The initial Allied assault at Cape Helles in April to take the Dardanelles had failed. The objective of the new attack was to take the beach and surrounding hills at Suvla Bay which lay . twenty five miles north of Cape Helles. To this end a new Mediterranean Expeditionary Force (MEF) was assembled under the command of General Sir Ian Hamilton.
Through terrible logistics and poor planning, there followed utter carnage at these landings. The Dublins arrived in Gallipoli without any maps and any orders as to what to do when they got there. Prior to their departure for Gallipoli, the 10th (Irish) Division's artillery pieces went to France instead of Gallipoli. Water was in such a short supply that men nearly killed each other for a simple drink. When the fight against the Turks did begin, they even ran out of ammunition and resorted to throwing stones at the Turks.
The 7th Battalion had two separate actions during their time at Gallipoli
They withdrew from Gallipoli on 30 Sept 1915 and arrived for their next mission at Salonika on 11 Oct 1915.
In January 1916, the Allies finally pulled out of the Dardanelles. They suffered a loss of 250,000 killed wounded or missing. 3411 were members of the 10th (Irish) Division, of which 569 were from the 1st Battalion Dublin Fusiliers alone. The Allies had not moved from the beaches on which they had landed back in April 1915. Of the Irish at Gallipoli, the Unionist leader Edward Carson stated, ‘Their magnificent bravery in the face of insurmountable difficulties stands out amongst the countless acts of heroism in this war.'
The last word about the Irish at Gallipoli is best described by a Scottish soldier who saw the landings at Gallipoli and wrote in the Tablet newspaper Glasgow in January 1916:
Oh, but they deserve a rich reward! What surprises me is that the papers have not been full of their praises. It is a shame and a scandal because I can tell you there is not a man in the service who is aware of their gallant action but who would willingly do anything for the Irish people - yes the Irish Catholics. I have no religion but it was most charming and edifying to see these chaps with their beads and the way they prayed to God. We are all brothers, but to my dying day, I bow to the Irish; they saved the situation. Nothing is too good to give the country of which they are - or, rather were, such worthy representatives. They have the most perfect right to demand, and what is more to get, the freedom of their country and the right to rule it.
7th Battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers
The Commander-in-Chief had planned that the transports conveying the nth Division from Imbros were to leave as soon as night fell on the 6th, and effect their landing under cover of darkness. The loth Division, having a longer voyage (Mudros being 60 and Mitylene 120 miles away) were intended to reinforce them on the following day. It was believed that the Turks would be taken by surprise, and that little or no resistance was to be anticipated. Three landing places had been arranged for ; one known as Beach A in Suvla Bay itself, the others. Beach B and Beach C, on the shore south of Nibrunesi Point. The three Brigades of the nth Division landed simultaneously, and met with slight resistance from a Turkish picket entrenched on Lala Baba. The hill was, however, taken with the bayonet, and the whole of the beaches made good, while the nth Manchester Regiment drove the enemy's out- tl < ^ < a ^1 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 125 posts on the Karakol Dagh back on to the Kiretch Tepe Sirt. By the time this much had been gained, day dawned and the first portion of the lOth Division began to appear on the scene. This consisted of the 31st Brigade and the two battalions of Royal Dublin Fusiliers, which had been waiting at Mitylene, the whole force being under the command of Brigadier-General F. F. Hill. Early in the afternoon of the 6th, the battalions had left the transports, on which they had spent nearly a month, and transferred themselves to trawlers and channel steamers. At sunset they weighed anchor and steamed northward, all, except a few on board, being completely ignorant of their destination. The lights on the shore told them that they had passed Achi Baba, and as they steamed by Anzac, the noise of battle at Lone Fine and on Sari Bair reached them from afar. Just as the pale morning light began to make it possible to distinguish the difference between sea and land, the ships anchored off Nibrunesi Point. In the original plan of operations it was designed that the nth Division should form the right wing and the loth the left of the advance, and with this scheme in view it had been arranged to land the loth on Beach A, inside Suvla Bay. The landing at Beach A during the night had, however, been con- siderably delayed owing to the fact that many 126 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION of the lighters had run aground in the shallow waters of the bay, and the Naval Authorities had, therefore, decided to land General Hill's force on Beach C below Nibrunesi Point. At the same time. General Hill was directed to reinforce the nth Division, placing himself under the orders of Major-General Hammersley, who commanded that unit. The process of disembarkation began about 5.30 a.m., the first tw^o lighters taking to the shore a company of the 6th Inniskillings and a company of the 5th Royal Irish Fusiliers, as well as General Hill and his staff. It was at once clear to all that the Turks had not been completely taken by surprise. The scrub which covered the slopes of all the surrounding hills, combined with the scattered olive groves to make it impossible to detect the numbers of the enemy, but it was obvious that they were well supplied with artillery. Their shrapnel was bursting fiercely over the men of the nth Division as they moved forward, and as soon as the lighters reached the beaches, an effective barrage was at once established there. Even the troops awaiting disembarkation were under fire, and suffered the painful experience of having to lie down, closely packed together, and unable to retaliate. The lighters were obvious and easy targets, and in one boat alone the 7th Dublins lost an officer and seventeen men. On the whole, however, the force was THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 127 lucky, and the casualties on landing were not heavy. Little could be done to keep down the hostile artillery fire, since the enemy's guns were well concealed, and but few of our batteries had landed. Two mountain guns on Lala Baba kept up a constant fire, and the warships co- operated, though lack of facilities for observa- tion rendered their fire comparatively ineffective. General Hill reached the landing place two hundred yards south of Nibrunesi Point about 6.30 a.m. Leaving orders for units as they landed to rendezvous on the seaward side of Lala Baba, he went in search of General Hammer- sley in order to ascertain his wishes. At this time the Turkish detachments, which had been watching the beaches, were retiring slowly across the wooded plain which stretches between the Salt Lake and Anafarta Saghir, pursued by the nth Division. This pursuit, however, was considerably impeded by the fact that two small eminences, each about a hundred-and-sixty feet high, about half-a-mile from the south- eastern corner of the Salt Lake, were still in the enemy's hands. These positions were after- wards known as Chocolate Hill and Green Hill respectively, the Turkish name for the range being Yilghin Burnu. As long as the Turks held these knolls, they were in a position to bring enfilade artillery fire to bear on the advance across the Anafarta plain ; and accordingly General Hill was directed to co- 128 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION operate with two battalions of the nth Division in their capture. This order had unfortunately the result of making any future junction with the portion of the Division under Sir Bryan Mahon's command impossible, since that was directed to guard the left flank of the advance, while General Hill's force was to move to the extreme right. Owing to this detachment of a Brigade and a half, the work of the Staff tended to become more difficult. By the time that General Hill rejoined his force with these orders, he found that the 6th Inniskillings and 5th Royal Irish Fusiliers had reached the rendezvous under Lala Baba. Two companies of the 7th Dublins under Major Lonsdale, the second-in-command, had also arrived there, and the remainder of the battalion, followed by the 6th Dublins and 6th Royal Irish Fusiliers, were coming up. The latter unit had been put ashore some way down the beach, and had had to march a considerable distance in order to reach Lala Baba. The process of disembarkation and assembly had naturally taken a considerable time, and it was not till close on noon that the advance began. In order to reach the northern shores of the Salt Lake, and get in touch with the nth Division, the units of General HilFs force had to pass over a narrow neck of land between the Salt Lake and the sea, on which the hostile artillery had carefully registered. Every minute THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 129 it was swept by bursts of shrapnel, and the only way in which it crossed was by a section at a time rushing over it and trusting to luck. It was a trying ordeal for young troops engaged in their first action, but they faced it cheerfully. The 7th Dublins in particular were much en- couraged by the example of their Colonel. As an old soldier, he knew that there were times when an officer must be prepared to run what would otherwise appear unnecessary risks ; so while everyone else was dashing swiftly across the neck, or keeping close under cover, it is recorded that Colonel Downing — a man of unusual height and girth — stood in the centre of the bullet-swept zone, quietly twirling his stick. The sight of his fearlessness must have been an inspiration to his men. As soon as each battalion had crossed the neck, it formed up on the low ground north of the Salt Lake, under the slight amount of cover afforded by a low eminence known as Hill 10. When all had got across, the advance eastward began. The crossing of the neck had occupied a good deal of time, and it was close on 3 p.m. For more than four hours the sun had been directly overhead, a blinding glare was reflected from the shining surface of the Salt Lake, and the heat was almost overpowering. Few of the men had slept during the night, since excite- ment and the discomfort caused by their closely - packed quarters on board the fleet 130 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION sweepers had combined to keep them awake. Except for a cup of tea about 3 a.m., and a mouthful hastily swallowed before moving off, they were fasting, and already many of the more improvident had emptied their water-bottles. In addition, these young soldiers who had never seen war before, had been since four in the morning exposed to shrapnel fire, with but little chance either of taking cover or of retaliating. They had seen their comrades fall stricken at their sides without the consolation of knowing that the enemy was suffering to an equal extent. However, the prospect of action was encourag- ing, and it was with confident faces that they turned towards the foe. Their one desire was to come to close quarters with the enemy on their immediate front, but he was invisible. From the low ground across which they were moving little could be seen but the masses of scrub backed by the semicircle of hills, and only broken by the minarets of Anafarta. The three leading battalions (6th Inniskilling Fusiliers, 5th Royal Irish Fusiliers and 7th Dublins) crossed the dry bed of the Azmak Dere, and began to turn southward towards Chocolate Hill. Up to this point the left flank of the movement had been protected by the troops of the nth Division, who were advancing in the direction of Anafarta, but every yard gained to the southward tended to throw this flank more and more into the air. THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 131 Though invisible, the enemy was making his presence felt. Round white balls of shrapnel were continually forming overhead, and out of the dense bushes rifle bullets came whizzing past the men's heads. Now and then a Turkish sniper was caught, sometimes festooned in boughs to enable him to escape notice ; but the casualties caused by snipers were not so serious on the first day as they became later. The heaviest losses were caused by the artillery, for near the sea the scrub was thinner, and the long lines of men slowly advancing were plainly visible to the enemy's observers on the surround- ing hills. Occasionally too, a Taube buzzed overhead, making its observations with com- parative impunity, since except on the ships, there were no anti-aircraft guns. Still the men pressed on, driving the Turks through the scrub before them. It was unpleasant work, particularly for officers, since little or nothing was known, either of the country or of the strength of dispositions of the enemy, and at any moment a platoon might have found itself confronted by a heavy counter-attack launched from the depths of the scrub, or enfiladed by hidden machine guns. Also, it proved a good deal harder to keep in touch with other units than it had in training days at the Curragh or in the Phoenix Park. The danger of pushing on too fast and finding oneself isolated was no imaginary one, 132 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION but was alarmingly illustrated by the disaster which befell the ist/5th Norfolks four days later. Nor did the tropical heat, which wore out and exhausted the men, help to quicken the movement. All these considerations combined with the pressure exercised by the enemy on the left flank of the Royal Irish Fusiliers tended to make the advance slow. The dispositions of the force for the attack were as follows : — On the right '* A " and '' B " Companies of the 6th Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers were in the firing line, supported by '' C " and '* D '* Companies of the same unit ; and by the 6th Royal Irish Fusiliers who had been brought up from the reserve. The 5th Royal Irish Fusiliers were on the left, having ^' A " and ^' B " Companies in the firing line and '' C " and '' D '' in support. Owing to the fact that the left flank was exposed, this battalion was gradually being compelled to face in a south-easterly direction, with the result that a gap began to appear between it and the 6th Inniskiilings. This gap was filled by '' A " Company of the 7th Royal Dublin Fusiliers, closely supported by " D " Company (*' The Pals '') of the same unit. The 6th Royal Dublin Fusiliers, who had been the last to come ashore, were still in reserve, and the 5th Inniskiilings had not yet landed. Steadfastly the Fusiliers went forward, moving on a line parallel to that which they had taken BRIGADIER-GENERAL F. F. HILL, C.B., C.M.G. COMMANDING 3IST BRIGADE THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 133 in the morning, but in the opposite direction. As they passed the Salt Lake, the InniskilHngs, who were on exposed ground, suffered severely, as many of the men stuck in the swamp. Land- mines, too, which exploded on contact, were encountered and caused losses, while the shrapnel burst overhead unceasingly. Nothing, however, could have been more encouraging to the men than the demeanour of their leader. Wherever the danger was greatest General Hill was to be found, calm and collected, trying to save the men as much as possible. His fearlessness, his complete disregard of personal danger, set an inspiring example, and officers and men alike went forward more cheerfully, thanks to the lead given them by their General. As the advance continued high explosive shells were mingled with the shrapnel, and though they did not claim so many victims, they were infinitely more trying to the strained nerves of the weary men in the ranks. By 5 p.m. they had come within 300 yards of the hill, and were under a heavy rifle fire. By this time the men were very weary. They had had a long voyage of 120 miles under most uncomfortable con- ditions, they had been under unceasing artillery fire for more than twelve hours, they had marched more than five miles burdened by rifle and ammunition through the noon of a tropical day, and it was no wonder that they were ex- hausted. Chocolate Hill, too, was a formidable 134 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION proposition : though only a hundred and sixty feet high, it rose steeply from the plain, and it was now obvious that it had been carefully prepared as a defensive position, for its sides were seamed by trenches. Though it was impossible to ascertain how strongly those trenches were held, yet it was clearly imperative that the men should have a rest before making the assault. While the fleet and the batteries that had now been landed bombarded the position, the men of General Hill's force lay down in their ranks on the sun-baked ground, firing a shot from time to time, but with abundant leisure to look about them. On their right they could see the white houses and tiled roofs of Anafarta Saghir, while to the left they gazed across the shining white surface of the Salt Lake, past Lala Baba, to the bay crowded with warships and transports and hurrying launches, and to the calm and splendid peak of Samothrace. Many of *' D " Company (" The Pals ") of the 7th Dublins were men who had taken degrees at Trinity or the National University, and they may well have recalled past studies and thrilled to remember that the word *' Samothrace " had always been associated with Victory. Most of all, however, they watched the hill in front of them and wondered what fate might have in -tore for them there. At last the bombardment ceased and the lines rose. General Hill had ordered that at all costs the position was to be taken before dark, and THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 135 reinforced by two battalions of the nth Division at 7 p.m. the charge began. On one flank the Inniskillings and on the other the Irish Fusiliers pressed forward. *' A *' Company of the 7th Dublins, led by Major Harrison, a splendid soldier, closely supported by '* The Pals " under Captain Poole Hickman (a barrister who had served in the ranks of the Company which he now commanded) made for the centre of the hill. The gleaming line of bayonets recked little of the Turkish fire, but rushed onward up the slopes. The Turk, on the defensive always, stands his ground well, and in more than one place the bayonets crossed ; but the rush of the Irish charge was not to be denied. Fatigue and thirst were forgotten as the Fusiliers, exulting in the force of their attack, dashed over trench and communication trench until the crest of the hill was gained. As they reached it, the sun sank behind Samothrace, and the impending darkness made further pursuit fruitless. There was much work to be done in the short Southern twilight, for the hill was a maze of trenches and dug-outs, with paths leading everywhere and nowhere, so that it was hard to find one's way. Outposts were hastily detailed and pushed forward over the crest, and the battalions which were much mixed, after a hurried reorganization, bivou- acked on and around the hill that they had taken. Their work, however, was by no means 136 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION at an end, for it was necessary to make arrange- ments for bringing up food and water, to replenish ammunition, to bury the dead, and to collect the wounded. This last was by no means a pleasant task, since they were scattered all over the area across which the attack had taken place, and in the darkness it was easy for an unconscious man lying under a bush to escape notice. Here, as everywhere, however, the stretcher-bearers worked magnificently, and the doctors who had marched with their units all day, settled down to a night of strenuous labour. It is impossible to exaggerate the devotion to duty displayed by the regimental Medical Officers : they utterly ignored their own fatigue in order to ease the sufferings of their comrades. While they were working, the task of re- plenishing supplies was going forward, though it proved to be one of considerable difficulty. The heaviest share of the burden fell on quarter- masters of units and on the staff at the beach, who were left to regulate this matter. The night was pitch dark, and lighters were dis- charging their loads at various points along two miles of beach, so that it was by no means easy to find the stores required, or when they were found to entrust them to the representative of the unit that required them. Fortunately, however, a considerable surplus of rations and ammunition had been brought on the fleet THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 137 sweepers from Mitylene, and this was divided among quartermasters. It was then necessary to have it sent up to Chocolate Hill, and since no animals or transport of any kind were available, this task became one of considerable difficulty. However, the men of the 6th Dublins, who had been in reserve during the day, were employed on this service, and their fatigue parties toiled throughout the night transporting the heavy boxes over the two-and-a-half miles of broken ground that intervened between the beach and the hill. The crux of the whole situation was water. The single water-bottle that each man had brought ashore had long been empty, and all were parched with thirst. Though some water lighters had run aground in the bay, others had reached the shore, but there were no vessels of any kind in which the priceless fluid could be carried up to the firing line. In view of the facts that the position had only been captured at dusk, and had barely been consolidated, and that it was reasonable to expect that the enemy would counter-attack, it was felt that it was impossible to send men down to the beach to fill their water-bottles, and yet there appeared no method by which the water could be conveyed to the position. Petrol cans and biscuit-tins were not forthcoming, and though Lieutenant Byrne, the Quartermaster of the 6th Dublins, tried the experiment of sending up water in 138 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION empty small-arm ammunition boxes, it was not wholly successful. At last the camp-kettles belonging to units came ashore, and by utilizing these, a scanty supply of water was sent up into the firing line. This work of organizing the supply of water, food and ammunition occupied the whole of the night of the 7th, and it was not till late on the 8th that it was complete. The main responsibility for it so far as General Hill's force was concerned, rested on Capt. T. J. D. Atkinson, the Staff Captain of the 31st Brigade. He received invaluable assistance from Lieutenant and Quartermaster R. Byrne of the 6th Dublins, who on this, as on many other occasions, displayed such conspicuous ability and energy as to gain him the Military Cross. Meanwhile, units began to take stock of their losses. Judged by the scale of later fighting in the Peninsula the casualties were not very heavy, though at first sight they appeared formidable enough. However, having regard to the fact that the troops had been under constant shell fire for twelve hours and at the end of it had taken an entrenched position by assault, the force could consider itself fortunate in not having suffered more severely. The bulk of the wounds were caused by shrapnel, which tended to confirm the impression that the hostile infantry who held Chocolate Hill were