26 May 1915

ANZAC - The Australian war correspondent Charles Bean provides a succinct review of the difficulties facing the Gallipoli operations. He clearly has a more realistic grasp than General Sir Ian Hamilton of the dreadful situation they were in. "We are a 'containing force’ - we are holding up one force of Turks whilst another force of ours somewhere else does something: but what is there any prospect of its doing? We might with a shove have got our main ridge, but no force under 250,000 will get Achi Baba."

"May 26 Exceedingly quiet night and day on the beach - as it has been ever since May I9th. What are we doing all this while? I wish I knew. The Turks are now building us in all round, getting their lines stronger and stronger every day; I doubt if we could move out through the front, even if reinforced, today; they have guns in their firing line at Johnston's jolly, and our howitzers say they can't get at them, and our 18-pounders have no common shell, They are making grid-iron trenches in places where their trenches were weak - and our job is sitting and looking on. Our artillery ammunition is pretty strictly cut down (due to supply shortages); we get about one half hour of aeroplane in three days. The Navy is now out of it - we can scarcely expect them to come out and be torpedoed day by day, although there are warships visible down south - possibly some of them are sham warships. Sixteen of our guns are off helping in the push down south. We are a 'containing force' - we are holding up one force of Turks whilst another force of ours somewhere else does something: but what is there any prospect of its doing? We might with a shove have got our main ridge, but no force under 250,000 will get Achi Baba. As far as I can see the force down there is doing exactly what we are - namely, allowing an army of Turks to make itself each day tremendously stronger in a position already naturally strong."

The Gallipoli campaign was doomed..

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SOURCE: C. E. W. Bean, edited b K. Fewster, Bean's Gallipoli: The diaries of Australia's War Correspondent, (Cows Nest: Allen & Unwin, 2007), p. 137

 

Photograph: Charles Bean at Gallipoli (Courtesy AWM)

27 May 1915

HELLES - On May 27, two days after the sinking of HMS Triumph, von Hersing struck again, this time off the coast of Cape Helles. On 27 May HMS Majestic took up a position close to shore, protected by submarine nets and surrounded by a fleet of transport ships unloading supplied. It was hoped that this position would allow her to keep firing while protecting her against the submarine, which it was half-believed had been rammed on the previous day.



At 6.45am this optimisitic attitude was proved to be false. U-21 was spotted 400 yards from the ship. Moments later two torpedoes were fired through gaps in the lines of transports. Both hit the Majestic, and seven minutes she capsized. The loss of life was surprisingly low - it very quickly became clear that the ship was sinking, and the order to abandon ship was given. Of her crew of nearly 700, only 43 were lost, mostly in the initial explosion but some when they became entangled in the submarine nets.

The loss of two battleships in three days had a serious impact on the Gallipoli campaign, seriously reducing the amount of support the navy could offer the army.

Photograph: From The War Illustrated, 26 June 1915.

Thursday 27 May 1915 - Ellis Ashmead-Bartlett War Correpondent

Aboard HMS Majestic was one of the official press journalists covering the campaign, Mr Ellis Ashmead Bartlett.

"I was aroused by men rushing by me and someone trod on, or stumbled against, my chest. This awoke me and I called out, "What's the matter?" A voice replied from somewhere, "There's a torpedo coming!" I just had time to scramble to my feet when there came a dull heavy explosion about 15 feet forward of the shelter deck on the port side. The hit must have been very low down, as there was no shock from it to be felt on deck. The old Majestic immediately gave a jerk over towards port and remained with a heavy list. Then there came a sound as if the contents of every pantry in the world had fallen at the same moment. I never before heard such a clattering, as everything loose in her tumbled about. You could tell at once she had been mortally wounded somewhere in her vitals and you felt instinctively she would not long stay afloat. The sea was crowded with men swimming about and calling for assistance. I think that many of these old reservists, who formed the majority of the crew, had forgotten how to swim, or else had lost all faith in their own powers."

Thanks to the swarms of small vessels that rushed in to try and rescue the crew only 43 of the 700 men died. The great upturned hull of HMS Majestic would provide a grim monument just off W Beach until it disappeared during the winter storms later that year.

The arrival of the U-Boats recast the equation of forces at Helles. As at Anzac the great ships of war could no longer prowl night and day off the beaches; now they could only appear in special circumstances. Lesser ships, the destroyers would take up much of the work of supporting the troops. Many of the troops ashore felt deserted and a little isolated after the 'big beasts' had gone.

 

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SOURCE: E. Ashmead-Bartlett Some of My Experiences in the Great War (London: George Newnes Ltd, 1918), pp.130 & 131

 

28 May 1915

HELLES - The period leading up to the planned attack on 4 June was taken up with preparations. It had been decided that the trenches must be pushed forward as far as possible to reduce the distance of No Man's Land that the troops would have to cross. This could be a risky operation. Private Horace Bruckshaw found on this the early morning of 28 May.



"After dark our supports made an advance through our line and carried on a distance of 200 yards in front of us. Arrived there, they immediately dug them- selves in. I do not think the Turks realized that an advance had been made until the chaps were in comparative safety. The 5th Manchesters who were on our left made an advance at the same time, but owing to some misunderstanding they only advanced 100 yards. This left a big gap between the two Battalions with a very dangerous ravine in the space. Our company, being now in supports had to make our way up the ravine and dig a trench to connect up the two units. The Turks had now tumbled to the game and we had a devil of a warm time. It simply rained bullets and we dug until we got fairly exhausted. We had a fair number of casualties over the job. As soon as we had finished we got our heads down. I slept on until I2 o'clock noon. The enemy have started shelling us this morning. We spent the afternoon improving the trenches and dodging snipers which are always bothering us. At 11pm the 5th Manchesters made another advance of 100 yards to make the line straight. The Turks however were not to be caught napping again and the advance was made under heavy fire. They still left a gap of about 50 yards between us, so we had to go and sap a trench between us. We got back to our own trench at daybreak fairly tired out." (Private Horace Bruckshaw, Plymouth Battalion, Royal Marine Brigade RND)

 

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SOURCE: H. Bruckshaw, edited by M. Middlebrook, The Diaries of Private Horace Bruckshaw Royal Marine Light Infantry, 1915-1916, (London, Scolar Press, 1979), pp.46-47

 

29 May 1915

HELLES - The RND had dug its own rest camps for each of the battalions. When they were out of the line they would return to these holes in the ground in the higher ground overlooking Morto Bay. Lieutenant William Ker wrote home on the 30 May to give a picture of his life out of the line for the last couple of days.



Photograph: Hawke Battalion's A Companies Rest Camp, May 1915.

"It is really very jolly here, these are what they call the rest trenches. No work to speak of and a shirt-sleeve climate. It is pretty hot during the day, but mornings and evenings are perfect. Our food is largely corned beef in various forms, but it is good. There is a difficulty about water, which is not. The beverage which keeps us alive is tea, of which we drink incredible quantities. There is no milk. The place is littered with camps like this. You never saw such a conglomeration of strange troops. You should have seen me and A. P. Herbert the other evening bathing in the Dardanelles near some Frenchmen and Senegalese, with the Turkish lines (or, rather, the place where. they were) in sight on a ridge to our left beside some dismantled forts, the Plain of Troy before us on the other side, some guns on the Asiatic side in sending an occasional shrapnel shell over on our right, and a French battery immediately behind us having shots at them. I took a bathing party down to the beach yesterday. The scene was a cross between Blackpool in the season and the Ganges. The men think it a fine picnic, but we are going him the firing line tomorrow night. There was a great dm last night about 9.30. We could hear terrific rifle fire, and the French guns behind us started firing into the darkness with a boom and a whirr, and then a pause and a distant bang as the shell explodes. We have not heard what it was all about." (Lieutenant William Ker, Hawke Battalion, 1st Naval Brigade, RND)

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SOURCE: W. Ker quoted by D. Jerrold, The Hawke Battalion: Some Personal Records of Four Years, 1914-1918, (London, Ernest Benn Ltd, 1925), p. 51

 

30 May 1915

HELLES - Lieutenant John Hughes Allen, 1st Essex Regiment, 88th Brigade, 29th Division - sent a letter home describing the stressful nature of trench life.

"I had only finished my letter to you half an hour, when at the least expected time of the day the Turks attacked us. I was dozing off when a sentry in the next trench cried out: "Stand to!" In a second we were at the parapet, the men with their rifles, I with my revolver. Three hundred yards away on our half left was a line of Turks, mostly in kneeling fire positions. One I noted in particular with his short beard and long-looking rifle. I must have once seen a picture of something of the sort, for his appearance and position were curiously familiar to me. It was a relief to hear the rifles bang around one. The ##### regiment had a few men out on a small trench or dugout in advance of us. They retired when about 1,000 Turks appeared in front of them. Some were killed, others reached our trench. One soldier about seventeen years old reached my part of the trench. I have never seen a human being so overpowered by his feelings. He was beset by a mixture of terror, courage, exhaustion, and resolve. He wanted to stay in the dugout and beat the Turks off his own bat, but everyone had gone. Running back 200 yards, he fell, but by a miracle escaped being shot. I was observing the country in front with all the intensity I could, but I responded sufficiently to what he said. He begged for water. All the afternoon he could hardly pull the trigger of his rifle, but he never lost his gameness. You can't make soldiers of seventeen fight day after day and retain their efficiency. All that long afternoon I was supported, by his courage. Messages passed down the line. We were told people on our right were retiring, and then that the Manchesters had returned to their position: - Manchester! Do you remember years ago my writing and saying: "I hate Manchester?" I hasten to withdraw all that now! And then the Turks began to advance from the cover of a rise in single file. They didn't carry on long, for we killed them all. One officer in smart khaki drill and sun-helmet - the drill was the pattern of the sort I rejected as too conspicuous - advanced at an easy trot, as though he was catching a train. He came within a hundred yards of our trench, and then fell riddled with bullets. Respect him as a brave Turkish gentleman. I think he meant to take our trench with his walking-stick Possibly he meant to lead a charge, and the men failed to come. Things went well for us at first, for the Turks did not reach us, and failed to take our trench. Friendly big guns from men-of-war bombarded the enemy position. However, they entrenched themselves not far from us. I thought we should counter-charge them. If we had done it early I believe we should have driven them out, but as the afternoon waned the men became utterly exhausted. You see, they have had an unexampled strain. In France you have two days in the trenches and then a relief; our men had been here for twelve, and for the last three days we have been digging or fighting almost continuously. The rifle fire of the enemy is worse than in France; the shell-fire not so bad, and we have nothing like the comforts they have there - no parcels or letters or unshelled bases to retire to. We have no sleep to speak of, and our men are utterly done up."

 

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SOURCE: J. H. Allen quoted by I. Montgomery, John Hugh Allen of the Gallant Company: A Memoir, (London, Edward Arnold, 1919), pp.213-215

 

31 May 1915

ANZAC - On the morning of 31 May the Canterbury Battalion made their way up to Quinn's Post. Private Cecil Malthus described the still hazardous journey.



Modern photograph of the route to Quinn's Post from the Internet Source: http://user.online.be/~snelders/roadbook/rbquinn1.htm

