2014 50c Centenary of WWI Gallipoli Campaign PNCBritish First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill sought to knock Ottoman Turkey out of the war by having a naval force sail through the Dardanelles and shell Constantinople from the sea. On 18 March 1915, a fleet of British and French warships attempted to force the Dardanelles but were fired on and damaged from Turkish forts. The naval plan failed, forcing allied commanders to consider a ground operation. More than 70,000 allied troops made