The Legend of Albert Jacka

by Peter FitzSimons

Our heroes can come from the most ordinary of places. As a shy lad growing up in country Victoria, no one in the district had any idea the man Albert Jacka would become.

Albert 'Bert' Jacka was 21 when Britain declared war on Germany in August 1914. Bert soon enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force and the young private was assigned to 14th Battalion D Company. By the time they shipped out to Egypt he'd been made a Lance Corporal.

On 26 April 1915, 14th Battalion landed at Gallipoli under the command of Brigadier General Monash's 4th Infantry Brigade. It was here, on 20 May, that Lance Corporal Albert Jacka proved he was 'the bravest of the brave'. The Turks were gaining ground with a full-scale frontal attack and as his comrades lay dead or dying in the trenches around him, Jacka single-handedly held off the enemy onslaught. The Turks retreated.

Jacka's extraordinary efforts saw him awarded the Victoria Cross, the first for an Australian soldier in World War I. He was a national hero, but Jacka's wartime exploits had only just moving on to France, he battled the Germans at Pozières, earning a Military Cross for what historian Charles Bean called 'the most dramatic and effective act of individual audacity in the history of the AIF'. Then at Bullecourt, his efforts would again turn the tide against the enemy. There would be more accolades and adventures before a sniper's bullet and then gassing at Villers-Bretonneux sent Bert home.

The Legend of Albert Jacka is an unforgettable story of the bravery and sacrifice of one extraordinary soldier that takes us from the shores of Gallipoli to the battlefields of France, all brought to vivid life by Australia's greatest storyteller, Peter FitzSimons.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Biography, War, World War I

463 pages, Hardcover

Published May 20, 2025

About the author

Peter FitzSimons is one of Australia’s most prominent and successful media and publishing identities. His busy professional life involves co-hosting the breakfast program on Sydney's Radio 2UE, writing weekly columns for the Sydney Morning Herald and Sun Herald newspapers, appearing on Foxtel's Back Page television show and, when time permits, authoring best-selling books. A correspondent for London's Daily Telegraph as well, he is also in high demand as a guest speaker and presenter

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five stars - highly recommended.

Fantastic. FitzSimons brings to life, in his trademark way, the remarkable (if, at times, sad) story of Albert Jacka, perhaps the greatest soldier Australia has ever produced.

[Malcolm Beck · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m sorry but I really didn’t enjoy this at all. Received it as a Christmas present and therefore felt I ought to read it all the way through but my goodness, I struggled. I found it basically to be a 400 page version of a Commando magazine replete with every First World War trope imaginable. We had the bronzed Aussie diggers lions led by their British donkeys…. Every English officer has a ‘plummy’ accent while our Aussies used the vernacular of the shearing shed and the wheatfields…. fanatical Turks screaming Allah Akhbar as they flung themselves in their thousands at the Aussie defenders who of course had some larrikin quip to throw back….i could go on….. and on….and the really irritating use of 4 dots as a punctuation mark….all the time. This was essentially a hagiography of Jacka as the expense of practically everyone else. I felt it had little depth and while I would in no way want to denigrate Jacka’s undoubted courage, heroism and centrality in Australian military history, this biography just didn’t grip me in the way I’d hoped it would.

[Mel Jaeger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting story/history. Not as humorous as some of Fitzsimons writings. But still hard to put down & easy to read.

[David Cook · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Santa delivered The Legend of Albert Jacka I was delighted. Sadly however, it turned out to be the latest sausage off the Peter FitzSimons production factory floor. The bandanaed one has struck a cunning recipe – use a worthwhile subject, Eureka, James Cook, Gallipoli, Ned Kelly; have some people research the topic and provide our author with a “Biography for Dummies”; let him sprinkle his own brand of fairy dust or in the FitzSimons oeuvre bull dust; have someone provide scattered quotes and you’re away.

The trouble is that the recipe fails when the ingredients fail. Sure, he wants to attribute credit over several pages of acknowledgements but sadly in his case rather than sharing credit the factory workers share the blame.

Is it possible for an editor or subeditor to ignore so many glaring faults that it brings into question the fabric of the whole?

When, on page 72, he writes of Ashmead-Bartlett corresponding with the “British Prime Minister, Lord Asquith” one wonders how, when H.H. Asquith only became the 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith in 1925.

Simple schoolchild errors Pete, the same as on page 167 with a reference to “Cardinal Mannix” -a promotion that old Dan may have yearned for but never received.

And from the simple howlers, on to his description of F.W. Rolland (later Sir Frank Rolland) as the headmaster of Geelong Grammar, when the lifelong Presbyterian was in fact the headmaster of the Geelong College – a nicety that escaped Pete’s scrutiny more than once through the work. A failed distinction that exemplifies the scholarship.

However, the continued interest in FitzSimons’ subjects make them worthwhile, if only for their bibliography. By the way, Pete, how many did you actually read?

Sadly, a worthy subject and a life worth knowing has been let down by a writer who delights in mangling puns and similar juvenile comic effects. Rather than a proper biography it reads as an overblown piece from a weekend tabloid.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter Fitzsimons is just so good at identifying a great story, especially his books covering Australians at war, and delivering an offering that can’t be put down, brings tears to your eyes, intense pride and raises the hairs on the back of your neck. Usually simultaneously.

The Legend of Albert Jacka is exactly one of those books and I am enormously proud to be a countryman of Jackas. The legend is actually the man himself.

[Veronica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Peter’s books are always a worthwhile read and very accessible. He could’ve included more pictures like in his previous books as they really enhance the story. Jacka was an inspiration … let’s just delight in reading about an inspiring person rather than the horrible people we read about every day in the news.

[Richard Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-researched, informative and very readable book about a really interesting Australian in our history. Describes in detail what that war must have been like and the ongoing impact on all those involved

[Michael Springer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter FitzSimons has written another excellent book. His attention to detail when probing the facts makes this book a must read.

[Doug Tanner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Albert Jacka makes good reading. A lot of military people say he should have been awarded a second VC on the Western Front. I tend to agree.