An armada of British and French warships attempted to force the Turkish Dardanelles Strait on March 18th 1915.
The naval campaign was originally conceived as a way of securing the sea route to Russia, knocking Turkey out of the war, and breaking the deadlock in the fight against Germany.
The Allies wanted to destroy the Ottoman forts on the Gallipoli peninsula guarding the Dardanelles, and clear the waterway of minefields.
Their aim was to reach Constantinople (now Istanbul), capital of the Ottoman Empire.
After several weeks of inconclusive operations, a fleet of battleships was assembled to carry out the assault,
But many of the warships were sunk or damaged by mines, and the task force withdrew.
The failure of the operation resulted in the decision to land Allied troops on the Gallipoli peninsula in April 1915.
Posted by: Peter Alhadeff, Centenary News