The Digger's chaplain: Why the Anzacs loved 'Fighting Mac'

But after serving alongside them in the frontlines; tirelessly working to support their physical, mental and spiritual health, he quickly became one of the nation's most beloved Anzac heroes.

Wildly popular with the troops and the Australian public, the man they called "Fighting Mac" attained celebrity status for his wartime exploits.

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He returned to Australia to a heroes' welcome in 1918, having served with the Australian Imperial Force in Egypt, Gallipoli and France.

However, Chaplain Major McKenzie has become somewhat of a forgotten figure in Australian military history, with many biographical accounts of his wartime exploits littered with inaccuracies.

Historian, author and emeritus professor Daniel Reynaud wants Aussies to know the real story about Fighting Mac.

"A man of this calibre should be part of the Anzac story," Professor Reynaud said.

"There are a number of extraordinary chaplains who've kind of been written out of the Anzac story because we've made a bit of a thing that the Anzacs were secular men, which isn't totally accurate."

Never one to shy away from the ugliest and most brutal aspects of war, McKenzie went over the top with his battalion in the infamous Battle of Lone Pine in Gallipoli, although not in the first wave, as told in some popular myths.

During the conflict, he could be found down in the Turkish trenches separating the wounded from the dead.

"The bodies were piled several people deep. You had to walk on bodies to move around... and, he was in those trenches, sorting the living from the dead as the fighting was going on around him.

"The following three weeks, he buried hundreds of men. He would sometimes have to leave the gravesite to throw up at the horror of what he was witnessing and then [he would] go back and finish the service."

McKenzie applied for a chaplaincy as soon as he heard news of war breaking out and sailed out for Egypt with the 4^th Battalion on October 20, 1914.

It was in the training grounds just outside of Cairo that he truly made his reputation as a chaplain of the people.

Diggers had no real distractions apart from drinking and frequenting the brothels of the local red-light district.

In addition to his popular voluntary services, Chaplain Major McKenzie organised live concerts, sporting contests and other much-needed diversions, which quickly earned him the favour of diggers. He was also known to head down to the red light district and drag soldiers out of the brothels, saving thousands from venereal diseases.

Not only was he a man of the people, he was also widely respected for his tireless work ethic.

He would regularly accompany diggers who were half his age on arduous training missions, even though they were not compulsory for chaplains.

"When soldiers were struggling, he dropped back through the battalion and [would] take their pack off and carry [it]... he could finish a march with two or three packs on his back.

"That kind of behaviour really earned respect."

McKenzie also showed an unerring commitment to the emotional wellbeing of the diggers. Quickly noticing the important effect receiving mail had on morale.

Noticing mail soldiers were not receiving mail, he wrote to the Salvation Army chief in Australia, asking if he could start a campaign calling on Australians to write a letter to a lonely soldier.

This letter was published in Australian newspapers, and before long, 2000-3000 letters to lonely troops were being delivered in each mail round.

"McKenzie was probably the best-loved Anzac by the Anzacs. We've made other people into heroes but if you ask the soldiers, he would be about top of their list," Professor Reynaud said.

So, why have the exploits of Fighting Mac been forgotten by much of the country while other key Anzac figures continue to be revered?

Professor Reynaud believes the fact he survived the war led to him becoming more quickly forgotten than some of those who perished. It is easier to immortalise the dead, he explains; the fact they are no longer around only adds to their legend and, at times, their mythos.

"The best way to become a hero was to die. It's easy to make somebody a hero when he's not around to interfere with it."

Professor Reynaud is the author of The Man the Anbzacs revered: William "Fighting Mac" McKenzie, Anzac Chaplain.

First published by Signs Publishing in 2015, the book is being re-launched to commemorate the 110-year anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign in 1915. It is available through a number of online retailers, including Amazon.

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