1915 | Significant Events During the Gallipoli Campaign |
Jan 18 | In Egypt, the NZ Infantry Brigade, NZ Mounted Rifles and NZ Artillery Brigade join with the 1st Australian Light Horse Brigade and the 4th Australian Infantry Brigade to form the New Zealand and Australian Division under the command of Major General Sir Alexander Godley (GOC of the NZ Expeditionary Force). |
25 | NZ Infantry Brigade ordered to Suez Canal |
26 | Infantry Brigade leave Zeitoun for Ismailia and Kubri |
Feb 1 | Advance parties 4th Aust Inf Bde arrive at Zeitoun |
3 | Turkish troops attack Suez Canal. New Zealanders engage; one man dies of wounds and another is wounded |
19 | Naval attack on the forts at the entrance of the Dardanelles |
26 | NZ Infantry Brigade returns from Suez Canal to Zeitoun |
Mar 18 | End of Dardanelles Naval attack. Queen, Irresistible and Bouvet sunk. |
29 | Inspection of Division by Sir Ian Hamilton |
Apr 9 | NZ and A Division, less mounted units, entrain for Alexandria |
10 | First transports leaves for Mudros |
15 | Transport Lutzow with Divisional Headquarters on board arrives in Mudros Harbour |
24 | French, British, Australian and New Zealand transports leave Mudros Harbour |
25 | French land at Kum Kale |
British land at Cape Helles | |
Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) land at Anzac Cove; 3rd Australian Infantry Brigade force a landing at dawn | |
NZ Divisional Headquarters and details ashore at 10am; Auckland Battalion all ashore by 12 noon; No 1 Field Company NZ Engineers and Canterbury and Otago Infantry land during the afternoon | |
Wellington Infantry land during the night | |
26 | 6am two guns of NZ Howitzer Battery land and come into action |
Turkish counter attacks beaten off at Anzac | |
27 | 2nd Battery NZFA lands at 3am |
Heavy attack against centre and Walkers Ridge beaten off 9.30am | |
28 | Portsmouth and Chatham Battalions (Royal Marine Brigade) arrive 6pm |
No 2 Company Divisional Train arrive at night | |
29 | Heavy Turkish attacks all along the Anzac line |
A Naval Brigade (Nelson and Deal Battalion) arrive at night | |
May 2 | Turkish observation post destroyed at Lala Baba by Canterbury Battalion |
2/3 | Otago attack on at head of Monash Gully (Baby 700) fails |
3 | Turkish warship in straits fires on transports;Annaberg hit |
4 | Australian raid on Gaba Tepe beaten off |
5/6 | NZ Infantry Brigade and 2nd Australian Brigade leave for Cape Helles |
6 | 3rd Reinforcements arrive at Anzac (839 men) - sent down to Helles |
Combined French, British and Colonial Forces commence attack on Krithia | |
7 | New Zealanders in support of 29th Division |
8 | NZ Infantry and 2nd Australian Brigade attack on Krithia defeated |
10 | Australians at head of Monash Gully attack Turks, but withdrew |
12 | NZ Mounted Rifles (1,500 men) arrive at Anzac to fight as infantry |
General Chauvel with 1,400 men of the Australian Light Horse arrives at Anzac | |
14 | HMS Goliath sunk at mouth of straits |
Queenslanders make a sortie from Quinns Post | |
15 | General Birdwood slightly wounded in the head at Quinns Post |
General Bridges mortally wounded | |
16 | 6-inch Howitzer with RMLI crew arrives in support of the Division |
Machine Gun detachment Otago Mounted Rifles arrives at Anzac | |
17 | 2nd Australian Infantry Brigade returns. |
3 guns of 2nd Battery NZFA manhandled up to Plugges Plateau | |
18 | Heavy Turkish attacks |
German Taube flew over Anzac | |
19 | Turkish attack at Anzac defeated |
NZ Infantry Brigade returns from Helles | |
20 | Otago Mounted Rifles (500) arrive at Anzac to fight as infantry |
Turks first ask for an armistice | |
24 | Armistice Day to bury dead |
25 | HMS Triumph torpedoed off Gaba Tepe |
27 | HMS Majestic torpedoed off Cape Helles |
28 | Late at night Turks fire mine in front of Quinns Post |
Canterbury Mounted Rifles take "Old No 3 Post" | |
29 | Attack on Quinns Post - Major Quinn killed |
NZ Infantry Brigade relieves 4th Australian Brigade No 3 Section | |
31 | Turk blockhouse blown up in front of Quinns by two sappers |
NZ Mounted Rifles forced to abandon Old No 3 Post | |
Jun 3 | 2nd Field Company NZ Engineers (239) arrive at Anzac |
4 | Slight advance made at Cape Helles |
Canterbury Infantry raided from Quinns Post late at night | |
5 | Sortie against German Officers Trench opposite Courtney's Post |
7 | Fourth Reinforcements arrive at Anzac (1,761) |
Sortie from Quinns Post night of 7/8th | |
