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Australia

From Gallipoli, 1915

Lieutenant Irwin Carleton Burges, 10th Australian Light Horse Regiment, was wounded in action at Hill 60 on 29th August 1915.

Writing home from hospital in England (it's a long letter but well worth reading), he had been evacuated on the same hospital ship as Hugo Throssall, V.C. (pictured), he gave a vivid description of the attack at The Nek on 7th August 1915 and of the fighting at Hill 60.

“The Australians at Gallipoli.
“DEEDS OF HEROISM.
“GRAPHIC LETTER FROM LIEUT. BURGES.
“Lieut Irwin C. Burges, of Dongara, writing from the 3rd General Hospital, Wandsworth, London, to the 'Guardian' says:

“As you will note I have changed my address temporarily from Gallipoli to London; a bullet through my hand and being buried three times by 75 shells necessitated this change. Well to give you the latest news from 'Anzac.' By the way few people know the origin or meaning of the name "Anzac." Very simple, it simply means 'Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.' The 10th Light Horse, like the rest of the Australian Forces, has suffered very heavily. On the morning of August 7th we had to attack the Turkish trenches opposite our lines and about 15 yards from us. The 8th light Horse formed the first and second lines of attack, and the 10th formed lines 3 and 4. The first line, led by Colonel White, jumped over the parapet, and were immediately met by a hail of lead from machine guns, which seemed to be everywhere. Col White [1] and his men only got a few yards when they fell riddled with bullets. A like fate befell the second line of the 8th, and it was thought that perhaps the 10th would be held back, but the order came to go. To a man the third line jumped over the parapet and they were met with a hellish fire, as the Turks were now all up and doing, and there must have been a dozen machine guns trained on to the top of our parapet. Our poor fellows fell in rows, not one man got more than a few yards from our own trenches. They were mown down like corn before the binder, and we lost 88 men killed outright and 84 badly wounded in five minutes. We survivors crawled back slowly. To move meant death and some took hours to crawl ten yards. The 8th lost even more heavily. We lost 7 officers killed and one wounded. Captain T. Kidd [2], with his famous B Troop lost only one man. They got into a little hollow, and the bullets just skimmed over their heads. Tom Kidd's luck is phenomenal. He and his Troop have always been in the thick of it, and have lost very few men. To give you one instance of Tom Kidd's luck. On May 29th he and a party from his Troop made a sortie from Quinn's Post and got into the front Turkish sap. A. big Turk put his rifle to his shoulder and fired point blank at a couple of yards distance at T. K's head, and just as he fired Kidd threw his head back and the bullet just tore the skin from under his eye and did no further damage. Truly a remarkable escape. But I feel sure be bears a charmed life. Capt. Kidd is one of our best and coolest officers. He has no fear, whatever, in fact, he is reckless at times. I was sergeant of his B. Troop for seven months, and I never wish to be under a fairer or finer officer. It was chiefly on his recommendation that I was one of the first four sergeants of the 10th who got commissions on the field. I was the junior sergeant. Nevertheless I jumped over the heads of others senior to me, chiefly on the splendid recommendation given me by my troop officer, Mr. T. Kidd.

“I regret to say among others killed in that fateful charge on August 7th were Messrs. Tom Burges (Howatharra) [3], R. J. Moore [4] and Du Val [5], of Dongarra. Brave men and true, and they gave their lives unhesitatingly for their King and country, for when the order came to go they knew it meant death and so it proved.

“The worst part of the whole affair was the days and weeks to follow. We had to remain in these same trenches, and look for three weeks at the dead bodies of our mates only a few yards over the parapet. We tried, and did manage to get some of their bodies in, but whenever we tried the Turks opened up a furious rifle and machine gun fire on us. To show how fierce a fire we had to face the very bushes above our parapet were all cut away as if with a knife.

“On August 27th we were relieved by the 20th Battalion, who had just arrived from Egypt, and after initiating them into the ways of trench warfare, we marched out at night on to our left flank in the direction of Suvla Bay, where the new landing had been effected on August 7th. We marched out some four miles and got to our bivouac about 12 p.m. I had to go straight into the fighting out there, which was raging fiercely, as the New Zealand Mounted Brigade had made an attack on Hill 60, and had captured all the trenches except the last line on the top of the hill. I took up 50 men of the 10th and went up with a Ghurka guide to the firing line. We remained behind a bank all that night and all the next day, waiting to be called for, but we were for the time being not required. The following night at midnight the balance of the 10th Regiment came up and we received orders to take the last line of Turkish trenches on the hill. We had to charge 100 yards and take 200 yards of trenches. On our left were the Ghurkas and on our right some Australian Battalions and this 200 yards of trench would link up the who!e line from Suvla Bay right across to Anzac. The Connaught Rangers attempted to take this trench the previous night, but the Turks proved too strong and repelled them with heavy losses. There was not a sound when we moved up into the New Zealanders' trench at 1 a.m. only an odd rifle and machine gun firing, as is usual at night. At the word 'go' we went like one man, and were on the Turks before they knew what had gone wrong. Then followed terrific fighting right through the night. We simply bombed the Turks out. Luckily we had 2000 bombs with us, and we used them the whole night. We told off men to throw back the Turkish bombs and hundreds were hurled back. One second too late in picking one up meant death to yourself and your closest mates. Captain Phil Fry [6], in stooping to pick up a bomb, had his head nearly blown off. Lieuts Locke and McBean were shot dead [7]. We charged with 160 men, all that was left of the 10th and we had received six lots of reinforcements to date. I got wounded shortly after getting to the trenches. A bullet shattered my hand, and then a bomb we missed exploded, and killed two men and knocked me over, so I retired not feeling too well. When I left we were still hanging on to the trenches with about 100 men, 60 having so far been killed or wounded. I was told since by men who got wounded later that the Turks counter attached three times in large numbers and each time were repulsed by our gallant little band with heavy losses. Tommy Kidd and his troop were all there safe when I left, Mr. Kidd smoking a cigarette and superintending the deepening of the trench between the intervals of the fighting, and the erection of sand bags. We had three officers killed and four wounded, including myself. Truly the West Australian regiments and battalions have made a great name, as have the whole of the Australian forces. Unfortunately for us, Colonel Brazier was wounded the morning before our charge, a shrapnel bullet lodging right behind the right eye, but luckily for him it has since fallen out, and I think he will recover the sight of this eye.

