Bill the bastard

Perry, Roland, 1946-2012

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Summary

An epic yarn based on the true story of a great Australian war horse who rode with bravery and valour at Gallipoli, the desert campaigns of Egypt, and Palestine. Bill was massive. He had power, intelligence and unmatched courage and in performance and character he stood above all the other 200,000 Australian horses sent to the Middle East in the Great War. But as war horses go he had one serious problem. He was unrideable except by a single man, Major Michael Shanahan. Bill, it seemed, was reliable in every way including his ability to unseat men from his saddle. Some even thought he took a sneering pleasure in watching would-be riders hit the dust. Bill the Bastard is the remarkable tale of a bond between a determined trooper and his stoic but cantankerous mount. They fought together. They depended on each other for their survival. And when the chips were down, Bill's heroic efforts and exceptional instincts in battle saved the lives of Shanahan and four of his men. By September 1918, Bill the Bastard was so named, not as an insult, but as a term of endearment from the entire Light Horse force. He had become a legend, a symbol of the courage and unbreakable will of the Anzac mounted force. There was no other horse like Bill the Bastard.