8 | First Monitor appears off Anzac |
10 | Scouting parties of NZ Mounted Rifles driven back to No 2 Post |
12 | 4.5 Howitzer taken from Howitzer Gully up to Plugges Plateau |
21 | French capture the Haricot Redoubt at Cape Helles |
28 | Successful British attack at Helles |
29/30 | The last Turkish attack at Anzac fails |
Jul 2 | Determined Turkish attack at Helles unsuccessful |
4/5 | Another heavy attack beaten off by British at Cape Helles |
10 | Turks at Cape Helles ask for Armistice to bury their dead - refused. |
12 | General Masnou, commanding the 1st French Division at Helles, mortally wounded |
31 | 200 men of the 11th West Australian Battalion take Turkish trenches opposite Tasmania Post |
Aug 3 | 13th (New Army) commences landing at Anzac |
6/7 | British attack at Cape Helles |
Australians attack at Lone Pine, Quinns Post and Russells Top | |
Old No 3 Post retaken and Table Top and Beauchops Hill taken by NZ Mounted Rifles | |
Damakjelik Bair captured by Left Covering Force (Traver's 40th) | |
7 | 9 Corps land at Suvla Bay before dawn |
Rhododendron Spur in the hands of New Zealanders | |
Auckland Battalion attack fails | |
8 | Wellington Battalion captures Chunuk Bair |
Reinforced by Auckland Mounted Rifles during day | |
Relieved by Otago Battalion and Wellington Mounted Rifles that night | |
New Army remains inactive at Suvla | |
Fifth Reinforcements reach Anzac and go into the firing line | |
9 | Ghurkas reach the Saddle between Hill Q and Chunuk Bair |
New Zealanders hold Chunuk Bair; relieved at night by New Army Troops | |
10 | New Army Troops driven from Chunuk Bair by Turkish counter attack |
11 | Stalemate at Suvla |
21 | First attack on Hill 60 |
26 | Maheno arrives off Anzac |
27 | Battle renewed for the possession of Hill 60 |
28 | New Zealanders hold and consolidate position on Hill 60 |
Sept | Troops withdrawn to rest at Sarpi on Lemnos |
29 | British and Indian troops enter Kut-el-Amara |
30 | 10th (Irish) Division leave Sulva for Salonika |
Oct 3 | 2nd French Division leave Helles for Salonika |
11 | Lord Kitchener asks Sir Ian Hamilton for the estimated cost of evacuation |
12 | Sir Ian Hamilton replies that evacuation is unthinkable |
14 | In the House of Lords, Lord Milner and Lord Ribblesdale call for the evacuation of Gallipoli |
16 | Lord Kitchener recalls Sir Ian Hamilton |
17 | Sir Ian Hamilton issues his farewell order |
20 | General Munro, in London, received instructions to proceed to the Near East to take over command of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force |
23 | Wreck of Marquette carrying 1st NZ Stationary Hospital to Salonika - 10 NZ nurses drown |
30 | General Sir Charles Munro first visit to the Peninsula |
Nov 2 | 4th Australian Infantry Brigade arrives from Sarpi Rest Camp |
10 | NZ Mounted Rifles return to Anzac from Mudros Rest Camp |
13 | Lord Kitchener visits Anzac |
Mr Winston Churchill resigns from the British Cabinet | |
17 | Lt Col Braithwaite, DSO, assumes command of NZ Infantry Brigade |
24 | Period of silence ordered: lasted 72 hours |
Major General Russell assumes command of NZ and A Division | |
26 | Major General Godley assumes command of Army Corps |
27/28 | Commencement of the Great Blizzard |
Dec 3 | General Townshend besieged at Kut-el-Amara |
8 | General Munro orders General Birdwood to proceed with the evacuation of Anzac and Suvla |
10/11 | All sick, wounded, surplus troops, vehicles and valuable stores removed |
12 | Announced at Anzac that a winter rest camp would be formed at Imbros. Surplus guns removed |
15 | Detailed orders issued for the evacuation |
16 | All ranks warned of impending operation |
19 | The last night of the evacuation of Anzac and Suvla |
20 | Evacuation of Anzac and Suvla completed by daylight |
Troops disembarked at Lemos | |
25 | Christmas Day mostly spent at sea on transports returning to Egypt. Troops transferred to Egypt between December 21 and 31 |
| 1916 | |
Jan 9 | Evacuation from Cape Helles completed Day By Day at Gallipoli(Found athttp://www.rsa.org.nz/remem/anzac_gallipoli.html) |
Naval Attacks
The British and French naval attack on the forts guarding the narrows began on 19 of January, 1915. Within a week the forts guarding the outer reaches of the Narrows and the Dardanelles were destroyed and attention was turned to the defences of mine fields guarded by batteries of mobile field guns and howitzers.
