World War I · Film · 1987
The Lighthorsemen
Four Australian horsemen in the Palestine desert, joined by a young recruit who cannot bring himself to shoot, ride toward one of the last great cavalry charges in history.
Where it happened
Follow the story across 1 places.
Stop 1: Beersheba
Key location
Out of water and out of time, the Light Horse lines up at dusk for a charge the Turkish defenders expect to end in a dismount that never comes.
What really happened
In October 1917 the British Egyptian Expeditionary Force, after two failed attacks on Gaza, planned to break the Ottoman line at its inland end, Beersheba, whose wells were vital to thousands of men and horses. A staff officer, Richard Meinertzhagen, later claimed credit for a ruse in which a haversack of false plans was dropped to convince the Ottomans the main blow would fall on Gaza.
Late on 31 October 1917, with the wells still in Ottoman hands and daylight fading, about 800 men of the 4th and 12th Light Horse Regiments charged across open ground with bayonets in hand. They overran the trenches and took the town and most of its wells; 31 Australians were killed. The victory opened the road to Jerusalem, which fell in December.
Where to watch
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Full details
- Original title
- The Lighthorsemen
- Directed by
- Simon Wincer
- Countries
- Australia
- Languages
- English
- Released
- 1987
- Period
- –
- Theaters of war
- Mediterranean & Africa
- Themes
- Combat
- True story