not very numerous. Had they been in equal strength to our men and been well supplied with THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 139 machine guns, the losses sustained in the attack must inevitably have been far greater. Never- theless, the capture of the Chocolate Hill-Green Hill position was a highly creditable performance for young troops who were receiving their baptism of fire. When it is remembered that they had been on the move throughout the greater part of the day in a temperature of well over 100°, the dash and determination exhibited by all the Irish regiments engaged augured well for their future. Unfortunately, several senior officers had fallen. The 7th Dublins lost Major Tippett, who had served for years in the old Dublin City Militia, and had left the security of a political agent's post in an English country constituency to die in his old regiment. Lieutenant Julian of the same battalion, who died of his wounds, was a young officer of great promise, whose death was deeply mourned. The 5th Royal Irish Fusiliers, who had suffered severely from the enemy on their left flank, lost Major Garstin killed ; and their Adjutant and nearly a dozen more officers wounded. In traversing the open ground by the Salt Lake and in the assault on the hill, the 6th Inniskillings had also sustained many casualties. Colonel Cliff e (destined to die later in France) was wounded, and so was Major Musgrave, his second-in-command ; while half- a-dozen more officers were hoys de combat. One of these was the Quartermaster, Lieutenant 140 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION Dooley, who was struck by shrapnel while superintending the unloading of ammunition from a lighter on the beach. While Chocolate Hill was being attacked, the remainder of the Division was hotly engaged to the northward. When Sir Bryan Mahon arrived from Mudros with the 6th and 7th Royal Munster Fusiliers and the 5th Royal Irish Regiment, he found that the force under General Hill had already landed, and was in action. Nothing remained of the Division which he had raised and trained for nearly a year, but the three battalions which he had brought with him and the 5th Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, which had not begun to disembark. It was an extraordinary position for an officer who was a Lieutenant-General of three years' standing, and had commanded a division for more than six years, to find himself entering into an action with only four battalions under his command, the whole of the rest of his command having been diverted elsewhere. How- ever, he made the best of the situation and proceeded so far as the force at his disposal would permit, to carry out the task which had been allotted to the Division, namely advancing on the left of the nth Division and securing the Kir etch Tepe Sirt. Beach *' A '' had been found unsuitable for use, as the water near it was so shallow that the lighters ran aground at a considerable distance BRIG iADIER-GENERAL L. L. NICOL, C.B., COMMANDING 3OTH BRIGADE THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 141 from the shore. The Navy had by this time found a better landing place on the north shore of Suvla Bay, slightly to the east of an isolated peak called Ghazi Baba, which rises from the shore. To this new landing place the two Munster battalions of the 30th Brigade with Brigadier-General L. L. Nicol and their Brigade Headquarters and the Divisional Pioneer Battalion were directed. It proved by no means ideal, since many of the lighters ran aground a considerable distance from the shore, and officers and men had to plunge into the water, which was waist deep, and wade to the land. Fortunately, wet clothes were soon dried by the Gallipoli sun, but the stranded boats afforded excellent targets to the Turkish artillery. On reaching the shore a little before noon, the 6th Munsters who landed first found that the enemy had sown the beach with land mines which exploded on contact. Sveral men were injured by these, while the Adjutant of the 6th Munsters was knocked down, but not hurt. The orders given to the two battalions of Munsters and the Royal Irish who acted as support, were to climb the Kiretch Tepe Sirt Ridge at its western end and push forward along the crest as fast as possible. A certain amount of ground had been made good in the course of the night by the nth Manchester Regiment, but it was desirable that the whole ridge should be secured as quickly as possible 142 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION in order to safeguard the left flank of the advance across the Anafarta plain. The Munsters accord- ingly struggled up the steep bushy slope under the burning rays of the midday sun, and deployed for advance about 1.30 p.m. The 6th Munsters were on the left and the 7th on the right. They then pushed forward, but it was at once obvious that the country was one which offered many advantages to an enemy who wished to fight a delaying action. Although from a distance the Kiretch Tepe Sirt appeared to be a long whale-backed hill six hundred feet high, yet its sides were seamed with gullies and tiny peaks almost invisible from below, which detached themselves from the main contour of the crest line. Moreover, it was covered with dense oak and holly scrub, which entirely concealed the numbers of the enemy and made it impossible to ascertain whether a unit was being opposed by a handful of snipers or a battalion. As they pushed through this dense thicket, the Munsters passed many indications of this fight waged by the iith Manchesters, and soon the sight of fly-infested corpses ceased to cause a shudder. Soon they came in contact with the battalion itself, or rather what was left of it, since it had suffered heavily. Its Colonel was wounded, his second- in-command killed, and nearly half its strength were out of action. Those who remained were exhausted and very thirsty, and were unable THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 143 to advance further. The Turks were holding a rocky mound which commanded the crest of the ridge for about six hundred yards to the west of it. From this point of vantage they were pouring a considerable volume of rifle fire on any troops who attempted to advance. Having taken in the situation, the Munsters went forward to attack the position, and had succeeded in getting within about a hundred 3^ards of it when darkness fell. In this engagement, fought in an unknown country against an enemy who knew every track and gully, and was able to leave snipers in the bushes behind him as he retired, the Munsters suffered severely, but were ready to advance again at dawn. A night attack was considered impracticable, since the country was absolutely unknown to the troops and very intricate. On the following day (the 8th) the Turkish position was attacked and finally stormed. The party of the 6th Munsters who took the culminating point, were led by the second-in-command of their battalion. Major Jephson, and the knoll was christened after him, Jephson's Post. Further advance proved impossible, the enemy being in possession of a strongly entrenched position, extending right across the ridge, and steps were taken to dig in on the line held. In this brisk engagement the two battalions of Munsters, supported by the Royal Irish 144 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION Regiment, and on the 8th by the 5th Royal Inniskilling FusiHers, had had to contend with an enemy possibly weaker in numbers, but possessing an intimate knowledge of the country and favoured by the lie of the ground. It was believed at Headquarters that the Turkish force on the Kiretch Tepe Sirt consisted of close on 700 Gendarmeries, who had been for months patrolling the Suvla district, and had the advantage of having already prepared entrenchments on the ridge. Against such a foe it was no mean achievement for a newly landed force to have advanced over two miles in a puzzling and intricate country and to have expelled the enemy from a well-fortified position, the whole being accomplished within twenty- four hours of landing. Naturally, there were numerous casualties. The 7th Munsters suffered most severely, having Captain Cullinan, Lieutenant Harper, Lieutenant Travers and 2nd-Lieutenant Bennett killed, and Major Hendricks, Captain Cooper- Key, Captain Henn and half-a-dozen sub- alterns wounded. In the 6th Munsters, Lieutenant J. B. Lee, a Dublin barrister, was killed on the 7th, and Major Conw^ay, a Regular officer of the Munster Fusiliers, fell in the assault on Jephson^s Post on the 6th. Several subalterns were wounded, and there were numerous casualties among the rank and file. It was, however, fortunate THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 145 that the enemy had no machine guns, and that the thick scrub made it hard to direct their artillery fire with accuracy, or the losses would have been far heavier. For a week the battalions held the line that they had captured, being reinforced by the 5th InniskilHngs, who took over the trenches on the northern slope of the ridge looking down on to the Gulf of Saros. This flank was guarded by a destroyer, wliich did invaluable service by giving notice of enemy movements, by searchlight work at night, and by rendering artillery support when necessary. The period spent in these trenches was by no means an enjoyable one, for water was very short and had to be fetched from a con- siderable distance away. Shade there was none, since the sun pierced vertically downwards, and the prickly scrub gave but little cover from above. The trenches had been hastily constructed In a sandy soil that crumbled and fell in at the first opportunity and required constant work at them. By day the Turkish snipers made this impossible, so the men lay, too hot and thirsty and tormented by flies to sleep, and by night they were stirred up to work again. To add to the horror of the position, the unburied bodies of those who had fallen in the previous fighting, lying in inaccessible gullies or in the midst of the scrub, began to spread around the foul, sweet, sickly odour of 146 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION decay. Once smelt, this cannot be forgotten, for it clings to the nostrils, and many a man recalled how true an insight Shakespeare had into the soldier's mind when he made Coriolanus use as his expression of supreme contempt the words : *' Whose love I prize As the dead carcases of un buried men That do corrupt the air." This, however, was only an aggravation of the situation ; the real trouble was thirst. Men lied to get water, honest men stole it, some even went mad for want of it ; but it was cruelly hard to obtain. Owing to some error, an insufficient supply of vessels for carrying it had arrived from Mudros, and it became necessary to send down a platoon from each company with the company's water-bottles to the beach to fill them. It was a long and trying walk in the dark, and even when the beach was reached, water was by no means easy to obtain, since thirsty soldiers had cut holes in the hoses that filled the tanks on shore from the water-boats, and consequently much was wasted. It had been hoped to utilise the resources of the country, but the Turks had foreseen our difficulties, and when the Engineers examined a well near Ghazi Baba, they found it surrounded by a circle of land-mines. Other wells further inland were well watched by THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 147 snipers. Nor even when sufficient water was obtainable, was it easy to convey it back to the battaHon. Some water-bottles leaked ; others had been only half filled, or carelessly corked, while occasionally a thirsty soldier took advantage of the darkness to refresh himself from one of the bottles which he was carrying. As a result, when the bottles were distributed, there were bitter complaints from the men who found themselves presented with only a few spoonfuls of water as a supply for twenty-four hours. Tea-making, too, became difficult, since it was almost out of the question to obtain the water required in equal quantities from each man. It soon became clear that the system of regulating the whole water supply of the unit by the water-bottle of the individual soldier was not a sound one, since the impro- vident consumed their day's supply at once, and the fool who lost his water-bottle was in a hopeless position. Commanding officers and company commanders first began by pooling all water-bottles, and issuing their contents in mess-tins from time to time ; while gradually they collected petrol and biscuit tins in which to store a reserve fund. Thanks to these measures, and to the experience gained by the men, matters gradually improved. Two events that occurred during this period gave some fillip to the spirits of the men on 348 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION "the ridge. The first of these was the arrival of a mail which brought not only letters and papers, but also parcels, and some of these parcels contained cake. Cake was a priceless boon in Gallipoli. Home-made and home- packed ones sometimes met with disaster and arrived in the form of crumbs, but those made by an expert, and sealed in an air-tight tin arrived safely, and were more welcome than anyone unacquainted with the ration biscuit can imagine. The ration biscuit takes various forms, some of which are small and palatable, but the type most frequently met with in Gallipoli was large and square, possessing the appearance of a dog biscuit and the consistency of a rock. It was no doubt of excellent nutritive quality, but, unfortunately, no ordinary pair of teeth was able to cope with it. Some spread jam upon it, and then licked the surface, thereby absorbing a few crumbs ; others soaked it in tea (when there was any) ; while a few pounded it between two stones, and found that the result did not make bad porridge. After a week of this regimen, it is easily imagined how glad men were to put their teeth into something soft again. The second encouragement was the arrival of the first reinforcements from Mudros. The worn and jaded men who had spent a week on the ridge, and had lost the glamour and excite- ment caused by the first experience of action^ THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 149 were surprised to find how glad their comrades were to rejoin them. The tawny scrub and fresher air of GaUipoU seemed dehghtful to them after Mudros, and their pleasure was so infectious that many of the older hands came to the conclusion that the Peninsula was not such a bad place after all. During the first two or three days spent in holding the ridge position, the attention of officers was given more to the details of water supply than to the movements of the enemy. The latter had, however, been reinforced, and were becoming more aggressive. The Kiretch Tepe Sirt was of considerable tactical value to them, as if they were able to regain their ground, they would be able to enfilade our troops on the Anafarta plain, as well as being able to watch all movements on the beaches. Not only therefore did they push forward snipers, who picked off individual officers and men — among them Lieutenant Burrows, Machine-gun Officer of the 6th Munsters ; but more organised attempts at lodgments were made, and patrol fights were not uncommon. One of these may be described as typical. The 6th Munsters, who were holding Jephson's Post, discovered that the Turks were digging in close to their immedi- ate front, and Colonel Worship gave orders that a party under Captain Oldnall were to attack them at dawn and drive them out. Lieutenant Waller, R.E., accompanied the party in charge of the bombers. 150 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION Just before daylight the attack was made, and after a strenuous struggle, in which Captain Oldnall was seriously and Lieutenant Gaffney mortally, wounded, the post was seized. Lieutenant Waller displayed the most conspicuous courage in going out three times under very heavy fire to rescue Lieutenant Gaffney and two other wounded men. It is the custom of the corps of Royal Engineers to disregard all danger in the per- formance of their duty, and Sapper Officers have many splendid achievements to their credit. But no sapper officer can ever have shown greater courage and self-sacrifice than Lieutenant Waller did on this occasion. His action was worthy of the best traditions of his Corps. The post captured turned out to be the end of a Turkish communication trench leading down to the south-east end of the ridge. It was blocked with sand-bags, and the portion nearest the Munsters' trench retained as an advanced post. The garrison holding this were somewhat surprised when later in the afternoon an enormous Turk came wandering up the trench alone with an armful of bombs, but he was promptly made prisoner by Lieutenant J. L. Fashom, of the Munsters, who disputed with Lieutenant Burke, of the Connaught Rangers, the claim to be the smallest officer in the loth Division. THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 151 Incidents like this enlivened the general monotony, but on the whole the time spent in these trenches was a dreary, thirsty one, and all ranks were pleased when it became evident that the remainder of the Division was beginning to rejoin them, and that there was some prospect of an advance. CHAPTER VI KIRETCH TEPE SIRT. AUGUST I5TH-16TH, I915. " If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew To serve your turn long after they are gone. And BO hold on when there is nothing in you. Except the will that says to them ' Hold on.' " — Kipling. BEFORE dealing with the battle of Kiretch Tepe Sirt, it is necessary to give some account of the doings of General HilFs force after the capture of Chocolate Hill on the 7th. Dawn on the 8th found them bivouacking on the position they had taken on the previous evening and during the day, a defensive trench system, including both Chocolate Hill and Green Hill (Hill 50), 500 yards to the eastward of it. By this time the line taken up by our troops ran from the sea at Beach '' B " to the two hills held by the 31st Brigade and thence northward across the Anafarta Plain at an average distance of three miles from the sea. Throughout the 8th no advance was made from this line, since the Corps Commander was of opinion that the troops were very exhausted, and that there was insufficient 152 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 153 artillery support at his disposal to justify him in making an attack on an enemy of unknown strength possessing the advantages of a superior position and knowledge of the ground. Unquestionably there was a con- siderable amount to be said in favour of this contention. On the previous day the enemy's barrage fire had taken a heavy toll of casualties, and but little effective reply had been made to it. This was in part due to difficulties of observation, but also to the fact that up to the 8th, only three batteries had been landed, two of which, being mountain batteries, pos- sessed only guns of small calibre. There were also the guns of the ships, but it was not always easy to communicate with the fleet in time to achieve the desired object, and it must also be borne in mind that space in a warship is limited, and that once its magazine is empty it cannot quickly be replenished. Added to these con- siderations the fact that the men were suffering terribly from want of water, that no transport of any kind was available, and that in conse- quence every unit found itself compelled to detach about a quarter of its men for the purpose of carrying up rations and ammunition, made it not unnatural for a commander to exercise caution. On the whole, the 8th was a quiet day for the troops, though the sun shone as fiercely as ever and there was plenty of work to be done in 154 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION burying the dead and getting up supplies. There was not much shelling, but hostile snipers were ubiquitous and much in evidence. These crawled up through the scrub or climbed trees in such manner that they commanded the greater part of our line, and made it dangerous to move about. On Monday, the 9th, the Corps Commander had decided to attack the high ground behind Anafarta Saghir with the nth Division and part of the newly -landed 53rd (Territorial) Division. For the purpose of this attack. General Hill was ordered to place two battalions under the orders of the General Officer Com- manding the 32nd Brigade (nth Division). The 6th Royal Irish Fusiliers and the 6th Royal Dublin Fusiliers, neither of which had sustained very heavy losses in the previous fighting, were detailed for this duty and co-operated in the attack. The objective allotted to them was a height known as Hill 70, the culminating ridge of a spur which ran out to the north-east of Chocolate Hill between the hill and Anafarta Saghir about a mile and a half south-west of that village. As soon as the advance began, it became evident, both from the increase in the volume of musketry and from the growing intensity of the hostile artillery fire, that the Turks had been heavily reinforced, but in spite of their losses, the Fusiliers effected a lodgment THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 155 on the ridge. For a time they clung to it though the enemy were deHvering repeated counter-attacks, and a series of bush fires caused by their shells made the position almost untenable, and threatened the wounded with the most terrible of deaths. Further to the left, however, the 32nd Brigade found that they were unable to hold the ground that they had won in their first advance, and were compelled by attacks on their flanks to withdraw to their original alignment. The Fusiliers, who had suffered heavily under the violent Turkish attacks, conformed to their movements and returned to their first position. Captain Johnston, the Adjutant of the 6th Royal Irish Fusiliers, was killed and so was Lieutenant MacDermot of the same regiment, which also lost eight officers wounded: the Dublins also lost heavily. In the course of this action, a curious incident is said to have occurred. The Medical Officer of the 6th Dublins had followed his battalion in its forward movement, and had established his advanced dressing station under a tree in the newly-captured territory. After a time he noticed that several of the wounded, who were brought back by the stretcher bearers, were hit a second time as they lay waiting to have their wounds attended to. A search was made for snipers in the surrounding bushes without result, but eventually a Turk was discovered perched in the tree itself. 