Topic: AIF - 3B - 8 LHR
Battle of Romani
Sinai, August 4 to 5, 1916
Captain Thomas Sidney Austin produced a unit history called The history of the 8th Light Horse Regiment A.I.F. which included a section specifically related to the Battle of Romani and is extracted below.
Austin, TS, The history of the 8th Light Horse Regiment A.I.F. :
ROMANI
On the 4th of August, the whole camp was hurriedly roused just before the usual reveille time by hurried orders to saddle-up at once proceed to Hill 70 near Kantara, there to obtain our disposition orders to meet the Turks who were advancing through Katia on Romani. No one was allowed to carry anything on the saddle except rations and forage. Blankets, overcoats, and even tunics had to be left behind, all ranks appearing in shirt sleeves. The idea was to travel light.
We left Ballagh Bunyon [Note: Bally Bunion - ed.] in brigade column at 0730 and reached Hill 70 at 1130, and received more rations. After some delay we started off Duiedar and about 8 p.m. took aver an outpost line for the night in the sand hills about 3 miles out to the North East of the hod. A couple of strays evidently lost from their column were captured here, but no other enemy were seen.
At dawn next morning the column started off due East to pick up touch with the enemy. The route went straight out into the glaring desert and a sigh of relief went up when Bir en Nuss was reached and water obtained for the horses. After a brief halt we were off again, heading for Nagid. Here the enemy were encountered and the 9th and 10th. Regiments sailed straight in and after a rapid fight succeeded in capturing about 600 prisoners. We were in reserve during this fight and had a Panoramic view of the whole show. At Nagid Hod the horses were again watered and the men had a couple of hours spell for tea. After dark a move was made back for Hod El Enna but the column losing touch with the advance guard got 'bushed' and bivouaced among the sand-hills for the night. No time was lost in getting off the mark next morning and Hamisah was reached about 9 a.m. and a halt called until mid-day. A good deal of abandoned material we found here including machine guns and ammunition, also a few wounded abandoned by the enemy ware brought in and tended. At noon still going East we were making for Daren and reaching that place without much opposition camped there for the night of the 6th./7th.
Further Reading:
8th Australian Light Horse Regiment, Roll of Honour
Battle of Romani, Sinai, August 4 to 5, 1916
Bir el Abd, Sinai, 9 August 1916
Battles where Australians fought, 1899-1919
Citation: Battle of Romani, Sinai, August 4 to 5, 1916, 8th LHR, AIF, Unit History Account