“Colonel Brazier [8], Lieut Hugo Throssell (VC) [9] and myself were put on board the hospital ship, and with some 200 others (mostly Australians and New Zealanders), we sailed to England, via Malta. We arrived at Southampton on September 12 after a very calm voyage and were sent straight on here. Everybody here thinks the world of the Australians, and we are being treated right royally. On the train at Southampton, ladies came round with free gifts of chocolates and cigarettes, and the people could not do enough for us. At the hospital here we get splendidly looked after in every way. The food is excellent and the best surgeons and physicians attend daily. Visitors come in hundreds, loaded with presents three days a week and motor cars take our wounded for long drives daily. Men with legs, and arms off are quite common, but all are happy and cheery and we have lots of fun. There is an English officer in one ward with a leg off, and he keeps us in fits of laughter. He has christened his 'stump' ''Erbert,'' and at the end of his bed is a notice, 'Pay 1s. to see 'Erbert.' We have over a dozen Australian officers in this ward, so we are quite at home. All the orderlies here are well known artists, and the man who runs messages and procures us anything we may require is Tom Roberts, the man who painted the opening of the Commonwealth Parliament, I think. There is an exhibition of paintings in one huge ward, vacant for the purpose, all done by orderlies at the hospital here. It just goes to show how seriously the people of England regard this terrible war and it is recognised that it will require the combined efforts of every man and woman in our great Empire to defeat the aims of the two great central powers. Well, I will close, and anything in this letter you would care to make use of you are at liberty to do so. To give you an idea of what land we Australians held at Anzac. Up to August 7, we held a small semi-circle with our backs to the sea, and not more than 600 acres in extent. That is all we had, and had to hold on to it on the edge of the hills for our lives. We could never retreat. Well, I will write you from time to time and in the meantime, best wishes for better times and a good season. — Yours sincerely IRWIN C. BURGES.”

“P.S — I have a younger brother in the Irish Guards [10] in France He has been there nine months and has not been hit. Another charmed life.” [11]

[1] Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Henry White, 8th Australian Light Horse, was killed in action on 7th August 1915. He was the 33 year-old son of Alexander and Eliza White; husband of M. L. White, of 11, Cole Street, Elsternwick, Victoria, Australia. Native of Ballarat. Having no known grave, he is commemorated on the Lone Pine Memorial.

[2] Captain, later Major Thomas Anderson Kidd, 10th Australian Light Horse, Mentioned in Despatches, 26th August 1915. Following a severe attack of cholera in Egypt he returned to Australia on 30th December 1916 and was discharged as no longer physically fit for service on 14th June 1917.

[3] L/Cpl. Thomas Francis Burges, 10th Australian Light Horse, killed in action 7th August 1915. He is commemorated on the Lone Pine Memorial.

[4] Sgt. Reginald Johnstone Moore, 10th Australian Light Horse, killed in action, aged 36, 7th August 1915. He, too, is commemorated on the Lone Pine Memorial. Son of Samuel Joseph Fortescue Moore and Eliza Mary Moore, of Cliff House, Claremont, Western Australia. Native of Dongarra.

[5] Cpl. Denis Du Val, 10th Australian Light Horse, was killed in action on 7th August 1915. He was the 36 year-old son of Gerald and Catherine Du Val, of "Draycote," Birch Hall Lane, Rusholme, Manchester, England, and is commemorated on the Lone Pine Memorial.

[6] Captain Henry Philip Fry, 10th Australian Light Horse, killed in action 29th August 1915; He is commemorated on the Lone Pine Memorial, the son of Henry Partridge Fry and Edith Horatia Fry. Native of Donnybrook, Western Australia.

[7] No trace after at first look.

[8] Lieutenant Colonel Noel Murray Brazier, 10th Australian Light Horse, was wounded in action on 29th August 1915. He was invalided back to Australia on 12th December 1915 as no longer fit for general service.

[9] Captain Hugo Throssell, V.C. The citation for his Victoria Cross was published in the 'London Gazette', 15th November 1915:
"On 29–30 August 1915 at Kaiakij Aghala (Hill 60), Gallipoli, Turkey, Second Lieutenant Throssell, although severely wounded in several places, refused to leave his post during a counter-attack or to obtain medical assistance until all danger was passed, when he had his wounds dressed and returned to the firing line until ordered out of action by the Medical Officer. By his personal courage and example he kept up the spirits of his party and was largely instrumental in saving the situation at a critical period."

[10] Pte. Francis C. Burges, 1st Battalion Irish Guards, died of wounds 18th September 1916, aged 23. Buried in St. Pierre Cemetery, Amiens. Son of Francis Lochier Burges and Esther Scroope his wife. Native of Irwin House, Western Australia.

[11] 'Geraldton Guardian' (West Australia), 30th August 1915.
Image: Hugo Throssell, AWM A03688.