"At a mile distant their thousand hooves were stuttering thunder, coming at a rate that frightened a man - they were an awe inspiring sight, galloping through the red haze - knee to knee and horse to horse - the dying sun glinting on bayonet points..." Trooper Ion Idriess
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Saturday, 7 August 2010
The Nek, Gallipoli, 7 August 1915, The Chronology Topic: BatzG - Nek
The Nek
Gallipoli, 7 August 1915
The Chronology
The Chronology
4.23 - the "joke" of a bombardment ends.
4.28 - Turks clearly seen manning the parapets of the trenches and machine gun ranged.
4.29 – The men in the first line already know they are in for a tough time.
4.30 – The whistle blows and 150 men of the 8th Light Horse Regiment, led by Colonel White, climb out of the trenches and charge across the Nek.
4.35 – 150 men lay dead or wounded within 30 metres of the trench. Three men made it to the Turkish trench only to die there. An observer spots a location flag in Turkish trenches and reports this to Antill. The whistle blows and a further 150 men climb out of their trench.
4.40 – 150 more men lay dead or wounded. Colonel Brazier, commander of the 10th Light Horse Regiment argues with Antill about sending the next line out. Antill orders Brazier to send out the third line.
4.45 - Trooper Harold Rush, 10th Light Horse Regiment, says to his friend as both men shake hands: “Goodbye Cobber. God bless you." He died a minute later.
The whistle blows and a 150 men from the 10th Light Horse Regiment climb out of their trench.
4.50 – 150 more men lay dead, wounded or pretending to be dead.
5.15 - The 4th line of the attack is called off but some troops misunderstand this direction and charge.
5.20 – 234 dead and wounded from the 8th LHR and 138 from the 10th LHR lay on the blood soaked ground of the Nek. Any movement of the wounded men brought Turkish machine gun fire to bear on the person. Some of the wounded were able to crawl back into the trenches. Others who had been lucky and not injured made their way as best as possible. For the rest, their lot was a miserable day in the sun without any hope of relief until the evening.
The Nek, Turkey, August 7, 1915, Outline Topic: BatzG - Nek
The Nek
Turkey, 7 August 1915
Outline
Scene from Baby 700 to Russell's Top illustrating the Nek from the Ottoman point of view.
The Nek, a narrow saddle running east-west between the ridgeline known as Russell's Top and Baby 700 - the strongest position at Anzac (q.v.) - which was the scene of a tragic assault on 7 August 1915 by Australian light horsemen fighting as infantry. Passage over this strip of ground was barred by opposing Turkish and Australian trenches, which faced each other at distances varying from 20 to 60 metres; the edges of both firing lines fell away at each side to the valley floor 150 metres below. Rebind the Turkish front-line, moreover, were right more trenches rising in tiers to the Summit of Baby 700, so that annihilating lire could be brought to bear upon any movement not just from rifles but no fewer than five groups of machine-guns.
The direction of the charge at the Nek, 7 August 1915.
In ordering a feint to be launched here at dawn the day after Lone Pine (q.v.), aimed at ensuring that Turkish attention continued to he focused on the main Anzac position rather than on activities underway further north (see Hill 971), British commanders were not unmindful of the futility of attacking 'unaided'. The assault was therefore planned to proceed only after supporting movements had taken place, designed to silence some of the enemy machine-guns or draw off fire while the attack went in. In the event, these other operations either failed or were delayed, so that at the time designated for the attempt the 3rd Light Horse Brigade received no relief from any of them.
To make matters worse, an intense artillery barrage that was to begin half an hour before the troops attacked at 4.30 a.m. was mistimed due to the synchronisation of watches having been overlooked. The barrage ended seven minutes earlier than expected, and the Turks were given ample opportunity to recover and re-occupy their parapets. Accordingly, when the first assault line of 150 men rose to the attack-the ground being so narrow that there was no room for more-most fell dead or wounded before they had covered ten metres under the withering fire directed at them. Three more waves were sent forward at intervals and each met the same fate. Since no-one in the later assault lines can have doubted the outcome, there were poignant scenes as men farewelled each other while they waited for the order to attack.
By 5.15 a.m. some 300 men of the 8th and 10th Light Horse regiments lay in a huddled mass within an area no larger than a tennis court. In the words of the Official History:
At first here and there a man raised his arm to the sky, or tried to drink from his water bottle. But as the sun of that burning day climbed higher, such movement ceased. Over the whole summit the figures lay still in the quivering heat.