The allies progress was slow.This was because of an attempt to destroy the forts and guns guarding the defences that was made on March 18, 1915. It ended in disaster. Some ships struck mines, three of which were lost. This meant that the turkish mines remained a barrier for the allied forces.
The Proposal of LandingEven before the naval attack started, the war council had decided to support the attack with a landed force. General Sir Ian Hamilton who was put in charge of of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, decided to visit the area to check on progress but by the time he arrived in the region on March 17, there were doubts about the naval strategy. The events that followed, on the 18th of March, confirmed these doubts and Hamilton soon shifted emphasis to a military operation.
A landing was proposed. The aim would be to capture the Kilid Bahr Plateau. From there the rest of the Turkish positions could be destroyed and the naval assault could continue.
Military forces commanded by Sir Ian Hamilton gathered in Egypt. There were 75,000 men who were in the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. These men came from France, the United Kingdom and other parts of the British Empire. The Anzac's were among these and they had been in Egypt since December, 1914, training for the Western Front. Though the Anzac's would now be landing at Gallipoli.
On April 25, 1915, New Zealand and Australian troops landed at Anzac Cove on the Gallipoli Peninsula. The troops had to fight their way up steep cliffs in order to establish a foot hold. The Turkish army dug in on the higher slopes and bombarded the Anzac's with rifle and mortar shell fire. Many were killed or wounded as they came ashore.
Those who survived rushed forward, attacking the Turks with rifles and bayonets. They succeeded in driving them back, establishing a beach head and digging in on the slopes. This is where the New Zealand and Australian forces first got the name 'diggers'. Gradually the a front line was formed and some order was achieved. Lieutenant Colonel Malone described the situation:
'The hillside is studded with dugouts, and like an ant heap, swarming with men, the foreshore piled up with stores and ammunition like some huge railway siding.'
The battle settled into a stalemate. Neither the Anzac's or the Turks could make any progress. The Anzac's could not make any progress up the slopes because of Turkish grenades, artillery, rifle and machine gun fire.The Turkish army could not drive the Anzac's back into the sea because of their unyielding ability to hold their ground. Though neither side could make headway casualties were high on both sides.
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| This map shows the landing sites that the Allies used to land at Gallipoli.(This map was found at http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/media/photo/gallipoli-landings-map ) |
Battles at Gallipoli
Short battles that were often costly to both side were common during the first few months of the campaign. Both the Ottoman Empire and the Allied Forces needed to call in reinforcements with in two days of the start of the Gallipoli Campaign. One of the early battles was was the Anzac's attack on the Baby 700.This attack was planned after the arrival of four Royal Naval Division Battalions. The baby 700 was a hill 180metres above sea level and it would serve as a look out for the Anzac's to use. The plan was too ambitious, poorly planned and uncoordinated. Eventually Anzac troops retreated because of this and received around 1,000 casualties.
At Cape Helles, the British forces tried to take the village of Krithia on the 6 of May, 1915. It was a dangerous plan to begin with as it consisted of a frontal attack in broad daylight. The Wellington Battalion was to rush in after an artillery bombardment. Unfortunately, the artillery attack was weak and the Wellington battalion struggled to make even a few hundred metres before having to settling back into a stale mate. This second attack on Krithia helped the British forces make a gain of 500 metres inland though it was at the cost of 6,500 British casualties, including 800 New Zealanders.
After the failures at Helles, more attention was given to the troops at Anzac Cove. There the Anzac's had become better organised and reinforcements had arrived which had brought with them the New Zealand Mounted Rifle Brigade. On the 19 of May, 1915 the Turks launched a massive attack on the Anzac's. Around 10,000 Anzac's faced over 40,000 Turkish soldiers. The Turks plan was to use a surprise attack and overwhelm the Anzac's with their huge numbers alone. The Anzac's ,though, defended themselves and their the ground they occupied from the repeated attacks. Around 3,000 Turks died and another 7,000 were wounded. For the Turks, though this was their biggest disaster. Considering it was alarge disaster it was only one of a few disasters that they had during the whole campaign.
