7th August 1915 On this day: Training and recreation   6th County of London Brigade RFA report the Assistant Director of Veterinary Services 47 Div. lectured to the class of proposed Shoeing Smiths, undergoing a six weeks course of instruction. The Brigade held an illuminated concert in the woods at which the Regimental Band of the 6th London Field Ambulance played a selection of music. Amongst those present were - the GOCRA and staff of 47th Divisional Artillery, Major Doyle and staff of 1V Corps, the Staff of 142 Infantry Brigade and the Staff of 47th Division. War Diaries 20th Heavy Battery proceed to France   20th Heavy Battery RGA arrive in France   train  Ship Shelled  Choose to Take on Again    The attack at the Nek was to coincide with an attack by New Zealand soldiers from Chunuk Bair, and was also supposed to be captured in the early morning of August 7th. The Australian 3rd Light Horse Brigade were to take the Nek while New Zealanders took Battleship Hill from the rear. The 3rd Light Horse Brigade were raised in Australia as a combined infantry, artillery and cavalry unit. They were shipped to Egypt, where they had to leave their horses and serve as infantry in Gallipoli. The attack was supposed to begin at 0430 after a naval bombardment. The 8th and 10th Light Horse Regiments were to advance on a front 80 yards wide, in four waves of 150 men each. Each wave was to go over the top ever two minutes. The Ottoman lines were only 29 yards away. Unfortunately the New Zealand advance failed to reach Chunuk Bair. Without capturing that high ground the Ottoman machine guns, with their enfiladed fire, would slaughter anyone crossing the ground around Quinn’s Post and the Nek. Major General Sir Alexander Godley, commander of the ANZAC Division, declared that the attack would proceed anyway. The artillery bombardment also went wrong, with the barrage ending at 0423. The officers in the trenches did not know if the artillery was to continue or not. The artillery officer and the assault officer had not synchronized their watches prior to the attack. The attack did not go at 0430 and this gave the Ottoman defenders plenty of time to return to their trenches and prepare for the assault they now knew was coming. The first wave of 150 men, from the 8th Light Horse Regiment, went over the top, and within 30 seconds they were all gunned down. Incredibly a few men made it to the enemy trenches and marker flags were seen flying, but those men were quickly shot or bayoneted by the Ottoman defenders. The second wave followed the first, without hesistation, two minutes later. They were met by the same wall of murderous machine gun and rifle fire, and were cut down before they got halfway to the trench… only about 15 yards. A supporting attack by the Royal Welch Fusiliers against the "Chessboard" trenches also suffered 65 casualties before it too was called off. A simultaneous attack by the 2nd Light Horse Regiment, from the 1st Light Horse Brigade at Quinn’s Post was abandoned when 49 out of the 50 men in the first wave were killed or wounded. Their regiment commander did not go over in the first wave and was able to stop the slaughter. Unfortunately for the men attacking the Nek, the 8th Light Horse Regiment’s commander, Lieutenant Colonel A.H. White, was in the first wave and lay dead in the the space between the two trenches. No one called off the attack. The commander of the 10th Light Horse Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Noel Brazier, tried to call off the third wave, claiming that "the whole thing was nothing but bloody murder", but he could not persuade the Brigade Major, Colonel John Anthill, to end the attack. Neither could find the Brigade commander Colonel Hughes. Anthill implied that there was success since marker flags were seen in the trenches. Anthill ordered the third wave to go over the top. The third wave "hopped the bags" and was slaughtered. Many of the men just ran out of the trench and immediately dived for cover, using the bodies of those who went before them as a buffer from the bullets. Since their duty was just to get over the trench and they considered it fulfilled. Due to this the 10th Light Horse Regiment had a lower casualty rate than the 8th Regiment. The attack was finally called off, but amazingly, in all the chaos of the morning, about half of the fourth wave went over, and they were cut down too. By 0445 it was over and the ridge was covered with dead and wounded Australians. They would remain there for the duration. Out of the 600 Australians that took part in the attack, 372 fell. The 8th Light Horse Regiment lost 234 men out of the 300 who "hopped the bags" and 154 of them were killed. The 10th Light Horse Regiment lost 138 out of their 300 of which 80 were killed. The Ottoman losses were almost non-exitent, with only eight dead. It is said the Australians were ordered to charge with unloaded rifles, using only the bayonet.  Working Parties  Reliefs Completed  Developing Action  Trench Work  Artillery Active  Reliefs  Accident  Reliefs  Withdrawal  In Action  In Action        Working Parties  Outposts  Lord Kitchener inspection  Reliefs  On the March  On the March  Intermittent Shelling  In the Trenches  Attachment  Attack Made  Machine Guns  Cleaning up  Defence Work  Artillery Active  Working Parties  Under Fire  On the Move  Landing  Guns Moved  In Billets  On the March  Hop-Pole Mystery  In the Line  In Action  Battalion reliefs  Instruction  On the Move  Moved to Labeuvriere.  Training  On the March  Rest Period  Trench Work  Enemy again shelled  On the Move  Promotions    SM U-68 Type U 66 Shipyard Germaniawerft, Kiel (Werk 205) Ordered 2 Feb 1913 Laid down 31 Dec 1913 Launched 1 Jun 1915 Commissioned 17 Aug 1915 Commanders. 17 Aug 1915 - 22 Mar 1916 Ludwig Güntzel Career 1 patrols. 28 Nov 1915 - 22 Mar 1916 IV Flotilla Successes No successes. John Doran Can you add to this factual information? Do you know the whereabouts of a unit on a particular day? Do you have a copy of an official war diary entry? Details of an an incident? The loss of a ship? A letter, postcard, photo or any other interesting snipts? If your information relates only to an individual, eg. enlistment, award of a medal or death, please use this form: Add a story.

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Remembering those who died this day, 7th of August 1915. Pte. George Ashcroft. 1st/8th Btn. B Coy. Manchester Regiment Read their Story. L/Cpl. Philip Bannon. 1st Btn. Royal Dublin Fusiliers Read their Story. L/Cpl. William Bradley. 1/7th Btn. Lancashire Fusiliers Read their Story. Pte. Henry Butcher. 7th Battalion Manchester Regiment Read their Story. 2nd Lt. William Stewart Collen. 6th Btn. Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers Read their Story. Lt Col. Archibald Daukes. 7th Btn. South Staffordshire Regiment Read their Story. Pte. Isaac Gillan. 9th Battalion Lancashire Fusiliers Read their Story. L/Cpl. John Hammersley. 9th Btn. Lancashire Fusiliers Tpr. Vivian Worthington Lees. 8th Btn. Light Horse Read their Story. Pte. Edward Marsh. 11th Battalion Manchester Regiment Read their Story. L/Cpl. Christopher Mooney. 11th Battalion Manchester Regiment Read their Story. Cpl William Henry Preston. 8th Btn. Northumberland Fusiliers Pte. Ernest Ramsbottom. 8th (Ardwick) Btn. Manchester Regiment Pte. Abraham Ridley. 6th Btn. Border Regiment Read their Story. Samuel Wilbur. 1st Battalion Leicester Regiment Pte. Samuel Wilbur. 1st Btn. Leicestershire Regiment L/Cpl. Albert Woodward. 7th Btn. South Staffordshire Regiment Read their Story. Add a name to this list.

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