156 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION While these operations were in progress, the remainder of General Hill's force had been employed in support. While fulfilling this role, they suffered both from the ubiquitous snipers and from the enemy's shrapnel fire, which had become far heavier than it was two days earlier. The casualties, however, were not very heavy, except in the two attacking battalions. Another sphere of usefulness was also found for portions of the supporting units. The prolonged fire fight waged by the nth Division had exhausted their ammunition, and officers and men from General Hill's force were detailed to carry up fresh supplies. It is not particularly pleasant work, carrying up thousands of rounds of ball cartridge in a tropical country through bushes infested with snipers, but the men did it splendidly. Lieutenant J. F. Hunter, of the 6th Inniskilling Fusiliers, was afterwards awarded the Military Cross for the courage and disregard of danger exhibited by him on this occasion. Often, too, the ammunition carriers when they had delivered their loads attached themselves to the nearest unit and joined the firing line. Captain Tobin and a party of the 7th Dublins fought side by side with an English regiment in this manner throughout the day. There was little wrong with the morale of the troops when men volun- tarily thrust themselves into the positions of greatest danger. y THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 157 On the following day, August loth, the day on which the struggle on Sari Bair reached its height, another unsuccessful attack was made on the Anafarta ridge, but in this General HilFs force took no part. They were now, and for the rest of the week occupied in holding the line that they had captured on the 7th through Green Hill. This position was heavily shelled by the enemy and some units lost heavily. Throughout this period, however, the troops suffered most for want of water. Though by this time a certain number of petrol cans and other receptacles for carrying water had been obtained yet these were quite insufficient to satisfy the men's consuming thirst. It is hard to find words to convey the true state of affairs. No doubt it would be too much to say that at home thirst is unknown, but at any rate the passionate craving for water felt in Gallipoli is seldom ex- perienced. When the water came up, the most careful supervision was needed in order to see that the much-needed liquid was used to fill the water-bottles and not consumed at once. When the bottles were filled, or rather had received their share, since there was not water enough to fill them, it was necessary to watch them vigilantly in order to make the supply last as long as possible. Some men became hardly responsible for their actions ; the heat was intense, the biscuit was dry and the bully beef very salt. 158 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION while many men were suffering from dysentery or enteritis and were parched with fever though they were unwilHng to report sick in the face of the enemy. In such times surface civiHzation vanishes, and man becomes a primitive savage. A few men crept away to look for water by themselves, others stole bottles from their neighbours and emptied them, but on the whole the discipline of the force stood the strain remarkably well. It was a severe trial for young unacclimatized soldiers who had less than a year's service, but the months of training had not been in vain. The men knew and trusted their officers, and felt that they would do their best for them. Perhaps the officer's position was hardest of all. Thirsty himself, rationing himself by spoonfuls in order to make the contents of his water-bottle last longer, he was compelled to watch his men suffering from pangs which he could not relieve, and at the same time to try and keep their spirits up by laughing and joking with them. There had always been friendship between the officers and men of the loth Division, but a bond not easily to be broken was cemented in those scorching suffering days. By this time it had become evident to the Higher Command that no further progress could be made at Suvla without reinforcements, and steps were taken to obtain them from Egypt and from the Cape Helles area. In the o ^ H "Sx a "is THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 159 meanwhile it was decided that the loth Division should be reunited, and accordingly, one by one, the battalions of General Hill's force were relieved from their posts on Chocolate Hill and Green Hill and marched down to the beach to rest. The battalions as they tramped back to the shore again were very different in appearance from those that had marched up from it less than a week before. Officers and men alike were dirty and unshaven, for water had been precious, and the sweat dried on the face, and the five days' growth of stubble told plainly of the hardships they had been through. Even more clearly did the eyes tell it, and the worn cheeks and leanness of limb. Clothes and boots had not been taken off since landing, and both were soiled with sweat and blood. There were many gaps in the ranks : death, wounds and sickness had taken their toll, and nearly every man had to mourn for a lost comrade, yet for all the sorrow and the weariness there was something in the men's bearing that was not there before. When they landed they were full of high hopes and eager to justify splendid traditions, but they were untried. Now they had proved themselves, and faced the future filled with confidence gained from their own deeds. The move began on the loth and was completed when the 7th Dublins marched down on the 13th; i6o THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION On the beach, though the comfort of the rest- camp was nothing to boast of, men were at least able to wash and shave, though the amount of fresh water available for this purpose was limited, and the man who got a mugful was lucky. Even so, most hurried to remove the long stubble that covered their chins, for a five days' old beard is not only unsightly, but uncomfortable, pricking and tickling the skin at every movement, and harbouring any quantity of dust and sand. Fortunately too, though fresh water was scarce, the sea was at hand, and it was possible to bathe. Some poet should sing of the delight of bathing in Gallipoli. Not even Mr. Masefield has done it justice. In the water one could for the first time be cool and free from care, though not from danger. By day the water sparkled in the sunshine : at night the form of the swimmer was outlined in phosphorescence and great bubbles of glowing light broke round him as he moved, and by day and night alike the bather could free himself from the burden of responsibility which weighed him down on shore. As Antaeus renewed his strength whenever he touched the earth, so the Island people gained fresh stores of endurance from a dip in the sea. In the water, too, all men were equal, and rank could be laid aside. After resting for a day or so on the beach, and receiving the first reinforcement which had just arrived from Mudros, the loth Division (less THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION i6i 29th Brigade) concentrated on the Kiretch Tepe Sirt, General Hill's force once more coming under the command of Divisional Headquarters. As General Birdwood had reported that Anzac was not yet in a position to co-operate in an attack on Ismail Oglu Tepe, it was decided to occupy the Turks by attacking along the crest of the Kiretch Tepe Sirt, and thus rendering it impossible for them to bring an enfilade fire to bear against our operations on the Anafarta plain. This attack was to be made on August 15th, and the loth Division was ordered to undertake it. They were to be assisted on their left by the guns of two destroyers in the Gulf of Saros, and on their right by the 162nd Brigade of the 54th Territorial Division. Artillery sup- port was also, of course, arranged for. The task before the Division was one of considerable difficulty since the enemy occupied a strongly entrenched position, and was known to have received large reinforcements. However, wait- ing would only make him stronger, and everyone was pleased at the prospect of action. The 15th of August was not only a Sunday, but also the day known in Ireland as '' Lady Day in Harvest,'' a great Church festival, and the chaplains had endeavoured to arrange services for their battalions. These had to be hurried through or attended only by the few who could be spared, but nevertheless Canon McLean was able to adminster Holy Communion M i62 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION to some of the officers and men of the Dublins, and Father Murphy visited each battalion of the 30th Brigade and gave the men absolution. Then at peace with God they turned their faces again towards the enemy. The dispositions adopted for the attack were as follows : The 30th Brigade (Dublins and Munsters) were to form the left wing of the advance, with the extreme left of the 7th Munsters resting on the Gulf of Saros. They thus covered the whole of the northern and part of the southern slope of the Kiretch Tepe Sirt. To their right two battalions of the 31st Brigade were to advance through the southern foothills of the Kiretch Tepe Sirt and across the open plain to attack a spur known as Kidney Hill, which jutted out southward from the main chain of the ridge. The 5th and 6th Royal Irish Fusiliers and the 7th Royal Dublin Fusiliers were in reserve. Soon after noon the attack commenced, and it was at once evident that the Turks were holding their position in strength, the volume of fire which they were bringing to bear on our men being infinitely greater than that which had greeted us at the first landing. A captured Turkish officer afterwards declared that they had in their firing line six fresh battalions, each possessing twelve machine-guns. The rattle of these seventy-two guns was painfully pro- minent, and made it clear that the advance THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 163 would be a costly one. The actual crest of the hill was a bare rocky ridge covered with great scattered boulders running for about a mile- and-a-half at a height of six hundred feet above sea level. Part of the ridge rose about fifty feet higher than this, and from this central portion three small eminences stood out. The central one of these was known as the " Pimple/' and was marked by a cairn of stones. The Division had gained a footing on the western end of the ridge on August 8th by captur- ing the position afterwards known as Jephson's Post, and now the Turkish trenches ran across the hill between that point and the '' Pimple." On the northern face the slope fell steeply away from the crest, so steeply as to be almost pre- cipitous until it reached a height of three hun- dred feet above sea-level, from which contour the descent to the sea was more gradual though the ground was intersected by numerous gullies. On the southern face the hill also fell away rapidly for about three hundred feet, after which the descent became more easy, and various knolls and foot-hills detached themselves from the main range. Both slopes of the hill were covered with thick dry scrub, which had in a few places been set on fire either by matches or shells, and consequently had become black- ened. This prickly scrub was a great impedi- ment to movement of any kind and rendered all operations painfully slow. i64 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION For more than two hours after the commence- ment of the action, but little ground was gained. The enemy's rifle and machine-gun fire was well sustained, and efficiently supported by artillery, and it was considered rash to advance until a fire fight had done somewhat to silence the Turks. During this stage of the action. Major Jephson, of the 6th Munsters, was mortally wounded on the peak that, a week earlier, had received his name, and several other casualties occurred among officers and men. At last, General Nicol, seeing that the Turkish fire showed no signs of slackening, and that darkness would soon make further operations impossible, directed that an attempt to advance should be made along the northern slope of the ridge. The order was at once complied with. Two com- panies of the 6th Munsters and two of the 6th Dublins pressed forward accordingly, and succeeded, thanks to a piece of dead ground, in traversing about half of the five hundred yards that lay between Jephson's Post and the Turkish line of defence. There for a while they rested, and then about 6 p.m. with the setting sun at their backs they charged the Turkish positions. Crags' and scrub and cliff were as nothing to them, nor did they regard the hostile fire but rushed on with gleaming bayonets in the force of an irresistible attack. Few of the Turks stayed to meet them, and those that did were THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 165 in no mood to receive the charge, but held up their hands and surrendered. Then as the Dublins and Munsters, Major Tynte of the 6th Munsters at their head, gained the enemy's position, they gave a rousing cheer. It was taken up by the troops in support and by all who watched the magnificent charge until from the Gulf of Saros to the Salt Lake the air resounded with the shouts of victory. There had not been much cause for cheering at Suvla, and the sight of the dashing attack and the sound of the Irish triumph cry, thrilled the hearts of many who had previously been despondent, and awakened hope once more in their breasts. Most surprising of all was its effect on the Turks. They had been heavily bombarded by the destroyers, they had seen a position that they believed impregnable taken with the bayonet, and now with the magic of the cries of the infidels ringing in their ears, they abandoned their trenches and retired in haste. The Dublins and Munsters pursued and drove them before them until the whole of the northern slope of the Kiretch Tepe Sirt as far as and even beyond the '' Pimple " was cleared. The men were disappointed that more of the enemy did not stay to face them. One soldier was heard to cry to a stout Turk who fled before him : " I don't want to stick ye behind. Turn round now and I'll stick ye in the belly dacent." Then, as night was falling and nearly a mile i66 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION of ground had been gained, a halt was called so that the captured position might be con- solidated. On the right, meanwhile, the attack had unfortunately been less successful. The main attack on Kidney Hill had been entrusted to the 5th Inniskilling Fusiliers, who, owing to the fact that they had not disembarked till evening of the 7th, had sustained fewer casualties than the rest of the Division ; it was to be supported by the 6th Battahon of the same regiment. The Inniskillings had probably the most difficult task of any unit before them. On the seaward side of the Kiretch Tepe Sirt the guns of the destroyers were of tremendous assistance to the attack, but they were unable to fire over the ridge. The remainder of our artillery, especially the mountain batteries, did their best to keep down the enemy's fire, but they were shooting at a venture since the exact position of the enemy's trenches was not accurately known. In consequence of this comparatively little had been done to prevent the Turks on Kidney Hill from bringing their full rifle and machine-gun fire to bear on our advance. The nature of the ground, too, lent little help to the attackers. Though the scrub was thick and prickly enough to break up the advancing lines into small groups, and to render it impossible for an officer to influence any more than the four or five men who hap- THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 167 pened to be in sight of him, yet on the plain it grew in scattered clumps. Between these clumps were patches of sand or withered grass, on which the enemy were able to concentrate their rifle and machine-gun fire. Added to this, the fact that from the surrounding hills the Turkish gunners could see every detail of the advance over the plain (khaki drill shows up clearly in the Gallipoli scrub) and could spray it with shrapnel and high explosive, made the operation three times as difficult. Nor was there any distraction elsewhere in the Suvla area. The hostile artillery was able to concentrate its whole force on the Innis- killings. At noon the battalion began its advance, " A *' and " D '* Companies leading. There lay before them a gradual ascent dotted with scrub for about two hundred yards, and then half-a-mile of flat ground, from which Kidney Hill rose abruptly. The Turkish trenches were invisible and consequently there was little attempt to subdue the enemy by a fire fight. The platoons went straight forward, racing over the exposed patches, losing officers and men at every step. The fire grew hotter and hotter and men fell more and more quickly, but still the front line pressed only to be swept out of existence. The distance was too far to cover in a single rush, and no troops in the world could cross i68 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION the five hundred yards in front of the enemy's trenches at a walk and live. The supports came up and another attempt was made, but again the lines melted away. The task was one impossible of achievement, for it is now known that against modern weapons in the hands of an undemoralised enemy, a frontal attack by daylight on an entrenched position a thousand yards away is certain to fail. Yet even when they had failed, the 5th Inniskillings did not fall back. Nearly all the officers were down, but little groups of men still clustered in the bushes waiting for orders. They could not advance ; they would not retire until they were told to. Lieutenant G. B. Lyndon, of the 6th Inniskillings, went out after sunset and collected many of these little parties and brought them in. For this he received the Military Cross. Invaluable service, too, was done by the stretcher-bearers of the battalions and field ambulances, who here, as everywhere, showed themselves fearless and tireless in the performance of their duties. The casualty list was a terribly heavy one. Colonel Vanrenen, of the 5th Inniskillings, was killed, and so were Captain Robinson, Captain Vernon, Lieutenant McCormack, Lieutenant Nelis, and Lieutenant Grubb of the same unit. Both its Majors were wounded, together with two captains and nearly a dozen subalterns. The losses among the rank and file were in 1^ < .% y t THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 169 proportion, and the whole organisation of the regiment was temporarily shattered. The 6th Inniskillings, who were in support, had been heavily shelled, but had been lucky in escaping severe loss. The result of the failure of the right attack was that while we held the northern slope of the Kiretch Tepe Sirt up to and even beyond the Pimple, yet on the Southern face of the hill we had been unable to advance our line much beyond the trenches which we held when opera- tions on the 15th began. As a consequence, the line held by the Division somewhat re- sembled a Z. The upper horizontal was repre- sented by a line of trench running from the Gulf of Saros to the most advanced point on the crest of the ridge that was reached by the charge of the 6th Munsters and ^ 6th Dublins. This trench was exposed to fire not only from the hills which continued the line of the Kiretch Tepe Sirt eastward, but also from a spur known as 103, which ran northwards into the sea. The diagonal joining the two horizontals of the Z was represented by a line running along the northern or seaward slope of Kiretch Tepe Sirt just below the crest. The crest itself, since it was liable to be swept by shrapnel and machine-gun fire, and since its rocky nature made it difficult to entrench, was not held except at the lower horizontal, which represented the trench running past Jephson's 170 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION Post, from which the attack had begun. The position thus created was clearly far harder to hold than if it had been merely a trench running across the ridge from North to South, and would obviously require far more men. The two battalions from the Reserve were, therefore, called up without delay. The 7th Dublins had begun to move forward already, and were advancing under circum- stances of some difficulty. The enemy's artil- lery were shelling the line behind our position with considerable vigour, and in addition snipers were more than usually active. One of these pests, who was ensconced in a bush, succeeded in shooting Colonel Downing in the foot, and though the Colonel promptly retaliated with his revolver, and insisted that the wound was trivial, he found himself unable to walk and was compelled to leave his beloved battalion. Major Harrison took over command of the Unit. After the reserves came up, the dispositions made for the defence of the line running just below the crest of the Kiretch Tepe Sirt were as follows : — The extreme end to the eastward was held by the 6th Royal Irish Fusiliers ; next to them came the 6th Munsters, and beyond them '' D/' " A " and " C " Companies of the 7th Dublins. " B '' Company of the last-named regiment had been sent down the hill on the seaward side to dig a trench covering THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 171 Hill 103. The 6th Dublins, who had sustained heavy losses in the charge, were withdrawn to rest. These dispositions were adopted just before nightfall. The soil of the ridge was too stony to admit of much entrenching, and in most cases the men lay down on their arms just behind the crest on the seaward side, though in one or two spots stone sangars were constructed. They were given but little time to work before they were attacked. The know- ledge that no advance had been made on any part of the plain below made it possible for the enemy to employ a large proportion of his reserves in the recovery of the ground lost on the Kiretch Tepe Sirt, while the fact that the Southern slope of the hill was still in his posses- sion enabled him to push men along it to attack any portion of our long, thinly-held line at close quarters. The first of the hostile counter-attacks began about 10 p.m., when a wave of Turks who had crept along the landward slope and up to the crest in silence, burst over it with a yell and fell upon the British line. Fortunately, our men were not taken by surprise ; a roar of musketry at close range received the enemy, and when it came to bayonet work our morale proved more than sufficient to dispose of the foe. After a stiff fight, the attackers dis- appeared over the crest leaving a good propor- tion of their numbers behind them on the 172 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION ground. Listening posts were then sent out to the further side of the ridge in order to preclude the possibiHty of a surprise attack succeeding, and the remainder of the tired men lay down again, rifle in hand to secure as much rest as possible. Little sleep was allowed them. Before the first light of the early summer dawn began to appear in the sky, the listening posts were driven in, and a fresh Turkish attack was made. On this occasion the assault was led by bomb- throwers, and although those who crossed the crest and came to close quarters were disposed of by the Irish with rifle and bayonet, yet a considerable force of the enemy, well-furnished with grenades, succeeded in establishing them- selves on the southern slope of the Kiretch Tepe Sirt. From this position they proceeded to bomb the whole length of our line incessantly, throwing the grenades over the crest of the ridge so that they burst in the midst of our ranks with deadly effect. Had the Fusiliers been in possession of enough bombs they could have retaliated in kind, but the few that they had were quickly used, and no more were forthcoming. Even if they had been, the con- test would scarcely have been a fair one, since the grenade employed by the Turks in Gallipoli was infinitely superior to that issued to the British. The latter was an extemporised pro- duction, consisting of a detonator inserted THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 173 in a jam tin and furnished with a fuse, which had to be lighted with a match. The Turkish bomb, which was shaped like a cricket-ball, was both more accurately fused and easier to throw. However, could they have been obtained, the Dublins and Munsters and Irish Fusiliers would have been glad even of jam-tins, since they would have enabled them to make some reply to the enemy. Rifles and bayonets were useless against an invisible