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Gallipoli - Our Last Man Standing - the Extraordinary Life of Alec Campbell
Landing on the beach at Gallipoli, aged 16, Alec Campbell looked no more than 12-years-old in his big brother's uniform. He was a young Australian caught up in a war that he knew very little about and in a country that he couldn't spell. For three months, Private Campbell carried water through the trenches above Anzac Cove avoiding snipers and crossfire. 'The kid soldier, ' as he had become known, eventually succumbed to enteric fever and was evacuated to Cairo for a six-month stint in hospital. His sense of national spirit, however, did not end at Gallipoli. On returning home, he took on a larrikin life jackarooing, building boats and as a builder in Australia's new capital. His patriotism and love for others transported him from the bush to the Australian Workers Union, where he stood for elections in the local council before working for the Department of Labour to help repatriate World War II veterans. He also worked tirelessly for the Heart Foundation until he was 80-years-old. Alec Campbell epitomises the Aussie larrikin as well as the reluctant hero. He was the knockabout boy who entered the war for adventure and ended his life as a national treasure.
223 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2003
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 26, 2016
‘Perhaps no other private soldier has received such attention on his death.’
Alec Campbell was sixteen years old when he signed up to fight in World War I. He looks much younger than the eighteen years he claimed to be in the photograph taken of him in his uniform. Alec Campbell was a water carrier at Gallipoli. After six weeks he succumbed to illness and was evacuated to Cairo. Who was this young man, who served at Gallipoli and who lived long enough to become our last living connection with the Australian troops at Gallipoli? What of his life before and after World War I?
Alec Campbell was born in Launceston on the 26th of February 1899. He died in Hobart on 17 May 2002, aged 103. His life represents a century of life in Australia: from just before Federation, through the entire twentieth century and into the twenty-first century.
While I picked up this book expecting it to be focussed on Gallipoli, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the real focus was on Alec’s life and the times in which he lived. For me, this made the book far more interesting and enjoyable. I grew up in Launceston, and recognised many of the places mentioned. I also had a grandfather (also from Launceston) who served at Gallipoli. Different lives, different connections, some common experiences.
Mr King has provided a fairly comprehensive account of Alec Campbell’s life. He has also touched on the importance of Campbell family history in shaping Alec’s desire for service and adventure. But it is Alec Campbell’s life after the war which is of most interest. Alec Campbell spent much of his long life helping others with disabilities, helping them to find work. He was also an active trade unionist, a socialist, a committed republican and became a keen sailor.
Alec Campbell lived a long and productive life. He was, it seems, a most reluctant hero.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Alec Campbell was sixteen years old when he signed up to fight in World War I. He looks much younger than the eighteen years he claimed to be in the photograph taken of him in his uniform. Alec Campbell was a water carrier at Gallipoli. After six weeks he succumbed to illness and was evacuated to Cairo. Who was this young man, who served at Gallipoli and who lived long enough to become our last living connection with the Australian troops at Gallipoli? What of his life before and after World War I?
Alec Campbell was born in Launceston on the 26th of February 1899. He died in Hobart on 17 May 2002, aged 103. His life represents a century of life in Australia: from just before Federation, through the entire twentieth century and into the twenty-first century.
While I picked up this book expecting it to be focussed on Gallipoli, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the real focus was on Alec’s life and the times in which he lived. For me, this made the book far more interesting and enjoyable. I grew up in Launceston, and recognised many of the places mentioned. I also had a grandfather (also from Launceston) who served at Gallipoli. Different lives, different connections, some common experiences.
Mr King has provided a fairly comprehensive account of Alec Campbell’s life. He has also touched on the importance of Campbell family history in shaping Alec’s desire for service and adventure. But it is Alec Campbell’s life after the war which is of most interest. Alec Campbell spent much of his long life helping others with disabilities, helping them to find work. He was also an active trade unionist, a socialist, a committed republican and became a keen sailor.
Alec Campbell lived a long and productive life. He was, it seems, a most reluctant hero.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
July 7, 2013
A reasonably complete account of the life of Alec Campbell, the last survivor of the 1915 Gallipoli campaign. There is far more to this biography than an account of Campbell's involvement in the war - in fact, he was only at Gallipoli for 6 weeks before the allied forces retreated. There is plenty of family background, dating from the arrival in Australia of the first of this line of Campbells; the author also spends considerable time documenting Campbell's union and political activities. However, where the books fails is in its inability to portray the character of the man, or of those around him. This is where so many otherwise worthy biographies fall down: the essential facts are presented, but the overall effect is rather detached and unemotional. I was left with the feeling that I didn't really know Alec Campbell by the end of the book. This is an interesting account of his life, the Gallipoli campaign, and of the socialist movement in Tasmania, but it fails to convince as an insight into the man, Alec Campbell.
February 24, 2018
What an amazing life.
June 1, 2018
It was a good Book. If you like History you have to read this
March 2, 2013
Good Book.. feel guilty buying it from a thrift shop for $2!! but..so important to have Alec's life in print, and especially pleasing is the record of Alec's life postwar with his involvement in the trade u nion movement and politics, much 'who knew' :)
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews