The 91st anniversary of the Lancashire Landings at Gallipoli was commemorated on Sunday as the young and not so young, the great and the good, turned out to mark the borough's regiments' greatest achievements.

Led by the Fusilier Association Band and Corps of Drums, the parade of military cadets and Fusilier veterans, and serving Territorial Army soldiers preparing to go to Iraq from May, stood in silence as they reflected on an infamous First World War campaign that cost thousands of local lives but gave the Fusiliers eternal glory.

Wreaths were laid at the war memorial in honour of those who never returned from Gallipoli.

Six battalions of 6,000 men of Lancashire Fusiliers took part in the campaign. Eighty-eight officers and 1,728 other ranks lost their lives during the campaign, directly affecting some 2,000 families in this part of Lancashire. A further 6,000 were wounded.

Decorations awarded to the Lancashire Fusiliers were the six Victoria Crosses, three Companion of the Bath, eight Distinguished Service Orders, 25 Distinguished Conduct Medals and ten Military Crosses. The LFs ended the First World War with more Victoria Crosses than any other regiment in the British Army.

Local military historian Richard Holmes looked at the reasons behind the failed assault on the Gallipoli beaches.

He said: "Dissatisfaction with the progress of the war on the Western Front encouraged Allied leaders to launch an attack on Turkey, with the intention of knocking the props' from beneath Germany.

"Opinion at the time was divided as to the wisdom of the project, and there has been little subsequent agreement amongst historians, some of whom support the Westerners', arguing that it was only in France that the war could be won, while others support the Easterners' in their desire to find a more profitable theatre of operations.

"Whatever the theoretical attractions of a landing on Gallipoli, there is little doubt that the campaign was badly handled.

"Initial Allied landings on April 25, 1915, met with some success, but the pattern of the Western Front soon re-established itself, with the trench warfare of artillery and machine gun bringing movement to a halt. A fresh landing on August 6 made some promising gains, but unenterprising generalship, difficult terrain and resolute Turkish defence brought it too to a halt. The campaign grew increasingly costly, consuming men and munitions originally destined for France."

Today, there are no survivors of the Gallipoli campaign but Bury continues to remember the sacrifices made by those local boys and men who showed so much heroism in appalling conditions.

In his sermon, the Rector of Bury, the Rev Dr John Findon, said: "We must unite in praise and thanksgiving for our brothers and sisters who in all ages have given their lives for the high cause of freedom, honour and righteousness.More especially, we commemorate all ranks of the Lancashire Fusiliers. Their deeds will be remembered for evermore; their memorial is already inscribed in men's hearts."

Lieutenant Colonel Mike Glover, Regimental Secretary (Lancashire) of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers and curator of the Regimental Collection at Wellington Barracks in Bolton Road, said: "This anniversary is important not just for Lancashire's Fusiliers to remember heroic deeds and fallen soldiers, but also for the people of Bury and Lancashire to rediscover part of their family heritage and to reflect upon the fact that great events always depend upon the contribution of ordinary people".