How Many Elephants Were Killed In World War I?

Many elephants were killed during World War I, but the exact number is not known.
The elephants that were brought to England during WWI were used for essential tasks and to transport weapons and munitions, as well as various machines.
While we do know that a lot of these elephants came from circuses, we do not know how exactly they ended up doing the work they did.

During World War I, the majority of horses in England were purchased to be used in the war. They were immediately being sent to the Western Front. Since the farmers still needed to work, they had to find new animals to replace these horses. The alternative they managed to find was elephants. Sounds exotic, and the story is quite impressive.

Many of these elephants were killed during World War I, but the exact number is unfortunately unknown. It is, however, weird to imagine Indian elephants calmly walking through England during the era of World War I. It is almost surreal, like a scene straight out of a movie.