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[Page 25]
A Story Of Gallipoli
The Memorable Month of August 1915
Assault of Sari Bair
(A Staff Officer's Narrative)
(Recorded by Corporal O. Rhodes, 20th Bn., A.I.F.)
at Otago Gully, Gallipoli, 14/9/15
"It has been an enormous undertaking, this August push", remarked the Colonel. "General Godley was in command of these operations and the forces we controlled were equal to two Army Corps. We always had 41 Battalions and sometimes 45. Exceptional preparations were made for this gigantic move and assault of the Sari Bair position. The initial fighting lasted four days and four nights and we all but did the trick. Some of our troops were actually on top of the mountain for 24 hours before being bombed out of it and unable to hold on through sheer weakness, want of water and lack of reinforcements. The real reason that it did not completely succeed was that Brigadier-General Baldwin's column, consisting of five battalions, only one of which belonged to his own Brigade, on the morning of the 9th of August got mixed up, missed their way, arrived at the rendezvous three and a half hours late, and then attacking over the long front lost heavily. The Brigadier and the whole of his Brigade Staff were wiped out and nearly one of his regiments. Then again the next morning, three-quarters of the Wilts regiment our New Zealanders on the right and the Ghurkas on the left had gained a footing on the hillside, but owing to these mishaps and ill-fortunes of war, they could not hold out without reinforcements. On the 10th the Turks delivered a most magnificent counter-attack over the crest of the hill. They came over the top in thousands at daybreak, sweeping over our front trenches. Our machine guns and shrapnel cut huge junks out of them, mowing them down in hundreds, but still they came on in the most gallant way. They left, it is estimated, at least 10,000 dead on the ground. Both hillsides are literally covered with dead. Our casualties, of course, were enormous – over 13,000 in the period 6th August to 19th August. These, of course, included those of our 1st Australian Division, 13th Division Indian Brigade, and the New Zealand and Australian Division. I should estimate the New Zealand casualties at about seven thousand during that time.
We could ill afford to lose such men as Bauchop, Malone, Overton, Grant, Statham, Kelsall, and Thomas (all New Zealanders). The Australian Light Horse Brigades lost nearly all their Officers – at any rate all their Senior Officers, but still the men go on. Although we were not successful in actually taking this Sari Bair position, the capture of which would have gone a long way towards finishing this war in the Peninsula, we nevertheless gave the Turks such a hiding that we have knocked the sting out of their attack for some time to come. We also gained a considerable amount of territory on a much broader front. We are therefore not so much congested as we were formerly and we have joined hands with the 54th Division on our left (Major-General Inglefield) and the 9th Corps on our extreme left (General Byng). Under cover of our attack on the 6th August the 9th Corps made a secret landing at Suvla Bay and if they had only pushed on as they ought to have done, this war here might have been over by now. As it was they hung back, apparently from want of having an objective pointed out to them. Some people blame the troops. I don't, I blame their orders.
There is no doubt that this Army Corps of Australian and New Zealand troops is the backbone of the fighting force in this country and that they rely on us to do all their hard work and we shall still have to do it for them, as this position of Sari Bair has got to be taken sooner or later, but I estimate it will take three Divisions to accomplish it and they will have to be run by the Army Corps Commanders. It is too much to expect an