As unsucsessful attacks at Helles continued, General Sir Ian Hamilton who was in charge of the Gallipoli campaign, began planning and preparing for an attack at Anzac. His aim was to take the higher positions of the Sari Bair range and drive the Turks from the high slopes. Two columns of men, a left column and a right column, would be needed to advance up the Sari Bair range and capture Chunuk Bair, Hill Q and Hill 971 (Koja Chenen Tepe) during the nights of the 6 and 7 of August, 1915. A diversionary attack by the Australians would distract the Turks from the assault.This was the attack at Lone Pine. Lone Pine was one of the few victories for the Allied forces. Four days of fighting lead to the Australian control of the area. 7,000 Turks and 2,000 Australians died during this battle. The Turks pulled out of the Lone pine area though only to appear on the Sari Bair. At dusk on the 6 of August, 1915, two covering forces set out to secure the foothills through which the columns would move. The Maori Contingent and New Zealand Mounted Rifles units took the key point and made sure the path was clear. Then the plan fell apart when the left attacking column got lost in the dark whilst trying to navigate the rugged terrain. And the right attacking column never actually formed. Its two parts were to meet on the Rhododendron spur, which was approximately 500 metres below the summit, before making the rest of the way to the top of Chunuk Bair. At dawn on the 7th of August the New Zealand Infantry brigade ,who was one of the parts of the colum, was still waiting at the spur for the other part to arrive. The attack went ahead without them at mid-morning. The Wellington Battalion were commanded to meet witth the Auckland Battalion who reached 200 metres short of the summitUnder the cover of the early morning darkness on August the 8th, 1915, the Wellington Battalion rushed to the top of the hill to find it had been abandoned by the Turks. British soldiers and some of the Auckland battalion made it to the summit not long after. Reinforcements (the Otago Battalion and the Wellington Mounted Rifles) could not reach the summit to relieve the tired soldiers until that evening. The New Zealanders held the summit for two days under the heat of the turkish climate and under constant fire from the Turks. But on the 10 of August, 1915, a massive Turkish counter attack pushed the British soldiers, who had relieved the Anzac's the previous night, off the summit. Delays compromised the plan and were a major reason for its failure. Even when The British troops had taken their positions at Chunuk Bair or Hill Q, which was captured for a while by Gurkha soldiers, sufficient reinforcements could not arrive to secure their position. Had positions been held, the Allies could have pushed on towards the Narrows to destroy the remaing forts and let the naval attack proceed.
At Cape Helles, the British forces tried to take the village of Krithia on the 6 of May, 1915. It was a dangerous plan to begin with as it consisted of a frontal attack in broad daylight. The Wellington Battalion was to rush in after an artillery bombardment. Unfortunately, the artillery attack was weak and the Wellington battalion struggled to make even a few hundred metres before having to settling back into a stale mate. This second attack on Krithia helped the British forces make a gain of 500 metres inland though it was at the cost of 6,500 British casualties, including 800 New Zealanders.
After the failures at Helles, more attention was given to the troops at Anzac Cove. There the Anzac's had become better organised and reinforcements had arrived which had brought with them the New Zealand Mounted Rifle Brigade. On the 19 of May, 1915 the Turks launched a massive attack on the Anzac's. Around 10,000 Anzac's faced over 40,000 Turkish soldiers. The Turks plan was to use a surprise attack and overwhelm the Anzac's with their huge numbers alone. The Anzac's ,though, defended themselves and their the ground they occupied from the repeated attacks. Around 3,000 Turks died and another 7,000 were wounded. For the Turks, though this was their biggest disaster. Considering it was alarge disaster it was only one of a few disasters that they had during the whole campaign.