foe, on the other side of a rocky ridge. The two forces were, to use a homely comparison, in the position of men sitting in the gutters of a house and fighting across the roof. Under these circumstances grenades were obviously the most effective weapon, and the side that lacked them suffered from an appalling handicap. As day broke, officers were able to take stock of the situation, though the sight that met their eyes was not encouraging. On every side men had fallen, and the strain on the survivors was appalling, for the rain of bombs still continued. Here and there individual officers organised attempts to drive the enemy back at the point of the bayonet, but without success. A description of one of these efforts will serve to make clear the fate with which they met. Major Harrison, of the 7th Dublins, finding that his line was becoming dangerously thin, deter- mined to try the effect of a charge. He selected for this purpose a party of ** D *' Company, 174 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION *' The Pals/' under the command of Captain Poole Hickman. The men were only too delighted at the prospect of action, and charged fearlessly up the hill. As they appeared on the crest, however, they were met by a storm of con- centrated rifle and machine-gun fire. Captain Poole Hickman fell mortally wounded, but Major Harrison rushed forward bareheaded and took his place, leading his men on till they reached the Turkish line. There he was struck by a grenade thrown at close quarters, and of all the gallant spirits who had followed him so pluckily only four made their way back over the crest to their battalions. Similar charges made elsewhere met with similar results ; in some cases a whole platoon disappeared and was never seen again. Among the officers who were lost in this way were Captain Grant, 6th Munsters, and Lieutenant Crichton, 7th Dublins. It was obvious that to cross the crest by daylight meant death, since the Turks had been able to instal machine-guns in positions that enfiladed it. Since advance was impossible, the troops were compelled to remain on their position, exposed to a perpetual fire of grenades, to which they had no means of replying. The sun rose higher in the sky and reached the zenith and still the bombing went on without intermission, and the men of the loth Division continued to suffer THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 175 and endure. The faces of dead comrades, lying at their sides, stiffened and grew rigid, and the flies gathered in clouds to feast on their blood, while from the ridge in front came the groans of the wounded, whom it was impossible to succour. The men lying behind the crest knew that at any moment a similar fate might come to any of them, and they might fall a shattered corpse, or be carried back moaning, but still they held on. The unceasing noise of the bursting grenades, the smell of death, the sight of suffering, wore their nerves to tatters, but worst of all was the feeling that they were helpless, unable to strike a blow to ward off death and revenge their comrades. It is by no means easy to realise what the men felt during this ordeal. Perhaps the strongest emotion was not the sense of duty, the prompting of pride, or even the fear of imminent death, but blind, helpless rage. In a charge or an advance a soldier rarely feels anger. His whole soul is concentrated on reaching a definite objective, and though he is prepared to kill anyone who stands in his way, he does so without passion. The exulta- tion born from rapid movement, the thrill produced by the sense of achievement, banish all personal feelings. But lying on the ridge under the pitiless bombing, watching the mangled bodies of the dead, men had time to think, and the fruit of their thoughts and 176 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION of their impotence was black and bitter hatred of the enemy. They were ready to run any risk in order to do something to hurt him. Some tried to catch the Turkish bombs as they were faUing and throw them back into the enemy's lines before they exploded. Five times Private Wilkin, of the 7th Dublins, performed this feat, but at the sixth attempt he was blown to pieces. Elsewhere men, sooner than lie impotent, took up stones and hurled them at the foe. Everywhere the few remaining officers moved about among their men, calming the over-eager, encouraging the weary, giving an example of calmness and leadership, of which the land that bore them may well be proud. In doing this they made themselves a mark for the inevitable snipers, who by now had ensconced themselves in coigns of vantage on the crest of the ridge, and many died there. Thus fell Capt. Tobin, of the 7th Dublins, a man greatly beloved. Here, too, fell Lieut. Fitzgibbon and Lieut. Weatherill, of the same regiment. Fitzgibbon, a son of the Nationalist M.P. for South Mayo, who, in the black days of Ireland's past had had many a dispute with the forces of the law, and had now sent his son to die gloriously in the King's uniform ; Weatherill, a boy who had made himself conspicuous in a very gallant battalion for courage. Here, too, many other THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 177 heroic souls laid down their lives, but still the line held on. The sun reached the west and began to sink ; the ranks were thin, the men were weary, and many mangled bodies lay along the fatal ridge. The 6th Royal Irish Fusiliers, exposed both in front and in flank, had been practically annihilated. Their 5th Battalion came up to reinforce them and shared their fate. Three officers of this regiment. Captains Panton and Kidd, and 2nd-Lieut. Heuston, earned the Military Cross by the inspiring example they gave on this occasion. The last-named was reported as '' wounded and missing,'' and was probably killed in this fight. Nearly all the officers of the Irish Fusiliers had fallen, and the other regiments were in nearly as bad a case ; but still the line held on. Tired and hungry and thirsty as they were, unable to strike a blow in their own defence, yet still the men of the loth Division were resolved not to retire a step until the order to do so came. They were but young soldiers, who had had less than a year's training, and had received their baptism of fire only a week earlier ; but they were de- termined that however stern the ordeal they would not disgrace their regiments. In old days, in the thick of a hard-contested struggle, men rallied round the colours — ^the visible symbol of the regimental honour. There were no colours to rally round on the slope of N 178 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION the Kiretch Tepe Sirt, but the regimental name was a talisman that held the battered ranks to their ground. Their regiments had in the past won great glory, but neither the men of the 87th who cleared the pine woods of Barrosa with the cry of " Faugh a Ballagh ! " nor the Dublins and Munsters who leapt from the bows of the '' River Clyde " into certain death, need blush to own comradeship with their newly- raised Service Battalions, who died on the Kiretch Tepe Sirt. Darkness at last fell, and the sorely-tried men hoped for relief. This was indeed at hand, though it did not take the form of fresh troops. None were available, so the units of the division who had suffered heavily in the charge of the previous day, and who had had less than twenty-four hours' rest, were called up again. The 6th Dublins, and with them the 5th Royal Irish (Pioneers), took over the line of the ridge from the battalions who had held it so stoutly. Nor were their sufferings less, for throughout the night the bombing continued, and our men were still unable to make any effective retalia- tion. Many officers and men fell, but the re- mainder set their teeth and held their ground, until at last they received the order to withdraw from the untenable position. Not a man moved until he received the order, and then slowly, deliberately, almost reluctantly, they retired. Bullets fell thickly among them, and THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 179 took a heavy toll, one of those killed being 2nd-Lieut. W. Nesbitt, a young officer of the 6th Dublins, who, though junior in rank, had made a tremendous impression by his character, and had earned the name of " the Soul of the Battalion." Before he was hit, the 6th Dublins had had Major Preston and their Adjutant, Capt. Richards, killed, and in the course of these operations three subalterns, 2nd-Lieut. Clery, 2nd-Lieut. Stanton, and 2nd- Lieut. McGarry, were reported missing. Pro- bably they died in some unseen struggle, and their bones now lie in a nameless, but honoured grave on the field where their regiment won such fame. Gradually the shattered units withdrew to their original line, but when the roll was called there were many names unanswered. The charge on the 15th had cost many lives, the holding of the captured position very many more, and yet all the effort and all the suffering seemed to have been futile. The loth Division had been shattered, the work of a year had been destroyed in a week, and nothing material had been gained. Yet all was not in vain. It is no new thing for the sons of Ireland to perish in a forlorn hope and a fruitless struggle ; they go forth to battle only to fall, yet there springs from their graves a glorious memory for the example of future generations. Kiretch Tepe Sirt was a little-known fight in an unlucky i8o THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION campaign, but if the young soldiers of the loth Division who died there added a single leaf to Ireland's crown of cypress and laurel, their death was not in vain. CHAPTER VII KABA KUYU AND HILL 6o " Oh, bad the march, the weary march, beneath these aUen skies. But good the night, the friendly night, that soothes our tired eyes ; And bad the war, the weary war, that keeps us waiting here. But good the hour, the friendly hour, that brings the battle near.'* — Emily Lawless. AFTER the close of the battle of Sari Bair, the 29th Brigade of the loth Division was in urgent need of re-organisation. The Brigade Staff had ceased to exist, and the Hampshires and Rifles were in almost as bad a case, since almost every officer was killed or wounded. The Leinsters, though they had sustained serious losses, had still a fair number of senior officers left, and the Connaught Rangers had suffered less severely, having up to the nth only lost five officers. The latter unit was therefore retained in the front line, while the other battalions were withdrawn to refit. Throughout the nth the Rangers held the line, which had been entrenched by two of their companies on the loth, between the foot of Rhododendron Ridge and the north-eastern extremity of the Damakjelik Bair. This line, 181 i82 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION based on two natural ravines, was a strong one, but General Cayley considered that it was too far in rear, and accordingly after sunset on the nth the Battalion advanced to an underfeature at the foot of the Chunuk Bair, and commenced to dig in there. The advance was by no means an easy one, since it had been impossible to make a detailed reconnaissance of the ground over which it had to take place, as by day it was exposed to the enemy's fire from the Chunuk. In consequence of this the left flank unexpected- ly found themselves descending a slope so steep that it was almost a precipice. Fortunately, there were bushes at the bottom to break the fall of those whose feet slipped, and if the bushes happened to be prickly ones, well, it was no good complaining about trifles in Gallipoli. The position when reached was not an ideal one. Though protected to a certain extent from bullets from the Chunuk, it did not afford a very good field of fire, and lack of shelter from the sun, shortage of water, and the smell proceeding from a gully full of corpses, combined to make the position of those holding it un- pleasant. The greatest disadvantage, however, was the fact that the only avenue of approach to the trench line was the Aghyl Dere, which was swept by a hostile machine-gun. Supplies and ammunition had to be carried up under cover of darkness, and everyone who went up or down by daylight was obliged to run the THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 183 gauntlet for about three hundred yards. Several casualties were caused while doing this, among the sufferers being the senior Captain of the Rangers, Captain Hog, who received the wound from which he died in this manner. He was a man of forty-five years of age, who had served in the ist Battalion of the Rangers in South Africa, and had rejoined from the Reserve of Officers at the beginning of the war. Though double the age of some of his comrades, he had set them a magnificent example by the way in which he accepted hardships, and the loyalty with which he submitted to the commands of men younger than himself. The hardships were by this time considerable, since officers and men alike were reduced to bully beef and biscuits. It had been impossible to bring any mess stores to the Peninsula, and though each officer had stuffed a tin of sardines, or some potted meat into his haversack, these did not last long, and the rather reduced ration of a tin of bully beef and four biscuits per dum was all that was obtainable by anyone. Cooking was practically impossible, though occasionally one got a cup of tea, and men ate at odd moments, seldom sitting down to a regular meal. It was noticeable that on the whole the single men stood this discomfort better than those who were married. In part, no doubt, this was due to the fact that they were younger, but some of the oldest men proved i84 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION to be the toughest. One old sergeant, who had marched to Kandahar with Lord Roberts in 1879, went through the whole Gallipoli campaign with the Division, and also through the operations in Serbia in December without once going sick. The married men were more used to being looked after, to having their comfort considered, and to decent cooking, and to regular meals, and the semi-barbaric existence upset them. Those who stood it best were the tinkers, members of that strange nomad tribe who in Ireland take the place of the English gipsies. It was no new thing for them to eat sparingly, and sleep under the stars, and their previous life made it easy for them to adapt themselves to circumstances. For three days the Rangers held this position, and during this period the re-organisation of the Brigade proceeded. The only Battalion Commander left unhurt was Lieutenant-Colonel Jourdain, of the Connaught Rangers, who took over command as a temporary measure, but on the 13th he was succeeded by Lieutenant- Colonel G. K. Agnew, M.V.O., D.S.O., Royal Scots Fusiliers. Captain R. V. Pollok, 15th Hussars, was appointed Brigade Major, and on August 20th, Captain R. J. H. Shaw, 5th Connaught Rangers, took up the post of Staff Captain. The officers and men of the first reinforcement who had been left at Mudros rejoined their units on the nth, and were very THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 185 welcome. In two cases officers arriving with this draft found themselves in command of their battalions, since Major Morley, of the Hampshires, and Captain R. de R. Rose, of the Rifles, were senior to any of the few sur- viving officers of their units. The task before them was by no means a light one, for the whole company organisation had been destroyed, and nearly all the officers and senior N.C.O/s were hors de combat. However, they buckled to it with a will, and every suitable man received temporary promotion. On August 13th, the Connaught Rangers were withdrawn from the line they were holding and given four days' rest, which was, of course, broken by numerous demands for fatigues. It is the universal experience of soldiers that in this war one never works so hard as when one is supposed to be resting. On the 17th they relieved the 6th South Lancashire and 6th East Lancashire Regiments in trenches, which they held for three days, and considerably strengthened. On the 20th they were with- drawn from these trenches, and ordered to hold themselves in readiness to join General Cox's Brigade and take part in an attack on the following day. This attack had been planned in order to co-operate with the movements at Suvla. Re- inforcements in the shape of the 29th Division from Cape Helles, and the 2nd Mounted Division i86 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION (without their horses) from Egypt, had arrived there, and an attack on Ismail Oglu Tepe had been planned. This steep, thickly-wooded hill acted as buttress to Koja Chemen Tepe, and as it overlooked the whole of the Suvla Plain, afforded a valuable observation post to the enemy's artillery. With it in our hands we should not only be able to interrupt communi- cation between the two Anafartas, but would have gained a valuable point d'appui for any further attack. Communication between the Anzac and Suvla forces had been obtained on the 13th at Susuk Kuyu, north of the Asmak Dere, but it hung by a narrow thread. It was therefore decided that simultaneously with the attack on Ismail Oglu Tepe, General Birdwood should attack the Turkish trenches north of him, and en- deavour to win enough ground to safeguard inter-communication. The execution of this operation was entrusted to Major-General Cox, who was allotted the whole of his own Indian Brigade, two battalions of New Zealand Mounted Rifles, the 4th South Wales Borderers from the nth Division, and the 5th Connaught Rangers and loth Hampshires from the 29th Brigade. All these units had suffered heavily in the fighting a fortnight before, and the Indian Brigade in particular was terribly handi- capped by the fact that it had lost almost all its British officers. r m 2 s .8 < s THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 187 The objective of this attack was contained in the saHent enclosed by the sea on the west, and the DamakjeHk Bair on the south. A thin Hne of outposts close to the sea connected Anzac and Suvla, but the low ground which they held was commanded by a hill known as Kaiajik Aghala, or Hill 60. At the point where this eminence began to rise in a gentle slope from the plain, about four hundred yards north of the Damakjelik, stood two wells called Kaba Kuyu. These wells were extremely valuable to the Turks, since they, too, were short of water, and it was against them that the first stages of the attack were to be directed. There was, indeed, no object for which any man in the rank and file would more willingly fight in Gallipoli in August than a well. At the same time the wells, which the Turks were known to have entrenched, were not the sole objective. The capture of Hill 60 was extremely desirable, since not only did it menace inter-communica- tion between Suvla and Anzac, but with it in our hands we should be in a position to enfilade a considerable portion of the Turkish forces, which were opposing the attack from Suvla. General Cox disposed of his forces as follows. On the extreme left the 5th Ghurkas were to sweep across the low ground near the sea and get in touch with the right flank of the Suvla force. In the centre, the 5th Con- i88 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION naught Rangers were to deploy in a gully of the Damakjelik Bair, known as South Wales Borderers' Gully, and charge across three hun- dred yards of open ground to capture the wells. On the right, the two battalions of New Zea- landers, under Brigadier-General Russell, form- ing up behind the trenches on Damakjelik Bair were to make an attack on Hill 60 direct. Still further to the right a feint attack, intended to draw off the Turkish reserves, was to be executed by the loth Hampshire Regiment. The remainder of the force was in reserve. The Connaught Rangers reached South Wales Borderers* Gully after dark on the 20th and bivouacked there for the night. As the attack was not to be launched till 3 p.m. on the 21st, they had a long wait before them, but there was plenty to be done. Officers spent the morning in visiting the trenches held by the South Wales Borderers on Damakjelik Bair and in- specting their objective through a periscope, for the enemy snipers were too active to permit of any direct observation. The Turks had constructed a trench in front of the wells to guard them, which was connected with their main position by a communication trench improvised from a deep water course which ran eastward. To the northward a sunken road led from the wells in the direction of Anafarta. No barbed wire appeared to have been erected, but it was obvious that the crest of Hill 60 was strongly entrenched and held. THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 189 After this reconnaissance, orders were issued for the attack, and while they were being pre- pared, officers and men alike were receiving the consolations of religion. For the Church of England men, the Rev. J. W. Crozier cele- brated Holy Communion ; and Father O'Connor gave absolution to his flock. The bullets of snipers were whistling overhead, and ploughed furrows through the ground as the men knelt in prayer and listened to the message of peace and comfort delivered by the tall khaki-clad figure. In a few hours they were to plunge into a hand-to-hand struggle with the old enemy of Christendom, and their pulses throbbed with the spirit of Tancred and Godfrey de Bouillon, as they fitted themselves to take their places in the last of the Crusades. Nor was encouragement from their Generals lacking. Two hours before the advance was due to begin, Major-General Godley visited the gully and addressed as many of the men as could be collected. His speech was not a long one, but he told them what he expected them to do. One regiment had already failed to capture the wells ; now the Rangers were to do it with the cold steel. The men were not permitted to cheer, but their faces showed their feelings. General Godley, himself an Irishman, showed an intimate knowledge of the Irish character by delivering this address. The knowledge that the credit of their regiment igo THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION was at stake and that the eyes of their leaders were on them, was sufficient to nerve every man to do his utmost. As a matter of fact, the spirit of the men was excellent ; though dysentery and enteric were raging not a man reported sick that morning for fear of missing the fight. At 2 p.m. the men paraded and worked slowly forward to the old Turkish trench running across the mouth of the gully from which the attack was to be launched. There was only sufficient frontage for a platoon at a time to extend, so the advance was to be made by successive waves of platoons, " C '' Company leading, followed by " D," whilst "A" and '* B '' Companies were kept in support. Though every precaution was taken to avoid making dust and so attracting the attention of the Turks, yet bullets were continually falling among the men, and two officers were wounded before the hour to advance arrived. This was prefaced b}^ a violent bombardment of the enemy's position, conducted not onty by the batteries at Anzac, but also by the monitors in the Gulf of Saros, which were in a position that enabled them to enfilade the enemy's line. The noise and dust were terrific, but most of the Turks were well under cover and did not suffer seriously. Meanwhile, the men waited. A hundred years earlier an officer of the Connaught THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 191 Rangers had described the appearance and feeUng of his battaHon as they stood awaiting the signal