A Tasmanian farmer’s historical records of the war, penned in 16 diaries, are among the greatest personal accounts of World War One.

Archie Barwick enlisted in August 1914, and served with distinction in Gallipoli and the Western Front.

“He was the man who inspired one of the most famous Australian movie scenes of all time,” Neil Breen explained.

His war experiences were detailed in 16 diaries, which inspired Peter Weir’s Gallipoli, starring Mel Gibson.

His grand-daughter, Elizabeth, says from all accounts he was a farmer with an adventurous spirit, and a storyteller.

“What comes through, all the way through, is that he had a bucketload of optimism through the war,” she said.

He kept the diaries to paint a picture of the war for his family.

“From 1914 from when he enlisted to when he got back to Australia in 1919, he kept his diaries and sent them back to family so that they would know what was going.

“These diaries now have inspired things like the movie, there’s been a TV series, books have been written.”

Press PLAY below to hear more about her grandfather

Images: Supplied