider Britishoffensive as the Third Battle ofGaza aimed at breaking theTurkish defences from Gaza on theMediterranian shore to Beershebaan outpost 30 miles inland.Earlier in 1917, two previousattempts to breach this line hadfailed.Since the earlier failures the Britishforces in Palestine had undergonea major uphreaval with thereplacement of General Murraywith the distinguished cavalarycommander General Allenby.Mt Wilson, Mt Irvine & BellSoldiers Memorial with GregsonMemorial Obelisk to the left.The Australian 4th Light HorseBrigade under Brigadier WilliamGrant charged more than 4 miles atthe Turkish trenches, overran themand captured the water wells atBeersheba.The Australian force was led byLieutenant General Sir HarryChauvel who went on to be one ofAustralia’s most distinguishedsoldiersJohn Leary, OAMHERITAGE 4November - December 2010