"We went to Quinn's Post by a safe and easy route, round by Anzac Cove and up Shrapnel Gully. In passing up several open valleys we gained a much better knowledge of our new position. Quinn's Post was the most advanced corner of our line and the furthest from the sea - much nearer the sea on the left than on the right. From the beach at Anzac Cove the way lay through deep and winding communication trenches which had cost the Australians weeks of incredible work. Then came the comparatively safe stretches of Shrapnel Gully, where the track was not overlooked by the enemy, except at a few points where sentries were always posted to warn the passers-by. These places were crossed at the double, however weary or loaded a man might be. Even so, they provided good shooting for the Turkish snipers, as the movement of traffic, though spasmodic, was almost continual. From there another deep sap emerged in Monash Gully, which was really the head of the mile-long valley traversing our territory and forming the main avenue of traffic. Monash Gully too was badly exposed to Turkish snipers, who had almost a clear line of fire from Dead Man's Ridge, back between Pope's and Quinn's. Up the hill to the left of Monash Gully was Russell's Top, straight at the head of the gully was Pope's Hill, with deep ravines on either side of it, and on the right, just clinging to the summit of a steep cliff, was Quinn's Post. Next on the right was Courtney's, also held at times by New Zealanders, but the rest of the line from Courtney's down to the sea was - and remained throughout the campaign - exclusively Australian. Quinn's Post was reached by a long straight staircase made, in the absence of timber, out of faggots of brushwood. This staircase was of course too steep for mules, and all the stores had to be carried up by hand. To men stricken with dysentery the daily water and stores fatigue was a cruel task. Quinn's Post itself was subdivided into six little garrisons or separate commands, requiring each about twenty men to hold them, with a good many more in supports. Nos. 3 and 4, at the head of the staircase, were perhaps the scene of the strangest and most terrible struggle in all history. The Turkish trenches were only 7 yards away, and at one point in No. 4. we had a listening post just 6 feet from their line. One could step out through a gap in the sandbags and touch the Turkish parapet (but one was much better advised not to). Nos. 1 and 2 joined up with Courtney's Post on the right. They were 20 or 30 yards distant from the enemy and had the great advantage, very rare with us on Gallipoli, of being on slightly higher ground than the opposing Turkish trenches. Nos. 5 and 6 were literally cut out of the face of the cliff, and No. 6 ended abruptly on the brim of a deep gully commanded by Turkish trenches at the head of it, on Dead Man's Ridge, 50 yards away. The gully caused a break in our line, but over at Pope's Hill an oblique spur, strongly entrenched, partly enfiladed it. No. 6 could only be reinforced by men passing right along the trench from No. 5 and was thus a perilously weak position. If the Turks could have captured it and built up protection from enfilading fire, they would have dominated the whole valley and all our communications. They had only to gain a few yards and hurl our men into the gully." (Private Cecil Malthus, Canterbury Battalion, New Zealand Brigade, NZ&A Division, NZEF)

 

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SOURCES; C. Malthus, Anzac: A Retrospect (Christchurch: Whitcombe & Tombs Ltd, 1965), pp.68-71

 

24 April 1915

ANZAC LANDING - As the ANZAC Corps set off for Colonel Ewen Sinclair-MacLagen was aboard the destroyer Colne. He was the man in command of the 3rd Australian Brigade and thus charged with the task of making the first landings north of Gaba Tepe and then covering the landings of the main force. It was a grevious responsibility.


"The commander of the destroyer Colne gave me his bunk, but I simply could not sleep. Although I knew that all the orders for the operations had been clear and most carefully thought out, had we, the Brigade Staff, provided for any and every eventuality? How was Brigade Headquarters to keep in touch with the units of the Brigade scattered over a 4,000 to 5,000 yard front and on foot? If opposition was even only moderately serious, could units keep touch with one another? Was the reserve battalion placed the right position? Were the 'poor' maps issued to us accurate enough to be depended on, especially for the naval covering fire? If that was wire-entanglement in the water [on the] north shore of Gaba Tepe, could the men get through it, or would they be drowned and so leave my right flank open? How could I replace them from the reserve? These and many other thoughts of a similar nature kept me wide awake until we got into the boats for the last few yards to shore."

Source: Armada Moves: Egypt to Gallipoli (Reveille, 31/3/1932), p.59

Photograph: Colonel Ewen Sinclair-MacLagen, GOC 3 Brigade, 1st Australian Division