bantarleton: ‘Bill the Bastard’ the unlikely war horse hero from the Battle of Romani.He

bantarleton: ‘Bill the Bastard’ the unlikely war horse hero from the Battle of Romani.He had the power, intelligence and unmatched courage that stood above all the 200,000 Australian horses sent to the Middle East in The Great War. He was a big 17.1-hand with a long back and big rump. Chestnut in colour, and a Waler - named after New South Wales.The big, partly broken-in stallion played up so badly while being loaded onto the troop ship he was nearly left behind in Australia. On arrival in Egypt, he was declared unrideable and given an unflattering nickname.“He was called Bill the Bastard because no man could mount him and ride him. He threw them off, he didn’t just smash them into the ground, he put them into orbit.”The first person to try and ride him was a young lad called Ben Towers - a questionable 17 years of age. He came from Cootamundra. Young Ben claimed to be a capable rider - but Bill had other ideas. After several attempts it seemed that Bill would allow only one person to ride him - Major Michael Shanahan.Shanahan persuaded his Captain ‘Banjo Patterson’ to let him take Bill into battle. He felt sure that Bill would be the ideal horse for the job.In the thick of The Battle of Romani, four Tasmanian troopers had their horses shot from under them so they’re left stranded in no-man’s-land! Shanahan rode Bill under heavy Turkish fire and with super strength, got the four soldiers on - making it five in total on Bill - and returned them to safety.After Bill had a big drink, Shanahan said to the horse: “It’s time to get back. Bill , you’re a bloody marvel!”It was soon after Shanahan was shot in the thigh and Bill was shot twice. Still they continued to fight until Shanahan collapsed into the saddle. Bill was aware of the seriousness of the situation and took Shanahan three kilometres through the fighting, straight to the vet. He was taken to the Medic. As a result of his injuries Shanahan’s leg was amputated. He was sent to England, never to see Bill again.Major Shanahan was awarded a Distinguished Service Order, while Bill’s reward was to be decommissioned, never to carry a soldier into battle again. He helped Bill to become a hero; and also became a D.S.M hero himself.“No-one could imagine the sort of fear these men would be going through when Bill came along and picked them out of the middle of a battlefield and rode them a couple of miles to safety”.Very few war horses returned to Australia. Most were shot to save them from a life of misery after the war.Bill escaped that fate. He returned once again to Gallipoli as a packhorse to assist soldiers collecting battlefield artefacts.It’s believed he lived out his life with Turkish farmers, who were warned never to put anyone on his back! -- source link

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