that was to call them to the assault of the great breach of Ciudad Rodrigo, and his description might have been fitted to their descendants in Gallipoli. Here and there a man murmured a prayer or put up a hand to grasp his rosary, but for the most part they waited silent and motionless till the order to advance was given. At last, at 3.40, the bombardment ceased, the word came, and the leading platoon dashed forw^ard with a yell like hounds breaking covert. They were met with a roar of rifle fire, coming not only from the trench attacked, but also from Hill 60, and from snipers concealed in the scattered bushes. Not a man stopped to return it ; all dashed on with levelled bayonets across the four hundred yards of open country, each man striving to be the first into the enemy's trench. That honour fell to the platoon commander, Second-Lieuten- ant T. W. G. Johnson, who had gained Amateur International Colours for Ireland at Association Football, and was a bad man to beat across country. Rifle and bayonet in hand, he made such good use of his lead that before his platoon caught him up he had bayoneted six Turks and shot two more. For these and other gallant deeds he was awarded the Military Cross. The Turks stood their ground well, but suc- cumbed to superior numbers, for soon the 192 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION supporting platoons came up, while '' D '* Company moving more to the left was pro- longing the line in that direction. The whole of the trenches guarding the wells, together with the wells themselves, were now in the hands of the Rangers, while the communication trench leading to Hill 60 was cleared and blocked, and the two companies in support were moved forward. Meanwhile the New Zealanders' attack on Hill 60 was not making quite such satisfactory progress. The hill was both fortified with care and held in strength by the enemy, and though General Russell had succeeded in making a lodgment at its foot, he was unable to get further. The Rangers had been ordered, after seizing the wells, to do their utmost to assist his attack, and accordingly '' A *' Company was detailed to advance and attack the western slopes of the hill. By this time companies had become very mixed, and the charge was composed of a crowd of men belonging to all the companies, mad with the lust for battle. Their officers did little to restrain them, for their Irish blood was aflame, and they were as eager as the men. The line surged up the bare exposed glacis, only to encounter tre- mendously heavy rifle and machine-gun fire from the crest. At the same moment the enemy's guns opened, displaying marvellous accuracy in ranging, and the attack was annihilated. THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 193 In spite of this the men went on as long as they were able to stand, and fell still facing the foe. From the wells below their bodies could be seen, lying in ordered ranks on the hillside, with their bayonets pointing to the front. It was clear that further advance was im- possible, and it only remained for the survivors to consolidate the captured position, which was now being heavily shelled. At 5.15 p.m. the 5th Ghurkas, who had been unable to advance earlier in the afternoon, came up and took over the left flank, including the sunken road running towards Anafarta. The Rangers were then concentrated near the wells, which they protected by a sandbag barricade, while steps were taken to get in touch with General Russell's New Zealanders, who were digging themselves in at the foot of Hill 60, a little further to the east. A portion of the gap between them and the Rangers was bridged by the captured Turkish communication trench, and a sap to cover the remainder was begun at once. Contrary to anticipation, the enemy did not launch a counter-attack to endeavour to recapture the wells, but their artillery was taking a heavy toll of the conquerors, and officers and men were falling fast. The Ad- jutant of the Rangers, Captain Maling, an officer to whose judgment and courage the 194 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION battalion owed an incalculable debt, was severely wounded here, and the Sergeant-Major, who had joined in the charge, had already been carried off with a wound in his leg. *' D " Company had only one officer left, and its sergeant-major and quartermaster-sergeant had fallen, while '' C '* Company had had all its officers hit, two of them fatally. Nevertheless, the men worked hard to put their position in a good state of defence, and before nightfall their object was achieved. At 7 p.m. communi- cation with the New Zealanders was obtained, and two platoons under Lieutenant Blake effected a junction with them. All through the afternoon the devoted stretcher-bearers were transporting their burdens to the dressing-station in South Wales Borderers' Gully, where the doctor and the priest waited to render devoted service. The labour imposed upon them may be imagined from the fact that over a hundred and fifty cases passed through this dressing-station alone. Now, nightfall made it possible to get up supplies and ammunition. By this time the lesson of the battle of Sari Bair had been learnt, and everything had been carefully pre-arranged. The staff of the 29th Brigade were indefatigable in getting up food and water, and though the Brigade-Major, Captain PoUok, was wounded by a stray shot, his place was well filled by the Staff-Captain. By daylight the whole position was in a thor- THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 195 oughly defensible state, being well-stocked with food, water and ammunition. During the night, however, the New Zea- landers had had a bad time, and in this the two platoons of Connaught Rangers which had joined them shared. Their position at the foot of Hill 60 was near enough to the Turkish trenches at the top to enable the enemy to throw down bombs, and this they did all night. At intervals, too, they charged down with the bayonet in large numbers only to be repulsed. Heavy casualties were caused in this fight, and among the killed was Lieutenant Blake. His place was taken by Sergeant Nealon, an old soldier, who had taken his discharge long before the war and started business in Ballina. When war broke out he was among the first to re-enlist, and so inspiring was his example that Ballina disputes with Belfast the credit for having the largest number of recruits in proportion to population of any town in Ireland. No man ever looked less martial, but his stout, comfortable figure concealed the spirit of a hero. When his officer fell he took over the command, led back a mixed group of Rangers and New Zealanders to a sector of trench that had been adandgned owing to the violent bombing that it was suffering, and held it until he was relieved. Another N.C.O. of the Rangers who distinguished himself here was Sergeant John O'Connell, an Irish American, 196 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION who went out under heavy fire to bring in a wounded New Zealander who was endeavouring to get back under cover. For this and for unvarying courage he was awarded the D.C.M. On the morning of the 22nd, the newly-landed 1 8th Australian Battalion arrived on the scene, and attacked the crest of the hill, in company with the New Zealanders. For a time one trench was captured, but the captors were unable to maintain themselves in it, and were driven out by bombing. The Rangers did not take part in this attack, and on the evening of the 22nd were relieved, and returned to their bivouac in South Wales Borderers' Gully. This engagement has been described in greater detail than its intrinsic importance perhaps deserves, because hitherto the capture of Kaba Kuyu Wells has not been officially attributed to an Irish regiment at all. The Rangers had not to complain of any lack of immediate recognition, since on the day following their withdrawal Lieutenant-General Sir W. Birdwood, accompanied by Sir A. Godley and General Cox, visited their bivouac. He congratulated them on their gallantry, and promised them four days' rest, after which he intended to call on them for another attack. Sir A. Godley and General Cox were also warm in their congratulations. Nor was the applause of their comrades lacking, since the Australians and New Zea- THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 197 landers were loud in their praises of the dash and courage of the battalion. This memory long continued with them. More than three months later, Mr. John Redmond, M.P., was showing a party of Australian convalescents over the House of Commons, and asked them if they had seen anything of the loth (Irish) Division. They replied that they had, and in their opinion the charge made by the Con- naught Rangers at Kaba Kuyu was the finest thing they had seen in the War. This praise was worth having, since no men on earth are better able to appreciate courage and are less prone to be imposed upon than the Australians. They have no use for paper reputations ; they judge only by what they have seen with their own eyes. Tried by this exacting standard, the Rangers were none the less able to abide it. While the attack on Kaba Kuyu and Hill 60 was being executed the loth Hampshires were carrying out their feint. They achieved their object in distracting the enemy's attention, but, unfortunately, incurred heavy losses. Major Morley, the Commanding Officer, was wounded, and Captain Hellyer, the only officer of the battalion who had come through the stiff fighting on Sari Bair on the loth unhurt, was killed. The casualties among the rank and file amounted to close on a hundred and fifty. Nor had the Connaught Rangers come off lightly, having lost twelve officers and over two igS THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION hundred and fifty men. It is interesting to note how much more severely units suffer in modern war than a hundred years ago. Under WelHngton in Spain and Portugal, the Con- naught Rangers played a distinguished part in many great battles and sieges. At Busaco, in company with half a battalion of the 45th Foot, they charged and routed the eleven battalions of Merle's French Division. They attacked the great breach at Ciudad Rodrigo, and stormed the Castle of Badajoz. At Sala- manca, in company with the other two battalions of Wallace's Brigade, they crossed bayonets with Thomieres' Division and drove eight battalions off the field in disorder. All these were famous engagements, and in them the 88th deservedly won great glory, yet in none of them were their losses as heavy as those incurred by their newly-formed service battalion in the little-known engagement at Kaba Kuyu.* Elsewhere the issue of the fighting had not been propitious to our arms, since in spite of * The exact figures are : — Killed Wounded Missing r\aif.^,.a Other r»*fio-«. Other /-.««<>«= Other Officers. j.^^j^g Officers. ^^^^ Officers. ^^^^^^ Busaco ... ... 1 30 8 94 — — Ciudad Rodrigo ... — 7 4 23 — — Badajoz ... ... 3 28 7 106 — — Salamanca ... 2 11 4 110 — 8 Kaba Kuyu ... 3 43 9 169 -— 47 Nearly all killed. The Pciinsular figures are taken from Oman's Peninsular War, Volumes III and V. THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 199 the never-failing courage of the 29th Division and the magnificent gallantry displayed by the Yeomen, the attacks made from Suvla had failed. The losses were terribly heavy, a very brave Irish Brigadier- General, the Earl of Longford, K.P., having fallen in the forefront of the battle. In consequence of these heavy casualties it was impossible to conduct further offensive operations at Suvla until reinforce- ments should arrive. It was, however, eminent- ly desirable to effect the capture of Hill 60, since it constituted a perpetual menace to the Suvla-Anzac line of communication. So long as the Turks were able to maintain their position on its crest, not only were they able to enfilade the trenches at Suvla, but also they possessed the power of massing troops behind it and launching them suddenly against our line. They were fully aware of the advantage which this gave them, and had made the defence of the hill extremely strong. It was determined to make an assault on this position at 5 p.m. on August the 27th. Brigadier-General Russell was placed in com- mand of the assaulting parties, which consisted of 350 Australians who formed the right attack, 300 New Zealanders and 100 Australians, who composed the attack on the centre, and 250 Connaught Rangers, who formed the left attack. By this time units at Anzac were so reduced by casualties and sickness that instead of merely 200 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION detailing units the numbers required were also specified. At the time the orders were issued the Rangers could only muster seven officers, three hundred men, and of these more than half the officers, and a large proportion of the men were suffering from dysentery or enteritis. The Australians were to attack the trenches running to the base of the hill in a south- easterly direction. The New Zealanders had as their objective the summit of Hill 60 itself, while the Rangers were given as their objective the system of trenches running from the crest northwards towards Anafarta. At 3 p.m. the assaulting parties of the Rangers filed down the sap, which had been dug to connect Kaba Kuyu with South Wales Borderers* Gully, and into the trenches round the well which they had captured a week earlier. They were narrow and were manned by the Indian Brigade so that progress was slow, but by 4 p.m. the storming party of fifty men had reached the point from which the left assault was to commence. At four the bombardment began. Ships, howitzers, mountain-guns, all combined to create a babel which if less intense than that of the previous week, was nevertheless sufficiently formidable. The trenches were so close to one another that our troops waiting to advance were covered with dust from the high explosives, but no injury was done. At last, at five, the THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 201 bombardment ceased and the stormers, led by Lieutenant S. H. Lewis, went over the top. They were into the Turkish trenches almost before the enemy were aware of their coming and forced their way along them with bayonet and bomb. The supporting parties, however, were not so fortunate. The range to the parapet from whence they started was accurately known to the enemy, and from every part of the trench which was not actually under assault violent machine-gun and rifle fire opened. Man after man as he climbed over the parapet fell back into the trench dead, yet the next man calmly stepped forward to take his place. One old soldier, a company cook. Private Glavey, of Athlone, as his turn came, said : ** I have three sons fighting in France and one of them has got the D.C.M. Let's see if the old father can't get it now," and advanced to meet the common fate. Now, too, the enemy's artillery opened, and as, unmenaced elsewhere, they were able to concentrate all their forces on the defence of Hill 60, their fire was terrific. Incessant salvoes of shrapnel burst overhead, while the parapet of the trench from which the advance was taking place was blown in by high explosive. Yet, still, the men went on over the parapet and gradually a few succeeded in struggling through the barrage, and in rein- forcing their comrades in the captured trench. 202 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION There a stern struggle was taking place, but by dint of hard hand-to-hand bayonet fighting the Turks were driven out, and at six p.m. the Rangers had carried the whole of their objective. The Australians on the right had encountered concentrated machine-gun fire and had been unable to make any progress, but the New Zealanders had carried the trenches on the southern side of the crest and a few of them had worked along and joined up with the Rangers. When night fell the whole of the southern face of the hill was in British hands, but the Turks were not disposed to acquiesce in this decision. As there was no indication of any attack else- where, they were free to use the bulk of their reserves at Hill 60, and wave after wave of assailants hurled itself on the position. There was a half moon which enabled the outlines of the charges to be seen as the mass of Turks surged forward preluding their onset with a shower of bombs. The Rangers suffered par- ticularly badly in this respect, since parallel to the trench they held ran two newly-dug Turkish communication trenches which were within bombing distance. There were not enough men available to assault these trenches or to hold them if they were taken, for the losses in the attack had been heavy. It was true that the remainder of the Connaught Rangers had been sent up as a reinforcement, but this only THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 203 amounted to forty-four men, most of whom were weakened by dysentery. Again and again, the Turks attacked, mad with fanaticism, shrieking at the top of their voices and caUing on Allah. The Irish, however, were not impressed. As one Connaught Ranger put it, '' they came on shouting and calling for a man named Allen, and there was no man of that name in the trench at all.'' Still, however, the merciless bombing continued and the trenches slowly became encumbered with dead. It was a soldiers' battle : every officer but one on the Rangers' position was wounded, and in any case the trench was so blocked with debris from the bombardment and Turkish and Irish corpses, that it became almost impossible to move from point to point. Lieutenant Lewis who had led the charge, was wounded in two places. He had himself lifted on to the parapet in the hope of being able to make his way down to the dressing- station, but was never seen again. At last about 10.30 p.m., after the fight had lasted five hours, a crowd of Turks succeeded in entering the ;Rangers' trench near its northern extremity. This northern end was held by a small party of men who died where they stood. The remainder of the trench was, however, blocked and further progress by the enemy arrested. Still the fight raged and bombs and ammunition were running short, while the losses became so heavy that it was growing harder and harder 204 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION to procure. Major Money, who was in command of the advanced position, sent for reinforce- ments, but found that they were unobtainable. Fresh Turkish attacks kept coming on, and for every assailant that was struck down, two more sprang up in his place. It was clear that soon the defenders would be swept away by force of numbers, and they were compelled at midnight to fall back to the southern end of the captured trench. This point they blocked with a sandbag barricade and held until at last they were relieved at 8.30 a.m. on the 28th. Five hours earlier the 9th Australian Light Horse had attempted to recover the trench from which the Rangers had been driven, but found that the Turks were too strong. It was not until the 29th that a combined attack launched from the position which the New Zealanders had taken and had been able to hold, finally established our line on the northern slopes of Hill 60. The Turkish losses were enormous and were nearly all inflicted in fighting at close quarters. The captures from them included three machine- guns, three trench mortars and 60,000 rounds of small arm ammunition, while Sir Ian Hamilton estimated that 5,000 Turks had been killed and wounded. When it is remembered that the total strength of our attacking columns was under a thousand, and that the reinforcements received in the course of the fight barely reached that figure, it will be realized that each of our THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 205 men must have disposed of at least two of his opponents. Unfortunately, our losses were by no means small : of 250 Connaught Rangers who charged over the parapet on the 27th, less than a hundred returned un wounded. The battalion had, however, no reason on this occasion to complain of lack of official recognition, since Sir Ian Hamilton in his official despatch paid an eloquent tribute to the deeds of the Connaught Rangers. His words may be quoted : " On the left the 250 men of the 6th Connaught Rangers excited the admiration of all beholders by the swiftness and cohesion of their charge. In five minutes they had carried their objective, the northern Turkish communications, when they at once set to and began a lively bomb fight along the trenches against strong parties which came hurrying up from the enemy supports and afterwards from their reserves. At midnight fresh troops were to have strengthened our grip on the hill, but before that hour the Irishmen had been out-bombed." That the battalion acquitted itself so well was in the main due to the manner in which it had been trained by its Commanding Officer, Lieut.- Colonel Jourdain. He thoroughly understood the men with whom he had to deal, and had instilled into all ranks a rigid but sympathetic discipline which proved invaluable in time of trial. He was unwearied in working for the comfort of his men, and was repaid not only by their respect and affection, but by a well- earned C.M.G. CHAPTER VIII ROUTINE " Scars given and taken without spite or shame, for the Turk be it said is always at his best at that game." — G. K. Chesterton. BEFORE continuing to describe the doings of the 30th and 31st Brigades after their withdrawal from the Kiretch Tepe Sirt, a word must be said about the units which were attached to them, the Pioneer BattaUon, the Royal Engineers and the Field Ambulances. Details of the movements of these units are hard to obtain, but it would not be fair to over- look them. The Pioneer Battalion, the 5th Royal Irish Regiment, was trained as an infantry unit but also received instruction in engineering work, especially in road-making. The majority of its men were miners or artificers and its function was to do the odd jobs of the Division and also to provide a guard for Divisional Headquarters. On the Peninsula, however, these duties soon fell into abeyance, since it was called on to fill up gaps in the line, and did so eagerly. It was an exceptionally fine battalion, formed by 206 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 207 Lord Granard, whose ancestor, Sir Arthur Forbes, had first raised the i8th (Royal Irish) two hundred and thirty years before, and possessed an unusually large proportion of Regular officers. Fighting under difficult con- ditions, usually by detached companies, it did well wherever it was engaged, losing Lieutenants Costello and MacAndrew killed, and Major Fulda, Captain Morel, and half a dozen sub- alterns wounded. The Engineers at Suvla, as everywhere, fully justified the splendid reputation of their corps. Few braver actions were noted in the Division than Lieutenant Waller's rescue of three wounded men on the Kiretch Tepe Sirt, and throughout the campaign the Sappers defied danger and did their duty. The 30th Field Ambulance, which disem- barked at Suvla without its bearer section on the afternoon of the 7th, was, for the first ten days of the campaign, working single-handed. Then the 31st and 32nd arrived and the pressure became less, but all the ambulances were working under great difficulties. There was little room for them, they had been unable to bring all their stores with them, and, as will be told later, medical comforts were conspicuous by their absence. In spite of these handicaps, they had to deal, not only with a very large number of wounded, but with a never ceasing flow of sick. The doctors, however, did admir- 2o8 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION able work and everyone was loud in praise of the Ambulance stretcher-bearers who used regularly to go out under heavy fire across the plain to bring in the wounded. After the close of the fighting on August 17th, what was left of the 30th and 31st Brigades was withdrawn to the rest camp on the beach at Suvla. The fighting had reduced their strength terribly and nearly three-quarters of the officers and half the men who had landed ten days earlier, had fallen or been invalided. Worst of all, was the fact that, owing to so many senior N.C.O.'s having been hit, the internal organiza- tion of units had been practically destroyed. An extemporized Company Quartermaster-Ser- geant, who possesses no previous knowledge of his work, will rarely be successful in promoting the comfort and efficiency of his men, however hard he may try. Matters were made even more serious by the continued sickness, which became worse and worse when units were withdrawn from the front line. Many who had been able to force their will power to keep them going on, while actually opposed to the enemy, now succumbed, and among them an ofiicer, whose departure inflicted a serious loss on the Division as a whole and on the 31st Brigade in particular. On August 22nd, General Hill, who had been in bad health ever since landing in Gallipoli, was invalided, suffering from acute dysentery. His departure was deeply regretted by his Brigade, BKICADIER-GENERAL G, KING-KING, P.S.O, THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 209 who had learnt to admire his coolness and courage, and to appreciate his constant attention to their comfort. Though the Staff Captain of the Brigade, Captain T. J. D. Atkinson, had been wounded on the i6th, fortunately the Brigade-Major, Captain Cooke Collis, still remained, and as the command was taken over by Colonel King-King the General Staff Of&cer (i) of the Division, officers and men did not feel that they had to deal with a stranger. It was marvellous how many men who were in bad health, resisted the temptation to go sick and be sent on board the white hospital ships, where there was shade and ice and plenty to drink. No man was invalided who was not sick, but there were very few people doing duty in Gallipoli who did not from time to time possess a temperature, and none whose stomachs were not periodically out of order. The doctors did their utmost to retain men with thier units, but all medical comforts were difficult to obtain, even condensed milk being precious, and to feed men sickening for dysentery on tinned meat, is to ask for trouble. Rice was a great stand-by, though the men did not much appreciate it unless it was boiled in milk. It was therefore inevitable that men reporting sick should be sent to the field ambulances, and since these were little better off than the regimental M.O.'s so far as provision for special diet was concerned, and since their resources were over- p 210 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION taxed, it followed that it was almost invariably necessary to send invalids away overseas. Though all ranks belonging to them showed the utmost devotion to duty, and worked till they were worn out, a field ambulance at Suvla was not a place in which a quick recovery could be made. True, it had tents, and it is hard to appreciate the amount of solid comfort offered by a tent to one who has spent weeks in the open under a tropical sun. There were also a certain number of beds, and it was very pleasant to find doctors and orderlies taking an interest in you, and doing their best to make you com- fortable. There were, however, discomforts which they were powerless to remove. One was the swarm of flies which made sleep by day impossible, and another was the shortage of water. The worst, however, was the enemy fire : for although the Turk respected the Red Cross flag, yet the hospitals were close to the beach, and not far from some of our batteries, which naturally drew the enemy's artillery. The sound of the shells rushing through the air, and the shock of their explosion were plainly heard and felt by the patients in hospital, and threw an additional strain on nerves that were already worn out. It could not be helped ; there was no room on the peninsula to put hospitals at a distance from fighting troops, but it was very hard on the sick and wounded. THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 211 Gradually, however, things grew better. Medical comforts began to be forthcoming ; fresh bread was baked at Imbros and sent across, milk was less scarce, and a few eggs were issued not only to hospitals, but in some cases to medical officers of battalions. They also obtained a compound known as tinned fowl, which appeared to consist entirely of bones. Fly whisks and veils were provided by the British Red Cross, an organization to which the soldier owes more than he will ever be able to say. By the flexibility of its management, and its freedom from red tape, it has done wonders to secure the speedier recovery of our wounded. The rest-camp to which the residue of the nine battalions came, was somewhat of a jest. It was situated on the beach, and consisted of a collection of shallow dug-outs burrowed into the yielding sand. As it was close to some of the extemporized piers at which the lighters bearing the rations and ammunition were un- loaded, and was in the neighbourhood of the A.S.C. and Ordnance Depots, it naturally attracted a good share of the shells which the Turks directed at those points, and casualties were by no means infrequent. However, the men were able to take off the clothes which they had worn for nearly a fortnight, and wash. Some shaved, but others thought it waste of time and also of the more precious water. Bathing was possible, for the sea was close by, 212 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION and the delight of plunging into the warm spark- ling sea was hardly diminished by the thought that a Turkish shell might possibly find you out as you did so. The period in the rest-camp gave an op- portunity of writing home, and describing, as far as the censorship permitted, the events of the previous week. It was clear that the first attempt at Suvla had not been successful, but reinforcements were arriving nightly, a new General (Major-General H. B. de Lisle) had taken over command of the 9th Corps, and everyone was hoping for eventual success. In this they were much assisted by rumour, which produced scores of encouraging '* shaves.'' Occasionally one heard that General Botha with a large force of Boers, had landed at Helles, but the favourite and apparently best- authenticated report, was that an army of 150,000 Italians had landed at Bulair and were taking the Turks in reverse. It did not seem to occur to any of those who circulated this report that their guns must have been heard at Suvla if they were really doing so. By this time, however, most sensible people had discovered that nothing is ever so thoroughly well-auth- enticated as a thoroughly baseless rumour, and believed nothing that they were told. At any rate the " canards '' gave a subject for con- versation, and helped to pass the time. On August 2ist, General de Lisle proposed THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 213 to take the offensive again, having been rein- forced from Egypt and HeUes. Although the Turks had by now brought up ample reinforce- ments, and carefully entrenched their whole line, it was thought that it might be possible to capture Ismail Oglu Tepe, a wooded hill, which buttressed the Khoja Chemen Tepe. This attack General de Lisle entrusted to the nth and 29th Divisions, the latter being on the left. The 53rd and 54th Territorial Divi- sions were to hold the remainder of the line northwards to the Gulf of Saros, including the trenches on the Kir etch Tepe Sirt. The newly- landed 2nd Mounted Division (Yeomanry) and the two brigades of the loth Division, which had suffered so heavily in the previous fighting as to be almost unfit for further aggressive action, were placed in Corps Reserve. At the same time the co-operation of the Anzac troops, which took the form of the attack on Kaba Kuyu and Hill 60, and was described in the previous chapter, was arranged for. The loth Division was disposed as follows : — The 31st Brigade, which was allotted as reserve to the 29th Division, formed up behind Hill 10 on the northern shores of the Salt Lake. There was very little cover, and the 6th Innis- killing Fusiliers, who found themselves in rear of one of our batteries, suffered severely from the shell fire with which the Turks retaliated on it. The 30th Brigade were at Lala Baba at 214 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION the south-western angle of the Lake. At 3 p.m. the attack was launched, and the front line of Turkish trenches were occupied. Atmos- pheric conditions, however, were unfavourable, and further progress was only made with great difficulty, the nth Division, which had been much weakened by previous fighting, finding it almost impossible to get on. The reserves were then called up, and the Yeomen went forward across the bare shell-swept plain. The long extended lines suffered heavily as they moved forward to a position in rear of Chocolate Hill, but though they were young troops who had never been in action before, there was no wavering, and the formation was preserved throughout. About the same time the 30th Brigade received orders to advance and occupy the Turkish trenches, which had been captured at the commencement of opera- tions. As they moved forward to do this they, too, came under a heavy fire of shrapnel and sustained numerous casualties, among them being Lieut.-Col. Worship, of the 6th Munster Fusiliers, who was wounded in the foot. The most active part in these operations, however, so far as the loth Division was con- cerned, was taken by the stretcher-bearers of the three Field Ambulances, who had just arrived. Again and again they went out over the shell-swept plain, picking up the wounded of the nth and 29th Divisions, and bringing THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 215 them back to the hospitals on the beach. The work was not only hot and heavy, but dangerous, since although the Turk proved a fair fighter on the whole and respected the Red Cross, yet his shrapnel could not discriminate between fighters and non-combatants. Good and plucky work done on this occasion earned the D.C.M. for Staff-Sergeant Hughes and Corporal Fitch, of the 30th Field Ambulance. On the following day, the two brigades moved southward, and took over the front line trenches, the two Inniskilling battalions being just north of Chocolate Hill, with the Royal Irish Fusiliers on their right, and the 30th Brigade prolonging the line to the southward. At the same time. Divisional Headquarters were transferred from the Kiretch Tepe Sirt to Lala Baba. While the Division was holding this southern sector, it very nearly came in touch with part of its detached Brigade operat- ing to the north of Anzac ; and the 6th Dublin Fusiliers from their trenches were able to watch the charge of the 5th Connaught Rangers on August 27th. The 29th Brigade, however, remained under the orders of the Anzac Com- mand. After the fight of the 27th-28th of August, described in the last chapter, this Brigade also became incapable of further aggressive action. Every battalion had lost about three-quarters of its strength, while the casualties in the 2i6 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION commissioned ranks had been exceptionally heavy. Sickness was bad here, as elsewhere, and early in September three out of the four units composing the Brigade had only two officers apiece left. The 6th Leinsters were in better case ; but even with them, sickness was taking its toll — Major Currey, the CO., being one of the victims. He was succeeded by Major Colquhoun. The battalion remained with the New Zealand and Australian Division, doing duty in the trenches at '' Russell's Top " until August 26th, when it withdrew to Anzac and joined the Royal Irish Rifles in '' Reserve Gully." The Rifles and Hampshires, which suffered terribly in the Sari Bair fighting, were retained behind the Aghyl Dere line for about a week after the loth August. Then the Rifles re- turned to Anzac, where it took up its quarters in Reserve Gully. After the feint attack on August 2ist, in which they suffered so heavily, the loth Hampshires were also withdrawn to the beach, bivouacking near No. 2 Post. The Brigade was completed by the arrival of the 5th Connaught Rangers, who, after the assault on Hill 60 on the 27th August, remained in reserve for a week and then moved back to a bivouac on Bauchop's Hill. Though two companies of the Royal Irish Rifles were lent to General Walker, of the Australians, and did duty for him for three THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 217 weeks, the bulk of the Brigade were employed on fatigue duties. These included road-making, unloading ration boats, and guarding Turkish prisoners. The work was hard, the sun still hot, and the enemy's shells did not spare the fatigue parties, but casualties were not heavy. During this period the 29th Brigade received a new commander. Colonel Agnew returned to Mudros on September 9th, and on the 22nd September Brigadier-General R. S. Vandeleur, C.M.G., who had come from the Seaforth Highlanders in France, took over command. Major T. G. Anderson, R.F.A., had previously been appointed Brigade-Major. While in many respects fighting in Gallipoli was more unpleasant than in France or Flanders, yet its trench warfare had certain advantages over that engaged in there. Though the heat by day and the cold by night were trying, yet there was but little rain, and it was easy to keep the trenches dry. Except on the Kiretch Tepe Sirt and close to the sea, the soil was firm, so that the sides of trenches did not require much revetment, and repairs were not con- stantly called for. Above all, the character of the enemy gave the defender an easier time. The Turk is inflexibly stubborn in defence, and when stirred up to make a mass attack, he appears fearless of death : but he is not an enterprising foe. Except at one or two points — notably at Apex and at Quinn's Post in the 2i8 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION Anzac area, where the opposing trench lines were close together, and trench mortars and bomb-throwers raged perpetually — he was con- tent to leave the enemy to the attention of his snipers. These, of course, were persistent and ingenious, and any point in a trench which could be overlooked, either from a tree or from high ground in the enemy's lines, required to be specially defended. Otherwise, however, the Turk was not much disposed to institute aggressive enterprises, and his bombardments, though intensely annoying, and causing a good many casualties, were not to be compared in intensity with those employed by the Germans in Flanders. Trench-life, however much its details may be mitigated, is none the less painfully mono- tonous, and in the Peninsula there were none of the distractions sometimes experienced on the Western Front. There were only two breaks in the tedium : the arrival of the mail and a visit from a chaplain. The latter should perhaps have precedence, both out of respect for his cloth and because it happened more frequently. Walking about at Anzac and Suvla was neither pleasant nor safe ; but the chap- lains were quite indefatigable, and would walk any distance and brave any danger in order to visit the units to which they were attached. By dint of untiring endeavour, the Church of England and Roman Catholic chaplains used, THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 219 as a rule, to hold a service for each of the bat- talions in their charge on Sunday, and one during the week as well. Sometimes these services took place right up in the firing line, the celebrant moving along the trench to each communicant in turn. It was in this manner Canon McLean celebrated Holy Communion for the 6th and 7th Dublins an hour before the advance on the 15th of August. Often, too, the priests were able to give absolution to their flock before they went into action. Besides doing this, the Roman Catholic chaplains heard confessions regularly, and all denominations were indefatigable in ministering to the sick. Apart, however, from the spiritual side of the question, the mere presence of the " Padre '* himself was stimulating. The Division had been exceptionally fortunate in its chaplains. The robust cheerfulness of Father Murphy, the recondite knowledge of Father Stafford, Father OTarrell's boyish keenness, and the straightforward charm that made Father O'Con- nor such a good sportsman and such a good friend, were coupled with a fearlessness and devotion to duty common to all, that made them beloved by their own flock and liked and respected by those of other creeds. There was but little colour in Gallipoli ; grey olives, bleached scrub and parched sand combined to make a picture in monotone, and, even to the Protestant eye it was grateful to see, as the one 220 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION gleam of colour in a dreary landscape, the shining golden chasuble of the priest as he celebrated Mass. Few who beheld those services will ever forget them ; the circle of kneeling worshippers, the robed figure in the centre, the long shadows cast by the newly-risen sun, and the drone of the shells passing through the air overhead, made an ineffaceable impression on the mind. Nor were the Protestant chaplains behind their Roman Catholic colleagues in zeal and cheerfulness. The Reverend S. Hutchinson in the 31st Brigade, and the Reverend J. W. Crozier (a son of the Primate of All Ireland) in the 29th, worked untiringly and devotedly for the good of the men who belonged to the Church of England. Nor should the Reverend F. J. Roche, who was Church of England Chaplain to the Divisional Troops, be forgotten. Originally, he was sent to Cairo with the Artil- lery of the Division ; but he had seen service in South Africa in the Imperial Yeomanry, and was mad to get into the firing line once more. By dint of many entreaties and much ingenuity, he finally succeeded in reaching Suvla on August 29th, and laboured unceasingly with the Pioneers and Royal Engineers. He was a man of exceptionally high character, and all who knew him were grieved when two days before the Division left the Peninsula he was invalided with dysentery. Unfortunately, the attack was a severe one, and after rallying THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 221 slightly he died in hospital at Alexandria. The Presbyterian and Methodist chaplains, too, did excellent work, though since their flock was so widely scattered they had less opportunity of becoming personally known to those outside it. The jewel of the Protestant chaplains, how- ever, was Canon McLean. Although he must have been nearly sixty years of age, and was probably the oldest man in the Division, he had the heart of a boy and the courage of a lion. No dangers or hardships were too great for him to endure, and his one regret was that his cloth did not permit him to lead his Brigade in a charge. He had, too, the more valuable form of courage — the power of patient endurance, for though seriously ill with dysentery, he absolutely refused to go sick and leave his men. There were many brave fellows in the Division, but none gained a greater reputation for courage than Canon McLean. The second great alleviation of the monotony of trench life was the arrival of the mail. In France, this happens daily, and is taken as a matter of course ; but in Gallipoli it rarely arrived more often than once a week, and great joy was felt in the battalions when Brigade headquarters telephoned that a mail was coming up. Expectation grew, until at last the Indian drabis led up their grunting mules, and deposited the mail-bags at the door of the Headquarters 222 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION dug-out. Orderly sergeants of the companies were at once summoned, and the slow process of sorting began — a process made even slower by the fact that in many cases the writers had not indicated anything more than the name of the addressee, and that it took a considerable time in an Irish regiment to ascertain which Private Kelly was meant. *' The postmark's Glasgow. Is either of your Kelly's a Scotsman, Sergeant McGrath ? " the Adjutant would say. *' They are not, sorr. One's a Mayo man and the other's from Dublin. Try ' B ' Com- pany, sorr." The Orderly Sergeant of *' B " also disclaims any Scotch Kelly, but is reminded by the signalling sergeant of a Glasgow man of that name who went sick from Mudros. Repeated ad infinitum this process takes time, and it was long before the officer who had undertaken the sorting could turn to his own correspondence. Then followed the painful task of returning the letters that could not be delivered. These were sent back from companies to the orderly-room and were there sorted into three piles : — Dead, Missing, and Hospital. The officer then endorsed each, writing the word in an indelible pencil, always dreading that by THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 223 some accident this might be the first intimation of the casualty that the sender of the letter had received. The '' Hospital '* letters, of course, were not returned to the writer, but were sent in pursuit of the addressee round Mudros, Malta, and Alexandria, usually return- ing to the Battalion after he had rejoined it. Nor did one's own mail consist entirely of personal letters, for the officers who survived found themselves in September receiving many letters from the relatives of their comrades who had fallen begging for details of how they died. These letters were not easy to answer, since details were often lacking, and the writer was always afraid of inadvertently opening the wound again ; but it was a labour of love to reply to them. More amusing semi-official letters were also received, such as the demands of railway companies for sums of three-and- sixpence due by men who had travelled without tickets four months earlier. As even supposing the men in question had not been killed or wounded, they had certainly received no pay for more than a month, and were unlikely to receive any for an indefinite period, so the prospect that the Company Officer would be able to recover the debts before being killed or wounded himself did not seem large. With the mail came newspapers and some- times parcels. The latter were specially wel- come, since they served to fill up the nakedness 224 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION of the officers' mess, and as a rule they arrived safely when sent by parcels post. Complaints of non-arrival of parcels were indeed frequent, but in most cases this was caused either by inaccurate addressing, or by careless packing. Very seldom was a parcels mail-bag opened for sorting at the battalion without the bottom being found to be filled with broken cigarettes, crumbs of crushed cake, and a mass of card- board, brown paper and string. It must be remembered that the mails had to stand a good deal of rough handling. The bags were sent by ship to Alexandria, then thrown on to a lorry and jolted over the stony streets to the Base Post Office, there sorted, sent on shipboard again, conveyed to Mudros, tran- shipped to Suvla, Anzac, or Helles, thrown overboard on to a lighter, dumped on the beach, and finally carried up to their destination on the back of a pack mule. It was not astonishing that a parcel was occasionally crushed, or even that a bag sometimes fell into