Who was Simpson and his donkey?
John Simpson Kirkpatrick was a stretcher bearer at Gallipoli in 1915 who used donkeys to carry wounded soldiers down from the front line to the beach at Anzac Cove. He became one of Australia's most famous wartime figures.
Simpson was born in England in 1892 and worked as a seaman before enlisting in the Australian Imperial Force in 1914. He served with the 3rd Field Ambulance.
Shortly after the landing at Anzac Cove on 25 April 1915, Simpson began using a donkey to carry wounded soldiers along Shrapnel Gully and Monash Valley.
Death and legend
He carried wounded men for about three and a half weeks, often under fire. On 19 May 1915, he was killed by machine-gun fire.
Simpson and his donkey became symbols of courage and compassion. Statues of Simpson and his donkey stand at the Australian War Memorial and at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne.
Some historians have pointed out that other stretcher bearers did similar work and that the story has been romanticized. Nonetheless, Simpson's story remains an important part of the Anzac legend.