5th Light Horse Regiment ( Australia ) The 5th Light Horse Regiment was a mounted infantry regiment of the Australian Army during the First World War . The regiment was raised in August 1914 , and assigned to the 2nd Light Horse Brigade . During the war the regiment fought against the forces of the Ottoman Empire , in Egypt , at Gallipoli , on the Sinai Peninsula , and in Palestine and Jordan . After the armistice the regiment eventually returned to Australia in March 1919 . For its role in the war the regiment was awarded sixteen battle honours . Formation . The 5th Light Horse Regiment was raised in September 1914 , at Brisbane from volunteers from Queensland , and was assigned to the 2nd Light Horse Brigade . Light horse regiments normally comprised twenty - five officers and 497 other ranks serving in three squadrons , each of six troop s . Each troop was divided into eight Section s , of four men each . In action one man of each section , was nominated as a horse holder reducing the regiments rifle strength by a quarter . All Australian Light Horse regiments used cavalry unit designations , but were mounted infantry , and mounted exclusively on the Australian Waler horse . Operational history . Gallipoli . On 21 December 1914 , the 5th Light Horse Regiment left Sydney for Egypt , arriving on the 1 February 1915 . When the Australian infantry units were dispatched to Gallipoli , it was thought the terrain was unsuitable for mounted troops , and the light horse regiments remained in Egypt . However casualties resulted in the deployment of the 2nd Light Horse Brigade as reinforcements in May 1915 . On arrival the regiment was attached to the 1st Division , who by this stage of the campaign were fighting a defensive battle . The regiment were involved in several small attacks , before being withdrawn in December 1915 . Sinai and Palestine Campaign . After arriving back in Egypt , the regiment still with the 2nd Light Horse Brigade , was assigned to the ANZAC Mounted Division . There first action defending the Suez canal from an Ottoman incursion through the Sinai desert . The regiment ' s role was mainly patrolling the desert , and in August following the battle of Romani , were involved in several small battles . In December 1916 , the ANZAC Mounted Division moved into Palestine , the regiment carrying out patrols and raiding Ottoman positions during the advance . On 27 March 1917 , the regiment fought in the first battle of Gaza , and attacking the town from the rear , was fighting through the town when ordered to withdraw . They then fought in the unsuccessful second battle of Gaza and the third battle of Gaza , when the town was finally captured . The regiment was then involved in following up the retreating Ottoman forces into Palestine . In 1918 , they were positioned on the River Jordan , fighting two small battles at Amman in February and Es Salt in April and May . The main British assault was on the coast , but the regiment remained on the Jordan , attacking Amman in September . On 29 September two of the regiments squadron ' s accepted the surrender of 4 , 5OO Ottoman soldiers . When the armistice of Mudros was signed in October 1918 , and the war in the Middle East ended , the regiment returned to Egypt , to assist in putting down a riot . Then on 28 June 1919 , the regiment sailed for Australia , the war having cost them 137 killed and 708 wounded . Battle honours . ANZAC Defence at ANZAC Suvla Sari Bair Gallipoli 1915 – 1916 Egypt 1915 – 1917 Romani Gaza - Beersheba El Mughar Jerusalem Jordan ( Es Salt ) Jordan ( Amman ) Megiddo Nablus Palestine 1917 – 1918