Craig

Pet Portraits by Hercule (follow him on facebook or Insta) - presenting............Janet Sheet-Haunter. Those of you who have been following along this week will have seen that I’ve been sharing some of my favourite spooky, scary, and unusual portraits in the run up to Halloween. And my absolute favourite has to be this one drawn way back in 2020; a portrait of the ghost dog who haunts the lovely Hazel and family. It is a bit of a frightening one, so maybe don’t show the children. And also I’d advise against looking at it in the dark, if you’re on your own, or during thunderstorms. I don’t know what she’s called, but I’ve named her Janet Sheet-Haunter. Janet likes selling ghost tours of haunted bird boxes, aftershave that smells like a botched exorcism, and tricking people into thinking their toilets are haunted by leaving a single sheet of tissue floating in the water like a ghost. I’ve obviously drawn this in my ultra-realistic style, so usual reminder that my portrait is the image on the right.

NZ Remembrance Army·Follow - 109 years ago today - 🇦🇺🇳🇿 THE BATTLE OF BEERSHEBA – 31 OCTOBER 1917 One of Australia's finest feats of arms – and the New Zealanders who helped make it possible. On 31 October 1917, in the deserts of Palestine, Australian and New Zealand mounted troops took part in one of the most remarkable victories of the First World War. The Battle of Beersheba is rightly remembered for the extraordinary charge of the Australian 4th Light Horse Brigade. But there is another story that deserves to be told. The story of the New Zealanders who fought a brutal battle on foot to capture the high ground protecting Beersheba. 🇦🇺 THE FAMOUS AUSTRALIAN CHARGE Late in the afternoon, with daylight fading and water desperately needed for the horses, approximately 800 Australian light horsemen of the 4th and 12th Light Horse Regiments charged towards the Ottoman defences at Beersheba. Riding across several kilometres of open ground, they faced rifle, machine-gun and artillery fire. The Australians rode straight at the Turkish trenches, some jumping over the defenders while others dismounted and fought their way through. It was an extraordinary feat of courage, speed and determination. The charge broke through the Ottoman defences and helped secure Beersheba and its vital wells. It remains one of the most celebrated actions in Australian military history. 🇳🇿 THE NEW ZEALANDERS – THE BATTLE FOR TEL EL SABA But earlier that day, on the eastern approaches to Beersheba, the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade had been fighting its own desperate battle. Their objective was Tel el Saba, a strongly defended hill overlooking the approaches to Beersheba. The Ottoman defenders occupied a commanding position, with trenches and machine guns covering the surrounding open ground. The hill had to be captured to secure the eastern approach and prevent the defenders from threatening the wider Allied operation. Unlike the Australians' famous mounted charge, the New Zealanders fought largely on foot. Advancing across exposed, rocky terrain under heavy fire, the Auckland and Canterbury Mounted Rifles, supported by other mounted troops and artillery, fought their way towards the position. It was a hard, deliberate and dangerous assault. The New Zealanders advanced under fire, gradually closing on the Ottoman trenches before launching their final attack. By approximately 3 pm, Tel el Saba had fallen. The capture of the hill removed a major Ottoman strongpoint, secured the eastern approaches and helped create the conditions for the Australian charge later that afternoon. The Australians would deliver the spectacular final blow, but the New Zealanders had played a vital role in making the victory possible. 🇦🇺🇳🇿 TWO NATIONS – ONE VICTORY Beersheba was not simply an Australian victory or a New Zealand victory. It was an ANZAC achievement, involving Australian and New Zealand mounted troops, alongside British and other Allied forces. The Australians' charge deserves every bit of its legendary reputation. But the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade deserves recognition for its determined and costly fighting at Tel el Saba. One action is remembered for the thunder of horses' hooves across the desert. The other for men advancing on foot, under fire, towards a fortified hill. Both required extraordinary courage. Both contributed to the capture of Beersheba. And both belong in the military history of our two nations. On the 109th anniversary of the Battle of Beersheba, the New Zealand Remembrance Army remembers the Australians who charged, the New Zealanders who captured Tel el Saba, and all those who fought and fell that day. Lest We Forget. 🇦🇺🇳🇿 #NZRemembranceArmy #BattleOfBeersheba #TelElSaba #NZMountedRifles #AustralianLightHorse #ANZAC #WW1 #LestWeForget