BIRCH HILL STATION WWI MEMORIAL RIDE

Donkeys and World War One

 

 

The often overlooked but never forgotten story of the Donkey and Mule in the Great War. 

Information from Jill Mather Gallipoli’s War Horses, Waler Book Trust 2014

 

Stories about mules and donkeys are hard to come by.  They are the forgotten ones, simply a means to an end.  However without them a soldier’s life in the trenches, help for the injured, and travelling the desert and battlefield would have been impossible.

 

The Army Mule

Mules required less food than horses.  They were more tolerant of extreme heat and cold, and they could go for longer periods without water, critical in battle where clean water was so scarce.  Mules were proven to be more resistant to diseases and disease-bearing insects, very low maintenance and seldom needed shoes.  Less than half the mules died from infected bullet holes compared to the percentage of horses killed.  The first ship of animals departed in November 1914, and in the four half years of war 287,533 mules and 175 jacks were purchased.  Mules were branded on their near hindquarter with a 2 inch broad arrow and a letter or symbol denoting their origin.  13,000 Spanish mules were considered especially fine.

An astounding mule story tells of the mule travelling down the soft steep hillside when the earth began to give way.  He tossed his handler to safety, freed his load of mail (a highly prized reminder of home), and was then swept away to his death.  Nobody knew how he managed to save the mail and his handler,

but all agreed he deserved a medal.

 

Mule trains were hitched in threes, 15 to 20 long, always travelling at a trot and under fire.  When a mule was hit he was unhitched, the ammunition boxes rolled off him, and the mule train just carried on, often 14 to 16 hours a day.  The Missouri mule was recorded with 64 mules being loaded with 100 kilograms EACH in just 14 minutes!  Because of this very high prices were paid for quality mules. Mules died alongside the horses and soldiers.  There was no way of digging a hole for dead mules so many were thrown into the sea washing up like submarine periscopes and reportedly panicking the Navy. 56,000 surplus mules were sold after the war.

 

The Army Donkey

Donkeys were routinely loaded with at least 3 times their own body weight.  Pictures and stories show donkeys carried food supplies, clothing, pots and pans, and of course water while all around them guns still fired, usually under the cover of darkness.  Summer was harsh and hot.  Water, always rationed, came from Malta red with rust, tasted terrible, and was often laced with chemicals designed to kill the enemy.  Wells on Gallipoli were often polluted or dry, so any interruption of the donkeys was considered a crisis.  The Gallipoli winter climate was especially hard on donkeys that do not do well in wet muddy conditions.

Donkeys were used to convey the wounded, so large groups of donkeys sporting Red Cross headbands were held in readiness.   Grazing was poor and donkeys scavenged for whatever was available.  Plant poisoning was common.  Most donkeys were the large Egyptian breed, known for its gentle nature.  Donkey trains sometimes up to 200 animals, in lines of four, were led by an Egyptian handler.  Donkeys were invaluable pulling the sick and injured up the steep hills and gullies, as an accidental slip by the heavy horse ambulances led to man and horse tumbling down the steep slopes.

 To escape the bitterness of slaughter donkeys were often used in games, races and wrestling matches for light relief.  Pets on the battlefield gave men a link with home.  They were something to care for and a welcome change from guns, bombs, lice and dirt.  Even officers were known to have them despite rules to the contrary.  After Egypt donkeys and mules classified unfit or over 12 years old were destroyed and their manes and tails shaved and sold. Many were even skinned to produce more leather for supplies. Some numbers say of the 34,000 or so donkeys used only 1,042 survived.  This was greeted with disdain and sadness by the soldiers who had sought solace with their donkey friends.

 

Despite the burden placed on mules and donkeys their participation was taken for granted and sometimes even contempt. Many soldiers told tales of the donkey and mule having a “sixth sense”.  Whilst may lives and loads were saved stories abounded of how mule and donkey handlers became frustrated.  It was widely known that they simply do not respond to harsh treatment, and in fact file the grievance away for future reference.   A kick by a donkey or mule was considered as deliberate as it was accurate. It is still known by some of the best horse people that you SHOULD train a horse the way you MUST train a mule or donkey.  The donkey and mule remain under appreciated beasts of burden in many parts of the world, but have been thankfully replaced by machinery in most war zones.  Their importance in the War was largely unsung, but certainly never unimportant.

Lest we forget

 

 

 

Compiled by Karen Findlay 

 

 

 

Video from The Donkey Sanctuary.co.uk