the sea. Under normal conditions, however, parcels usually arrived safely. The arrival of parcels meant a welcome addition to mess stores, for although the A.S.C. had recovered from the natural confusion caused by the operations at the beginning of August, and rations were regular and plenti- ful, yet the diet became painfull}^ dull. It must be remembered that in GalHpoli, unlike the THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 225 Western Front, there was absolutely no pos- sibility of using the resources of the country. In France, it is often possible to buy eggs, butter, and perhaps a chicken, not to speak of wine or beer ; but on the Peninsula there was literally nothing obtainable. From Suvla the distant houses of the Anafarta's mocked the eye with the sight of human habitations ; but Anzac was literally a desert. The map, it is true, marked a spot as '' Fisherman's Hut,*' but both fishermen and their nets had departed, and the huts had fallen into ruin. Nor did Nature supply anything — except where the trampled stubble told of a ruined cornfield, all was barren, dry scrub, and prickly holly and bare, thankless sand. With such destitu- tion all round, it was no wonder that the post was eagerly looked for. The most welcome gift of all was tinned fruit, since these and the syrup that came with them quenched thirst. Lemonade tablets, too, were welcome, and sauces and curry-powders to disguise the taste of the eternal bully-beef, were much appreciated. Some things failed to stand the climate ; chocolate usually arrived in a liquid condition, while a parcel of butter became a greasy rag. (It must be borne in mind while reading this description of life in Gallipoli that the Expeditionary Force Canteens were not established there till after the loth Division had left the Peninsula. They did 226 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION a great deal to fill the want, though it was almost impossible to keep them properly stocked.) Although life in September was distinctly less trying than it was in August, yet it had its disadvantages. Among them was the fact that wherever a battalion occupied an old Turkish bivouac, it found that the enemy had left behind a peculiarly ferocious breed of flea. There were other minor annoyances in washing ; but the main disadvantage of Gallipoli unquestionably was the uncertainty of life. The whole Peninsula was exposed to shell fire, and much of it to snipers as well, and though some places were less dangerous than others, it was impossible ever to feel that one was safe. Every day almost one heard of a fresh casualty. Now an orderly was hit as he brought a message ; now a cook fell as he bent over his fire ; another day the storeman looking after kits on the beach was killed ; or a shell made havoc among a party drawing rations or water. Drawing rations was one of the most dangerous occupations on the Peninsula, especially at Anzac, and was usually performed at the double. The beaches, where the supply depots were situated, were among the enemy's favourite targets, as they knew that there were always people moving there, and they shelled th^m persistently. In France, the A.S.C. are said to have safe and '' cushy " jobs ; but this was certainly not the case in Gallipoli. Their THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 227 work, in addition to being dangerous, was not exciting, which made things worse ; for though Death is the same wherever he comes, it is easier to encounter him in a charge than when cutting up bacon. The memory of the courage of their representatives at Suvla and Anzac should always be a proud one with the A.S.C. But though the beaches were particularly nasty spots, there was no escaping from Death anywhere. If one took a walk one was almost certain to pass a festering and fly-blown mule, or a heap of equipment that showed where a man had been wounded. At one point a barricade of sandbags suggested that it was wise to keep in close to them, at another a deep sap had been dug to allow secure passage through an area commanded by the Chunuk Bair. The blind impartiality of shrapnel spared no one : the doctor of one battalion sent a man to hospital who was suffering from bronchitis, and was surprised to discover afterwards that when admitted he was suffering from a wound in the right arm which he had acquired on the way down. Even if one remained in one's own bivouac or trench, there was no assurance of safety. It was always possible that a sudden shell might catch one outside one's dug-out and finish one. Several fell in this way, among them one of the finest officers in the Division, Major N. C. K. Money of the Connaught Rangers. He was a magnificent soldier, always cool and 228 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION resourceful, and had made his mark on every occasion on which his battaHon was engaged. After coming untouched through three stiff fights, and being awarded the D.S.O. for his courage and capacity, he was mortally wounded in bivouac by an unexpected burst of shrapnel. It was a miserable end for one who had done so much, and was destined, had he lived, to do so much more. After a few weeks on the Peninsula one grew into a fatalistic mood. Most of one's friends had already been knocked out, and it seemed impossible that in the long run anyone could escape. Sooner or later the shrapnel was bound to get you, unless dysentery or enteric got you first. If you were unlucky, you would be killed ; if lucky, you would get a wound that would send you either home, or at any rate to Malta or Alexandria, or some other civilized place. Only one thing seemed out of the ques- tion, and that was that one should see the end of the campaign. Certainly very few of us did. CHAPTER IX LAST DAYS " It is better not to begin than never to finish.* — Serbian Proverb. AT the beginning of September a portion of the Divisional Artillery arrived in the Peninsula. The three brigades (54th, 55th and 56th) which sailed from England with the Division, had been landed at Alexandria and sent into camp near Cairo. Rumour had assured the remainder of the Division that they were ultimately destined for Aden, but in this as in almost every other instance, rumour lied. After about three weeks in Egypt, where a certain number of horses died as the result of eating sand which caused colic, the 55th and 56th Brigades were transferred to Mudros and thence without their horses to the Peninsula. The 55th Brigade went to Cape Helles, where it took up a position near the Great Gully with its sixteen guns crowded closely together, and suffered a good deal in that congested area from the enemy's shell-fire. This brigade was definitely removed from the Division and had no further dealings with it. The 56th Brigade, 229 230 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION on the other hand, came to the Suvla area, though it did not actually rejoin the Division. Gun positions were not very easy to discover, but the '' A '' and '' B '' Batteries of the Brigade came into action below Lala Baba. " C ^' Battery was out on the plain in a low-lying spot, which was flooded out by the November bhzzard, while '' D " Battery moved southward into the Anzac area. Here they took up a position on the Damakjelik Bair near the South Wales Borderers' Gully facing northward, which enabled them to enfilade the Turkish trenches on Scimitar Hill, and did excellent work. The whole Brigade remained in its positions when the rest of the Division left the Peninsula, and did not depart till the final evacuation of Suvla and Anzac. They consequently definitely severed their connection with the loth Division. Throughout September the days passed with monotonous regularity. The routine of trench work, and the telling off and supervision of fatigue parties did not do much to occupy the imagination, and plenty of time was spent gazing out over the sea to Imbros and Samo- thrace and wondering what was going to happen next. There did not seem much prospect of an advance but it was never easy for junior officers and men to tell what was brewing. It was somewhat trying to the nerves to know that one was never certain that one would not be required at a moment's notice. Even when r. ^ THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 231 nominally resting behind the line units were frequently obliged to stand to in consequence of an alarm of some kind. By this time, blankets and officers' valises had been retrieved, but one felt that one was tempting Providence if one undressed or even took off one's boots at night, for one was always liable to be roused suddenly. The Turks, during this period, were not in at all an aggressive mood, but they too, were subject to nerves, and used occasionally to open fire all along the line for no particular reason. Except for these spasms of nervous- ness, however, they confined their attention to sniping, intermittent shelling, and where the trenches were very close together, to trench mortar work and bombing. Two minor distractions were the swallows and the " Peninsula Press.'' In August Anzac was a singularly birdless place ; in fact except for one cornfield the area had no sign of life of any kind in it. About the middle of September, however, it was invaded by troops of swallows on their way southward, and every gully was full of diving, swooping birds. They brought back many memories of home and of warm Spring evenings and long twilights, and it was a pleasure to watch them circling past the dug- outs. They did not seem to mind the shell-fire, and there was much discussion as to whether they would winter in Gallipoli, but we did not remain in the Peninsula long enough to make sure. 232 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION The other alleviation of the dulness was a half- sheet of news issued by the Authority and entitled '' The Peninsula Press/' The perusal of this piece of foolscap, which was printed at Army Headquarters and sent to units with more or less regularity, was sufficient to fill one with admiration for the art and mystery of journalism. It was surprising how different the string of communiques and bulletins served up raw without amplification or comment was from the newspaper that one had been accustomed to. For the first time one realized the enormous importance of sub-editing. Nor were the com- muniques very informing, since for the most part they dealt with Polish towns whose names had never been heard of before by any of us. An atlas was a possession extremely rare in Gallipoli, so we were compelled to take the bulk of the news on trust and hope for the best. Another minor inconvenience was lack of exercise. In the early days of August there had been no reason to complain on this score, but by the time that we had settled down to routine work in September, many found it hard to keep in condition. Unless you went out with a fatigue party ration-carrying or road-making, your work was confined to a comparatively small area. Walks for the sake of exercise only were discouraged by those in authority, partly because officers were few and could not easily be spared from the possible call of duty that THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 233 might come at any time, and partly because walking, unless you confined your movements to saps, was not a particularly safe amusement. It was extremely easy to go out for a stroll and come home on a stretcher. Added to this was the possibility, that if you went outside the area in which you were known that you might be taken for a spy. Lurid stories were told of unknown officers who had walked the whole length of Anzac Beach asking questions and then disappeared, and though like most rumours these were probably quite unfounded, yet there was always a chance that some over-zealous and suspicious individual might give you an unpleasant half-hour. All these considerations tended to make walking for pleasure an amuse- ment to be indulged in with moderation. Fairly soon, however, officers began to work at training again, for early in September steps were taken to fill up the depleted ranks of the Division. The first reinforcements had been quickly absorbed on their arrival from Mudros, and by the end of August every unit was much below strength. Since under normal condi- tions the voyage from England to Mudros usually occupied from ten days to a fortnight it naturally took some time before the gaps in the units were filled. At the end of the first week in September, however, news was received that the first drafts from home had arrived. The men who composed these drafts were for the most 234 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION part drawn from the reserve battalions of Irish regiments and were excellent material, many of them being men of the old Regular Army who had been wounded in France. The summer of 1915 in Flanders had been a comparatively quiet one, since there had been a lull in the fighting after the second battle of Ypres. The Regular Battalions of the Irish Regiments serving there had made comparatively small demands on their Reserve Battalions for re- inforcements, and consequently large and good drafts were sent out to the loth Division. This consideration, however, did not apply to the Inniskilling, Munster and Dublin Fusiliers, whose 1st Battalions were serving in Gallipoli with the 29th Division and had sustained terrible losses. Unfortunately, the officers who accompanied the first drafts were not those who had been trained with the units of the division, and had been left behind as surplus to establishment, but were drawn, as a general rule, from Scotch regiments. They were excellent fellows and showed no lack of keenness or courage, but officers who had had some previous knowledge of the units in which they were serving would have been more useful, and in addition, from the sentimental point of view, it was felt that an influx of trews and glengarries tended to remove the Irish character of the Division. However, with the later drafts received, a number of Irish officers did arrive. THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 235 It was not entirely an easy matter to assimilate these reinforcements. As a rule, a draft is a comparatively small body of men which easily adopts the character of the unit in which it is merged. In Gallipoli, however, units had been so much reduced in strength that in some cases the draft was stronger than the battalion that it joined, while it almost invariably increased the strength of what was left of the original unit by half as much again. As a result after two or three drafts had arrived, the old battalion had been swamped. For many reasons this was unfortunate. It took a con- siderable time for the officers and N.C.O.'s even to learn the names of the newcomers, still more to acquire that insight into their characters necessary for the smooth working of a company or platoon. The shortage of good and ex- perienced N.C.O.'s, too, had the result of throw- ing rather too much influence into the hands of bad characters. In every large body of soldiers there are bound to be men who dislike danger and do their best to avoid it. As a rule these undesirables are known and are unable to do much harm ; but among an influx of young soldiers a few men of this stamp, posing as experienced veterans, may do a considerable amount of mischief, till they are discovered and dealt with. It was unfortunately impossible to adopt the most favourable method of assimilating the new ' 236 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION men. To teach men to act together, to recognise and obey the voice of their officer or sergeant there is nothing Uke drill, and particularly drill in close order. Only from drill can be obtained the surrender of individuality in order to achieve a common purpose which is the foundation of military discipline. It is on the barrack square that a platoon or company first '' gets together " and realises its corporate entity ; it is ** on the square " that an officer first begins to dis- tinguish his men and to discriminate between their characters, and it is '' on the square " that men first begin to know their officer. Barrack square drill is not, as it was in the Eighteenth Century, the end-all and be-all of military training, but it is an indispensable foundation for it, and no effective substitute has ever yet been found to take its place. Unfortunately, in Gallipoli, drill was out of the question. When on the move, men straggled along in single file without thought of step, while the duties of trench-manning, road making, or onion carrying, did not en- courage smartness. While off duty the men were scattered round a rabbit warren of dug- outs, and any gathering for parade purposes was at once dispersed by hostile shrapnel. All that could be done was to practise bombing in disused Turkish trenches and carry out the usual inspections of rifles, ammunition and iron rations. The severity of the handicap thus THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 237 imposed upon battalions will be best appreciated by those who have served in France. There units periodically go behind the line to rest, and during the rest-period are able b}^ drill and discipline to learn to know and assimilate their new men. Among other matters that had to be faced was the training of specialists. Most battalions had lost the bulk of their machine-gunners and signallers and it was extraordinarily rare to find a unit in which both the signalling and machine-gun officer survived. If the^^ did the Adjutant probably did not, and one of them had been promoted to fill his place. In any case, fresh officers and men had to be trained for the duty. It proved to be unfortunate that very few of the officers who joined with drafts had had any training in either of these branches. A reserve battalion, if well-organized, should be a kind of military university in which an energetic officer can pick up some knowledge of every branch of infantry work since he can never tell what he may not be required to do when posted to a battalion on active service. The power to command a platoon is only the founda- tion, not the climax, of a subaltern/s training. Fortunately, in addition to the second-lieutenants who accompanied drafts, a certain number of officers and men rejoined from hospital. These had mostly been wounded or gone sick during the fighting at the beginning of August, and 238 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION they formed a very welcome reinforcement, since they were both experienced and seasoned to the climate. Unfortunately, as much could not be said for the new drafts, who suffered very badly from dysentery. It was a common experience for a company commander to congratulate himself on having discovered a good sergeant-major or platoon-sergeant only to hear on the following day that he had been invalided. The men who had been wounded in France seemed to be peculiarly liable to dysentery. While steps were being taken to reorganize the shattered units, rumours began to spread that the Division was to leave the Peninsula to rest. By this time most people had begun to discredit all rumours, but it appeared possible that there might be something in this. It was known that both the 29th Division and what was left of the original Australians had been removed to Mudros for a change of ten days or so, and from a military point of view it was eminently desirable to give the Division a chance of training its new drafts in a spot free from shell-fire. It was, however, very uncertain when and where we were to go. The place varied between Mudros and Imbros, while the time suggested was always '' next week.'' Finally, the 29th Brigade received orders on September 28th to prepare to move on the following evening, not to THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 239 either of the places anticipated but to Suvla. For a moment people thought that an attack was in prospect since a day or two earlier '' The Peninsula Press *' had announced great victories in France. Since units of the Division had been paraded at Mudros in July and ordered to cheer for the impending fall of Bagdad, most people were a little distrustful of official bulletins, but if it really was true, and the German line was broken both at Loos and in Champagne, then, of course, we should push the enemy as hard as possible wherever we could. All these specula- tions were shattered, however, early on the 29th, by the cancellation of the orders to proceed to Suvla, and the receipt of instructions to embark at Anzac for Mudros on the same evening. Somehow one was not as glad to be leaving Gallipoli as one had anticipated. To be sure it was all to the good to be out of the shelling for a time and the Turks took steps to intensify the pleasure caused by this prospect by firing on the bivouacs of the 29th Brigade on their last day with unusual vigour. One shell fell immediately outside the guard room of the Connaught Rangers, but fortunately failed to explode. Another burst in the camp of the Royal Irish Rifles and wounded Lieutenant Elliot. This officer was the last survivor except for the Quartermaster and Doctor, of the officers of the battalion who had landed at Anzac on August 6th, and was unlucky in being 240 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION hit on the last day. Even the prospect of immunity from bombardment could not how- ever disguise the fact that one was sorry to leave. As the 29th Brigade filed down the long sap to Anzac in the darkness, as the 30th and 31st Brigades retraced their steps past Lala Baba and over the beaches at Suvla, it was impossible to avoid retrospect. We had passed that way less than two months before, but going in the opposite direction full of high hopes. Now we were leaving the Peninsula again, our work unfinished and the Turks still in possession of the Narrows. Nor was it possible to help thinking of the friends lying in narrow graves on the scrub-covered hillside or covered by the debris of fiUed-in trenches, whom we seemed to be abandoning. Yet though there was sorrow at departing there was no despondency. We had the memory of strenuous effort and achieve- ment to inspire us, and the bond of friendship among the few officers who survived had been knit closer than it had ever been before. The men, too, felt a new spirit towards their officers, and the hard times they had shared together had cemented the feeling of comradeship which had always existed. They knew now that whatever the danger might be their officers would be the first to face it, and the officers had proved that their men would follow them anywhere. Once that sentiment exists in a battalion it is im- possible to break its spirit. THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 241 The 29th Brigade reached Mudros at dawn on September 30th and went under canvas in the Mudros East area, which was on the opposite side of the harbour to the bivouac they had previously occupied. The remainder of the Division followed them thither in the course of the week. There was unfortunately not many of the original Division left. Though the Divisional Staff had not greatly changed, only one brigadier still held his original command. This was Brigadier-General Nicol, who had won the admiration and affection of the 30th Brigade by his unfailing courage and tenacity. He was not a young man, but in spite of the sickness which afflicted everyone in Gallipoli he resolutely refused to go to hospital, and by his example encouraged many younger officers to ** stick it out." Of the original Brigade Staffs only one Brigade-Major, Captain Cooke CoUis, and one Staff Captain, Captain Goodland, survived, and sickness and wounds had so thinned the ranks of the commanding officers that only Lieutenant-Colonel Jourdain of the Connaught Rangers, Lieutenant-Colonel Cox of the 6th Royal Dublin Fusiliers, Lieu- tenant-Colonel Pike of the 5th Royal Irish Fusiliers, and Lieutenant-Colonel Lord Granard of the Royal Irish Regiment, were still with their units. One Lieutenant-Colonel, Vanrenen, of the 5th Inniskillings, had fallen, and the other eight were wounded or sick. The battalions. 