confusion had not been enough to phase the Germans so when they emerged they were all shot down. A party of 38 Gurkhas managed to sneak through the lines. Rifleman Kulbir Thapo was among them but he became separated from the group. Alone and wounded in the midst of the enemy, he stumbled upon a badly wounded soldier of the Leicestershire regiment. Thapa made him as comfortable as possible and stayed with him through the whole night. In the early morning under the cover of a thick mist he put the man across his back and carried him back to the Allied lines. Through barbed wire and close discovery he made his way. He passed two badly wounded Gurkhas who he was unable to help. Thapo dropped the man off in a shell hole and went back for the Gurkhas who he brought back to the Allied lines. He immediately went back for the Leicestershire soldier. By this time the mist had risen and his last trip was made under heavy fire. For Kulbir’s brave, courageous actions he was awarded the Victoria Cross, the equivalent of the United States’ Medal of Honor. He was the first Gurkha to accomplish this feat (Morhiyo Gurkahli).After 13 months in France the Gurkhas withdrew, having accumulated 21,000 casualties and eight Victoria Crosses. Though they had nothing to be ashamed of most historians agree that it was a mistake to send them (Farwell 94). They were poorly equipped and not prepared for fighting in cold, wet France. They had only two machine guns per battalion, no mortars and only cheap grenades. The Gurkhas had lived in a dry and often hot climate all their lives. The defeats they suffered can not be blamed on them. The decision to use the Gurkhas elsewhere was wise for they are not a unit to waste in a habitat where they could not survive.In 1915 plans had been made to knock Turkey out of the war, beginning with an attack on the Gallipoli Peninsula. Ian Hamilton was to lead the land forces. On March 25th, 1915, he...