As unsucsessful attacks at Helles continued, General Sir Ian Hamilton who was in charge of the Gallipoli campaign, began planning and preparing for an attack at Anzac. His aim was to take the higher positions of the Sari Bair range and drive the Turks from the high slopes. Two columns of men, a left column and a right column, would be needed to advance up the Sari Bair range and capture Chunuk Bair, Hill Q and Hill 971 (Koja Chenen Tepe) during the nights of the 6 and 7 of August, 1915. A diversionary attack by the Australians would distract the Turks from the assault.This was the attack at Lone Pine. Lone Pine was one of the few victories for the Allied forces. Four days of fighting lead to the Australian control of the area. 7,000 Turks and 2,000 Australians died during this battle. The Turks pulled out of the Lone pine area though only to appear on the Sari Bair. At dusk on the 6 of August, 1915, two covering forces set out to secure the foothills through which the columns would move. The Maori Contingent and New Zealand Mounted Rifles units took the key point and made sure the path was clear. Then the plan fell apart when the left attacking column got lost in the dark whilst trying to navigate the rugged terrain. And the right attacking column never actually formed. Its two parts were to meet on the Rhododendron spur, which was approximately 500 metres below the summit, before making the rest of the way to the top of Chunuk Bair. At dawn on the 7th of August the New Zealand Infantry brigade ,who was one of the parts of the colum, was still waiting at the spur for the other part to arrive. The attack went ahead without them at mid-morning. The Wellington Battalion were commanded to meet witth the Auckland Battalion who reached 200 metres short of the summitUnder the cover of the early morning darkness on August the 8th, 1915, the Wellington Battalion rushed to the top of the hill to find it had been abandoned by the Turks. British soldiers and some of the Auckland battalion made it to the summit not long after. Reinforcements (the Otago Battalion and the Wellington Mounted Rifles) could not reach the summit to relieve the tired soldiers until that evening. The New Zealanders held the summit for two days under the heat of the turkish climate and under constant fire from the Turks. But on the 10 of August, 1915, a massive Turkish counter attack pushed the British soldiers, who had relieved the Anzac's the previous night, off the summit. Delays compromised the plan and were a major reason for its failure. Even when The British troops had taken their positions at Chunuk Bair or Hill Q, which was captured for a while by Gurkha soldiers, sufficient reinforcements could not arrive to secure their position. Had positions been held, the Allies could have pushed on towards the Narrows to destroy the remaing forts and let the naval attack proceed.
Conditions at Gallipoli
Terrain:
Steep valleys, deep ravines and high cliffs towering above long narrow beaches make up most of what the terrain consists of.
Weather:
The weather was extremely varied. Searing hot summers were and are common as well as bitterly cold winters. Rain was another big problem, when a storm hit the Gallpoli Peninsula, the rain was so bad that the trenches filled with water. Men drowned and possessions were washed away.
Food and Water:
Food was plentiful though unvaried.It consisted of tinned meat, jam, tea, and biscuits so hard it was like biting into a rock. Fruit and vegetables were in short supply. Water was scarce for a lot of the time. Troops dug wells and grabbed water bottles off dead bodies. Ships brought in most of the water and loaded it into large tank on the shore.
Disease:
Disease, especially dysentry flourished among men already weakened from weeks of inadequate food. Bill East said in Voices of Gallipoli by Maurice Shadbolt, 1988:
I was running all the time. We couldn't enjoy our food. We were down to skin and bones. Dysentry just ate away at our intestines.
The Psychological effects on soldiers were enormous. With no place safe from artillery fire troops would be very paranoid. Vic Nicholson said in Voices of Gallipoli, by Maurice Shadbolt, 1988:
I remember moving downhill in the dark. There was a bloke screaming somewhere, screaming terribly. He could have been a New Zealander. He could have been a Turk... Scared? Sometimes you were too scared to be scared.
Another source of disease was the flies. Fred Waite said in The New Zealanders at Gallipoli:
Countless hordes of flies settled on everything edible. The soldiers waved them off. The black cloud rose and descended among the filth on the other side of the parapet. Presently they were back again on the food,-and so on, from the jam to the corpse, and back again to the jam, fitted the insect swarm, ensuring that the germ of most things undesirable were conveyed to the soldier's system through his mouth.
The Psychological effects on soldiers were enormous. With no place safe from artillery fire troops would be very paranoid. Vic Nicholson said in Voices of Gallipoli, by Maurice Shadbolt, 1988:
I remember moving downhill in the dark. There was a bloke screaming somewhere, screaming terribly. He could have been a New Zealander. He could have been a Turk... Scared? Sometimes you were too scared to be scared.
Another source of disease was the flies. Fred Waite said in The New Zealanders at Gallipoli:
Countless hordes of flies settled on everything edible. The soldiers waved them off. The black cloud rose and descended among the filth on the other side of the parapet. Presently they were back again on the food,-and so on, from the jam to the corpse, and back again to the jam, fitted the insect swarm, ensuring that the germ of most things undesirable were conveyed to the soldier's system through his mouth.
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