242 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION too, had suffered terribly, and it was an excep- tional unit that possessed more than half-a-dozen of its original officers and 200 of the men who had gone with it to the Peninsula at the beginning of August. Even of these a fair proportion had spent part of the time in hospital and rejoined ; those who had seen the campaign through from start to finish were rare. There was, however, little time to think of these matters. The concentration of the Division was not completed till October 3rd and on October 4th its first two battalions sailed for another theatre of war. CHAPTER X RETROSPECT " So awakened in their hearts the strongest of all fellow- ships, the fellowship of the sword." — W. B. Yeats. WHAT does one recollect most clearly when one looks back at Gallipoli ? A multitude of memories cluster to- gether : dry, sand-floored gullies, thirsty men crowded round a well, Indians grooming their mules, lithe, half-naked Australians, parched, sun-dried scrub, but above and beyond all these one remembers the graves. Not a man came back from the Peninsula without leaving some friend behind there, and it is bitter to think that the last resting-place of those we loved is in the hands of our enemy. Not all the dead of Gallipoli lie in the Peninsula itself. There are crowded cemeteries at Malta and Alexandria, and many a brave body has been lowered over the side of a hospital ship into the Aegean to mingle his bones with those of Argonauts and Crusaders and all the heroes of a bygone age. Nevertheless, when one thinks of Gallipoli one thinks first of graves. You could not walk far in the Peninsula *43 244 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION without seeing them, sometimes thickly crowded together outside a field-ambulance, sometimes a solitary cross marking the spot where a sniper's victim had been buried. Each of these tombs had at its head a little wooden cross bearing the man's name, regiment, and rank, and the date of his death, and in some cases his comrades had done a little more. Here Australian gunners had made a pattern with fuse caps on the earth that covered their friend, and there a lid of a biscuit-tin had been beaten into a plaque, bearing a crucifix. Death had made strange bedfellows : in one little cemetery high up at the Chailak Dere behind Rhododen- dron Ridge there lay side by side Private John Jones, Royal Welsh Fusiliers and Sergeant Rotahiru of the Maoris. From the two ends of the earth Christian and Buddhist and Sikh had come to fight in the same cause, and in death they lay together. It was my lot in the last days of September to endeavour to compile a register of where the men of my Battalion had been interred, and as I went from grave to grave writing down the name of one Irishman after another I was irresistibly reminded of Davis's lines : " But on far foreign fields from Dunkirk to Belgrade Lie the heroes and chiefs of the Irish Brigade." Now the age-long quarrel with the Turk had carried Irishmen even further afield and the '* Wild Geese " who fought on the Danube under <=5 < 3 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 245 Prince Eugene found their successors in those of the loth Division who lay under the Cross of Christ in the barren waste of GalHpoU. Not indeed that every grave was marked with a cross. Some had fallen within the enemy's lines and others were hastily buried under the parados of a captured trench without even a stone to mark where they lay. In the heat of battle, it was impossible to delay for forms and ceremonies, and often even the names of the fallen were not noted. Only those who died in hospital were buried with proper rites, but it mattered little where the bodies of the heroes rested. The whole land is one shrine, made sacred by the memory of devotion to duty and self-sacrifice, and no man could wish to lie else- where than in the ground he had won from the enemy. Yet it seemed a pity that it should be knocked to pieces so soon. Much labour spread over many weary months had gone to form it and to make it worthy of the name of Irish, and it was tragic that it should practically be annihilated with so little tangible result achieved. It is not perhaps altogether easy for the civilian to understand how sorrowful it seems unless he realises that a unit trained to arms has a spiritual as well as a material being. A bat- talion of infantry is not merely a collection of a thousand men armed with rifles ; it is, or at any rate, it should be, a community, possessing 246 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION mutual hopes, mutual fears, and mutual affection. Officers and men have learnt to know one another and to rely on one another, and if they are worth their salt, the spiritual bond uniting them is far stronger and more effectual for good than the power conferred by rank and authority. In the loth Division the bonds uniting all ranks were unusually strong. In the first place came love of Ireland shared in equal degree by officers and men. Second to this, and only second, was pride of regiment, happiness at forming part of a unit which had had so many glorious deeds recorded of it and resolution to be worthy of its fame. The names of the battalion, Dublins, Munsters, Inniskillings, Connaught Rangers, spoke not only of home, but also of splendid achievements performed in the past, and nerved us to courage and endurance in the future. Above and beyond these feelings, common to all Irish soldiers, the loth Division had a peculiar intimacy gained from the circum- stances of its formation. It was the first Irish Division to take the field in war. Irish Brigades there had often been ; they had fought under the fleur-de-lys and the tricolour of France and under the Stars and Stripes as well as they had done under the Union Jack. But never before in Ireland's history had she sent forth a whole division (but for one battalion) of her sons to the battle-field. THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 247 The old battalions of the Regular Army had done magnificently, but they had necessarily been brigaded with English, Scotch and Welsh units. The loth Division was the first Division almost entirely composed of Irish battalions to face the enemy. Officers and men alike knew this and were proud of their destiny. As the battalions marched through the quiet English countryside, the drums and fifes shrilled out " St. Patrick's Day '' or ''Brian Boru's March," and the dark streets of Basingstoke echoed the voices that chanted " God Save Ireland *' as the units marched down to entrain. Nor did we lack '' the green." One unit sewed sham- rocks on to its sleeves, another wore them as helmet badges . Almost every company cherished somewhere an entirely unofficial green flag, as dear to the men as if they were the regimental colours themselves. These constituted an out- ward and visible sign that the honour of Ireland was in the Division's keeping, and the men did not forget it. There was singularly little jealousy in the Division. Naturally, where there were two battalions of one regiment in the same brigade, each one of them cherished the belief that they and they alone were the true representatives of the old regiment, but this was only wholesome emulation. Where this cause for rivalry did not exist units were on very good terms, and at Basingstoke, where the different messes 248 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION first really got to know one another, there was any amount of friendship and good fellowship. Every battalion, of course, beheved that it was the finest Service Battalion in the Army, but it was also convinced that the remainder of the Division, though inferior to itself, reached a very much higher standard than any other unit in K.i. Having regard to this sentiment it was with great regret that officers and men found that the Division was not destined to take the field as a whole. The first shock was the loss of the artillery, and the realisation that we should be compelled to rely on the support of strange gunners when we took the field. Next came the fact that the 29th Brigade was detached and sent to Anzac, where in turn it met with yet further sub-division, its battalions going into action as isolated units. Finally, the mischance that sent the 5th Inniskillings, the two battalions of Munster Fusiliers, and the Pioneer battalion into action on the Kiretch Tepe, while the remainder of the 30th and 31st Brigades were fighting under General Hill at the other end of the Suvla area, destroyed the last chance that the Division as a whole might place some distinct achievement to its credit. Of the dash and eagerness of the men there was no doubt. All they needed was to be told what they were to do, and they would carry it THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 249 out whatever the cost. They showed, too, on the i6th August, that in addition to eagerness in the charge, a quality never lacking in Irish soldiers, they possessed the rarer and finer military quality of dogged tenacity. Whoever may be blamed for the small success achieved in Gallipoli, no discredit rests on the rank and file of the loth Division. The circumstances attending the formation of absolutely new units had brought officers and men into a somewhat unusual relationship. In the old Regular Army, except for a few N.C.O.'s and old soldiers who have wives and families in married quarters, and an occasional indiscreet youth who marries off the strength, the family life of the soldier never comes under the officers' notice at all. In the New Army things were very different. The rapid expan- sion of our military forces that took place in August and September, 1914, had placed a tremendous strain on the resources of Pay- masters and Record Officers. The confusion and delay inevitably caused by this often meant considerable hardship to the soldier's family, and he had no one to turn to for help but his officer. First came the question of men whose employers were prepared to increase their pay to the level of their previous wages provided they could prove that they had enlisted. As a rule, the official papers were long in coming, 250 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION and in consequence company-commanders made out certificates that the men were serving, which, though unofficial, proved effective. Next came the question of allowance ; separa- tion allowance and allowance to dependants, which involved an enormous amount of work and entailed a close acquaintanceship with the details of each man's family history. Finally came the work of stamping and keeping up-to-date the National Insurance cards, which formed the last remaining bond that linked the soldier to his civilian life. Meanwhile, officer and man had been gaining insight into each other's character. The Com- pany Commander had watched his men change from a mob in civilian clothes to a disciplined body in khaki. He had been busy picking out the intelligent, encouraging the backward, stimulating the lazy, and checking the first steps of a few towards drunkenness and vice. In all this he had had the invaluable assistance of his company sergeant-major, and an intimacy had grown up between them of no ordinary kind. When it was severed, as it too often was, on the field of battle, the survivor felt that he had been maimed and deprived of an invaluable m support. On a smaller scale a similar relationship arose between the subaltern and his platoon- sergeant, while among the specialists, signallers and machine-gunners, the bond between officer THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 251 and men was even closer as became those who shared a common mystery. The whole unit had grown up together ; the men in the ranks had watched the subaltern who had joined ignorant of the rudiments of drill acquire knowledge and self- confidence, and in the process had learned to trust him themselves. The officers had seen with pleasure a boy selected for a lance-corporal's stripe because he showed signs of intelligence, gradually gaining experience and the power to command men, until sometimes he graduated into an excellent sergeant. There were many common memories ; wet days on the Curragh, long treks in the Hampshire dust, scuffles in the hedgerows during a field-day, bivouacs in a twilight meadow, all combined to cement the feeling of friendship between officer and men. Sometimes these memories went back to a period before the War. Nearly all the officers were Irish, and most of them were serving in their Territorial units, with the result that they often found privates who were their near neighbours and knew the woods, and the bogs, and the wet winding roads of home. All this was good ; it gave the Division a char- acter that it could not otherwise have obtained, but it had its black side when men began to fall. It was not merely Number So-and-so Private Kelly who was killed, it was little Kelly, who had cooked (very badly) for the mess at Basingstoke, or Kelly who had begged so 252 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION eagerly not to be left behind with the first reinforcements, or Kelly, the only son of a widowed mother, who lived on the Churchtown Road, three miles from home. To the staff and the High Command, men must necessarily be no more than cyphers on a casualty list, but to the regimental officer it is very much otherwise, and every man who falls causes a fresh pang to his commander's heart. Few things are more distressing to an officer than to hear the roll of his unit called after an engagement, to look in vain among the thinned ranks for many familiar faces, to hear no answer given to name after name of the men with whom his life has been bound up for months. This and not any extreme of physical suffering is the hardest ordeal that a soldier has to face. Nor was this loss of friends and comrades the only cause of sorrow. The same feelings have been felt in every unit of the New Army after a strenuous engagement, but the loth Division had a special reason for regret since the loth Division was a thing unique in itself. Ireland is a land of long and bitter memories, and those memories make it extremely difficult for Irishmen to unite for any common purpose. Many have believed it impossible, and would have prophesied that the attempt to create an Irish Division composed of men of every class, creed and political opinion would be foredoomed to failure. And yet it succeeded. THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 253 The old quarrels, the inherited animosities were forgotten, and men who would have scowled at one another without speaking became com- rades and friends. Only those who know Ireland can realise how difficult this was. The Division was not composed of profes- sional soldiers ; many of the officers and men had played, or, at least, had relatives who had played, an active part in the agrarian and political struggles that have raged in Ireland for the last forty years. Yet all this went for nothing ; the bond of common service and common sacrifice proved so strong and enduring that Catholic and Protestant, Unionist and Nationalist, lived and fought and died side by side like brothers. Little was spoken concerning the points on which we differed, and once we had tacitly agreed to let the past be buried we found thousands of points on which we agreed. To an Englishman this no doubt appears natural, for beneath all superficial disagreements the English do possess a nature in common and look on things from the same point of view, but in Ireland up to the present things have been very different. It is only to be hoped that the willingness to forget old wrongs and injustices, and to combine for a common purpose, that existed in the loth Division, may be a good augury for the future. No doubt the experience of the two other Irish Divisions of the New Army has been the i54 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION same. Both of them have since won abundant glory in France. When the War is over, all these combats shared together, and dangers faced side-by-side, should count for something in the making of the new Ireland. No doubt it may seem to the outsider that all this is founded on an unstable foundation, and that the loth Division did not do so much after all. Measured by the scale of material results he may seem correct. At Suvla, indeed, they claim to have taken Chocolate Hill and to have gained ground along the Kiretch Tepe Sirt, part of which they were unable to hold. At Anzac two battalions seized part of the Chunuk Bair and held it until they were driven off, a third succeeded in maintaining its position on Rhododendron Ridge, while the fourth captured the wells of Kabak Kuyu and gained a footing for a time on Hill 60. All these were but incidents in what was itself an unsuccessful campaign, yet officers and men did all that was required of them. They died. There was no fear or faltering, there was no retirement without orders. The loth Division, young soldiers without knowledge or experience of war, were plunged into one of the hardest and fiercest campaigns ever waged by the British Army, and acquitted themselves with credit. They make no claim to exclusive glory, to have done more than it was their duty to do, but they have no cause to be r THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION 255 ashamed. Their shattered ranks, their enor- mous list of casualties, show clearly enough what they endured, and the words used by Sir Ian Hamilton of one brigade are true of the whole Division. He wrote : — " The old German notion that no unit would stand a loss of more than 25 per cent, had been completely falsified. The 13th Division and the 29th Brigade of the 10th (Irish) Division had lost more than twice that proportion, and in spirit were game for as much more fighting as might be required." This may reasonably be applied to the 30th and 31st Brigades as well as to the 29th, for the best proof of the enduring spirit of the Division may be found in the fact that when after having lost nearly 75 per cent, of its original strength, it was hastily filled up with drafts and sent under-officered and barely rested to fight a new and arduous campaign single-handed, it did creditably. In some quarters, particularly in Ireland, which is a sensitive and suspicious country, it has been suggested that the services of the Division have not been adequately recognized. Little is to be gained by engaging in a controversy on this point. No doubt if on the grounds that the Gallipoli campaign was unsuccessful, the men who fought there are refused a clasp to their medals, and the regiments who took part in it are not permitted to add its name to the battle honours on their colours, much resent- ment will be aroused, but it is hardly likely that this will occur. If precedents are needed. 256 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION Talavera and Busaco, both of which figure as British victories, were followed by retirements and by no definite result other than the ex- haustion of the enemy's forces. Corunna, too, which was merely a repulse of a pursuing enemy, followed by embarkation and evacuation, is considered a victory, and while these names are emblazoned among the battle-honours of regiments there is little reason for excluding Gallipoli, where men suffered as much and fought as bravely. But, after all, these considerations, though sentiment endears them to the soldier, are minor matters. The soldier's true reward is the gratitude of his fellow-countrymen, and that we have in full measure obtained. Ireland will not easily forget the deeds of the loth Division. APPENDIX A ON AUTHORITIES IN writing this Book I have in the main been guided by my own memory and by information obtained from other officers, but I have also read almost every book dealing with Gallipoli that has been published up to the present (February, 1917). Three of these have been of great value to me, since their authors served with the Division. The first (At Suvla Bay by John Hargrave. Constable) was written by a sergeant in the 32nd Field Ambulance and describes in graphic language the experiences of a stretcher-bearer. It is illustrated by a number of sketches from the author's hand. The second book {Suvla Bay and After, by Juvenis. H odder and Stoughton) is also a record of individual experiences. Though the author is anonymous and is very reticent in giving detailed information of any kind, yet he appears from internal evidence to have been an officer in the 5th Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. His narrative describes life on the Peninsula from the Sth to the 15th, on which date he was wounded. 3 257 258 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION It also gives a vivid account of hospital life at Mudros. Both these works are first-hand evidence of the doings of individuals, but the third is of greater value to the historian. It is a record of the services of the 5th (Service) Battalion of the Connaught Rangers between the 19th of August, 1914, and the 17th of January, 1917, compiled by its commanding officer and printed for private circulation by Frederick Hall at the Oxford University Press. This work not only provides a clear and vivid narrative of the movements of the battalion, but also gives invaluable informa- tion as to orders, strength and casualties. If a similar work were compiled for each unit, the task of the historian would be easy. I regret that the book dealing with the history of D Company of the 7th Royal Dublin Fusiliers, which has been written by Mr. H. Hanna, K.C., was not published in time to allow me to read it before writing this work. Mr. Hanna has, however, been kind enough to allow me to read part of his proof-sheets, and the information which I obtained from him has been of great assistance to me. I have also studied the letters from officers and men which appeared in the Irish Press in the Autumn of 1915, but I have not as a rule considered their statements as unimpeachable unless they were confirmed by some independent authority.
6th Royal Dublin Fusiliers. Killed : Capt. A. J. D. Preston. Capt. and Adjt. W. R. Richards. Lieut. J. J. Doyle. 2nd Lieut. W. C. Nesbitt. 2nd Lieut. F. B. O'CarroU. 2nd Lieut. W. F. C. McGarry. 262 THE TENTH (IRISH) DIVISION Died oj Wounds : 2nd Lieut. W. L. G. Mortimer. Wounded : Capt. W. H. Whyte Capt P. T. L. Thompson. Capt. R. B. C. Kennedy. Capt. J. Luke. Capt. J. J. T. Carroll. Capt. W. S. Lennon. Lieut. C. A. Martin. 2nd Lieut. R. W. Carter. 2nd Lieut. C. F, Healy. 2nd Lieut. M. Moloney. Wounded and Missing : Major J. G. Jennings. Lieut. D. R. Clery. 2nd Lieut. R. Stanton. [All these are believed to have been killed,]
7th Royal Dublin Fusiliers, Killed : Major C. H. Tippet. Major R. S. M. Harrison. Capt. P. H. Hickman. Capt. G. Pige Leschallas. Capt. R. P. Tobin. Lieut. M. J. Fitzgibbon. Lieut. A. J. Russell. 2ud Lieut. E. T. Weatherill. Died of Wounds : Lieut. E. L. Julian. Wounded : Lieut. -Col. G. Downing. Capt. L. S. N. Palmer, Lieut, C, B, Girvin. Lieut, A, W. MacDermott. 2nd Lieut. C, D. Harvey. 2nd Lieut. H. L. Clover. 2nd Lieut. G, Hicks. Lieut. A. M. Eynaud (Royal Malta Regiment of Militia attached.) Missing : 2nd Lieut. A. G. Crichton.