The Man the Anzacs Revered: The Legendary William "Fighting Mac" McKenzie, Anzac Chaplain

How did a wowser become an Anzac legend? And how did a legend become a virtual unknown today? This is the first biography of Fighting Mac to sort the facts from the fiction and present McKenzie as the Christian champion that he was. William McKenzie was once one of the most famous of the Anzacs, a legend for his work on Gallipoli and France. For two decades after the war he was literally mobbed by adoring soldiers and their families. For the Anzacs, he became the man who best represented the Anzac ideal. What makes Fighting Mac's legendary reputation incredible is that he embodied almost everything that the typical digger of the Anzac legend loved to hate. McKenzie was a Salvation Army Chaplain, a species of non-combatant officer usually held in low esteem. He railed against booze, brothels, betting and bad language, and he ran frequent evangelistic campaigns for the Anzacs where he forcefully appealed to them to become Christians. Despite these apparent disadvantages he was worshipped and revered by the soldiers. Yet today, McKenzie's name is almost completely unknown outside certain religious circles. However, legends continue to be invented about him, adding to the inaccuracies told about him almost from the beginning. But his story needs no embroidering, and the exaggerations diminish the truth of his astonishing real-life achievements. This book captures McKenzie in all of his charismatic and energetic complexity with particular focus on his war years: a devout man of God who became enshrined in the hearts of thousands of men who showed little other commitment to things religious. If the original Anzacs revered him, then we who revere them should pay attention to his story. Read more... Abstract: How did a wowser become an Anzac legend? And how did a legend become a virtual unknown today? This is the first biography of Fighting Mac to sort the facts from the fiction and present McKenzie as the Christian champion that he was. William McKenzie was once one of the most famous of the Anzacs, a legend for his work on Gallipoli and France. For two decades after the war he was literally mobbed by adoring soldiers and their families. For the Anzacs, he became the man who best represented the Anzac ideal. What makes Fighting Mac's legendary reputation incredible is that he embodied almost everything that the typical digger of the Anzac legend loved to hate. McKenzie was a Salvation Army Chaplain, a species of non-combatant officer usually held in low esteem. He railed against booze, brothels, betting and bad language, and he ran frequent evangelistic campaigns for the Anzacs where he forcefully appealed to them to become Christians. Despite these apparent disadvantages he was worshipped and revered by the soldiers. Yet today, McKenzie's name is almost completely unknown outside certain religious circles. However, legends continue to be invented about him, adding to the inaccuracies told about him almost from the beginning. But his story needs no embroidering, and the exaggerations diminish the truth of his astonishing real-life achievements. This book captures McKenzie in all of his charismatic and energetic complexity with particular focus on his war years: a devout man of God who became enshrined in the hearts of thousands of men who showed little other commitment to things religious. If the original Anzacs revered him, then we who revere them should pay attention to his story How did a wowser become an Anzac legend? And how did this legend become unknown today? William McKenzie was one of the most famous of the Anzacs, a legend for his work on Gallipoli and in France. For two decades after the war, he was literally mobbed by adoring soldiers and their families everywhere he went. However, McKenzie embodied almost everything the typical Anzac digger loved to hate. He was a Salvation Army chaplain, who preached against booze, brothels, betting and bad language. Yet McKenzie was respected and revered by the soldiers he servedand those who honour them should pay attention to his story. Amazingly, the most famous padre in the AIF has waited nearly a century for a full, sympathetic but careful biography. Daniel Reynaud does justice to Fighting Mac, looking beyond the legend to discern the man.Professor Peter Stanley, Australian Centre for the Study of Armed Conflict and Society, University of New South Wales. Content: 1. The shaping ground: Biggar to Bundaberg, 1869-1887 -- 2. Salvation Army Officer: Melbourne to Bendigo, 1887-1914 -- 3. Making his mark: Sydney to Egypt, 1914-1915 -- 4. The legend is Born: Gallipoli, 1915 -- 5. Consolidating the legend: France 1916-1917 -- 6. The hero returns: Australia, 1918-1927 -- 7. Front line again: China, 1927-1930 -- 8. Culmination: Australia and retirement, 1930-1947 -- 9. The best-known man in the AIF? The legacy of "Fighting Mac."