At most, the bold display by the light horsemen at the Nek may have impeded for a few hours - but did not prevent - the transfer of Turkish reinforcements towards Chunuk Bair, where the New Zealanders were also engaged in a desperate struggle.
Picture taken from Russell Top trenches overlooking the Nek soon after the charge.
Extracted from the book produced by Chris Coulthard-Clark, Where Australians Fought - The Encyclopaedia of Australia's Battles, Allen and Unwin, Sydney, 1998, pp. 108-109.
Additional References cited by Chris Coulthard-Clark:
C.E.W. Bean, (1924), The Story of Anzac, Vol. 2 , Sydney: Angus & Robertson.
Peter Burness, (1996), The Nek, Kenthurst, NSW: Kangaroo Press
The August Offensive, Gallipoli, August 1915, Australian Imperial Force, Roll of Honour Topic: BatzG - Aug 1915
The August Offensive
Gallipoli, August 1915
Australian Imperial Force
Roll of Honour
Poppies on the Roll of Honour, Australian War Memorial, Canberra
The Roll of Honour contains the names of all the men known to have given their lives in service of Australia during the August Offensive, Gallipoli, August 1915.
The Battle of Lone Pine, Turkey, 6 - 9 August 1915, Outline Topic: BatzG - Lone Pine
The Battle of Lone Pine
Turkey, 6 - 9 August 1915
Outline
Lone Pine, the result of the attack.
Lone Pine, an action fought on the southern flank of the Anzac (q.v.) position at Gallipoli on 6-9 August 1915, which has become famous as a glorious debacle. The operation was planned purely as a diversion aimed at drawing Turkish reserves away from a major attack to be launched from the northern end of the perimeter (see Hill 971). It involved the Australian 1st Brigade dashing across the lower half of a wide flat hump known as the 400 Plateau and seizing a network of trenches along its eastern edge. In preparation for the assault, the intended objective was pounded by slow artillery shoots at intervals over the preceding three days.
The Australian force locations, 27 July 1915, just before the attack in August.
[From: Hand drawn map from the Australian Division Artillery, 2 August 1915.]
At 4.30 p.m. on 6 August the rate of fire of the guns was increased, and an hour later the troops scrambled out of the trenches in which they had assembled and rushed forward with the setting sun behind them. They were virtually upon the enemy positions before the Turks were able to bring effective fire to bear, but only now discovered that the trenches were roofed over with pine logs which prevented their entry. While some began tearing at the logs to create openings through which to get at their opponents, the majority continued on past the main parapet to the open communication trenches in the rear. Most men jumped down into these and began fighting back towards the covered firing line, using mainly their bayonets to deal with the enemy garrison as they went. A few went on further still, until they stumbled into a depression known as the cup which sheltered the enemy's battalion headquarters and support units. Here they were stopped by Turkish troops who quickly came up to hold this ground.
While the attack had achieved its primary goal within half an hour of its commencement, the Australians now in possession of the main Turkish trench-line found themselves in a desperate struggle to maintain their hold. Parties of the troops quickly threw up sandbag barricades to block any enemy approach along communication trenches or continuations of the trenches they were manning. As darkness fell the Turks made their first attempt to push the Australians out using hand grenades, and this effort continued without relent for the next three days. So fierce was the fighting which followed that the 1st Brigade and the 3rd which reinforced it suffered 2,277 casualties; Turkish losses were claimed as 5,000. Seven Victoria Crosses were awarded for this battle.
Even though the Australians still held the ground they had won when fighting here subsided on 10 August, in every other respect the battle was a disaster. Apart from being immensely costly as a feint, it had actually succeeded in drawing towards this sector of the line major Turkish reinforcements. But as soon as the enemy realised that these were not needed at Lone Pine they were readily at hand to deal with the main British attack as this developed-thereby helping to frustrate the overall plan behind the August offensive.
The end of the attack at Lone Pine.
[The sentry guards the most farthest advance at Lone Pine. From: CEW Bean Collection.]
Extracted from the book produced by Chris Coulthard-Clark, Where Australians Fought - The Encyclopaedia of Australia's Battles, Allen and Unwin, Sydney, 1998, pp. 107-108.
Additional References cited by Chris Coulthard-Clark:
C.E.W. Bean, (1924), The Story of Anzac, Vol. 2 , Sydney: Angus & Robertson.
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