Battle for Baby 700
40°14′46″N 26°16′40″E / 40.24611°N 26.27778°E
Battle for Baby 700 | |
---|---|
Part of the Gallipoli Peninsula | |
Result | Ottoman victory |
The battle for Baby 700 (2/3 May 1915), was an engagement fought during the
On 25 April 1915, the
The attack proved a costly failure for the British Empire forces, after the New Zealand troops on the left flank were delayed, resulting in the main assault by the Australians becoming pinned down. A British force was brought up to help reinforce the position, but ultimately, they too were pushed back, leaving a single Australian battalion alone in the forward position. This battalion was subsequently withdrawn under darkness on the evening of 3 May, and the Turks regained the position. For several months a period of stalemate ensued. This lasted until August 1915, when, in conjunction with the
Background
Strategic situation
Baby 700 is a hill in the Sari Bair range, between Russell's Top and Battleship Hill. It was named after its supposed height above sea level, but its actual height was only 590 feet (180 m).[2] The Turkish name for the hill was Kilic Bayir.[3] The most direct route to there from the present ANZAC lines was a distance of 350 yards (320 m) from Russell's Top through The Nek, a twenty-yard (18 m) wide piece of high ground between Malone's Gully to the north and Monash Valley to the south.[4][5]
During the
When they landed over the night of 25/26 April, the
Allied plans
The initial plans called for a large-scale assault on 30 April, which would capture of all of 400 Plateau in the south, along Mortar Ridge to Baby 700, and along the seaward slopes to the coast in the north. The
The attack was then modified, making the capture of Baby 700 the objective. The
Turkish forces
Turkish troops holding the area came mainly from the
Battle
Initial attacks
At 19:15 as the bombardment lifted, the 16th Battalion climbed out of Monash Valley and as they cleared the ridge, came under heavy Turkish
The 13th Battalion, in the centre, could only initially advance in single file due to the nature of the country. The head of the battalion led by its adjutant,
Elsewhere, the Otago Battalion located on Walker's Ridge, had to move down to the north beach then south into Monash Valley to get into position to start the attack, a distance of around 1.5 miles (2.4 km) and it was not until 20:45 that they reached their start point.[27] They climbed out of the valley to the left of Pope's Post, but by now the Turks were ready and opened fire on them. The New Zealanders made several attempts to move beyond the crest and eventually established a rough defence line at the foot of the Chessboard.[28] There was, however, a gap between the New Zealanders and the 13th Battalion, which was filled at midnight by a company from the 15th Australian Battalion. But like the other assault battalions they were short of where they were supposed to be by now; The Nek, Baby 700 and the head of Monash Valley were still held by the Turks.[26]
Follow up attacks
Godley believed the attacks had been partially successful and with a little extra effort they could achieve their objective. As a result, he instructed both brigade commanders to send more troops to support the attack.
At 01:35, Godley assigned two
The Royal Naval Nelson Battalion was sent forward to support the 13th Battalion, and as they approached the front line, they took the digging Australians for Turks and opened fire on them, until Durrant managed to get them to stop. They then moved into the line to the right of the 13th Battalion. After artillery began falling on the positions of the Nelson Battalion, they were ordered to withdraw. Elements of the 13th Battalion heard this order and also began to move back, before they were called back into the position. Royal Marines from the Portsmouth Battalion then advanced to Dead Man's Ridge via the western approach, having earlier been heavily engaged while attempting to climb the eastern slope. On gaining the position, the Marines came under heavy machine gun fire from the German Officers' Ridge, which was to their right, and behind them. After suffering heavy casualties, the Marines were forced to withdraw, leaving their dead, who remained on the position for several days before a solo effort by one of the survivors allowed them to be brought down and buried.[34]
Aftermath
The failure of the effort to reinforce the position held by the 13th Battalion meant that they remained exposed, and alone out in front of the line. Unable to raise their brigade headquarters via telephone, or by runner, the battalion had no information about the situation. The battalion commander, Lieutenant Colonel Granville Burnage, left Durrant in charge and made a solo effort to reach Monash at brigade headquarters after 15:00 on 3 May. Reaching brigade headquarters, he was told to withdraw his battalion and subsequently headed back up the slope to direct the withdrawal after nightfall. Bringing their wounded with them, the 13th Battalion withdrew from the position in an orderly fashion and in the aftermath, the Turks occupied the trenches previously dug by the 13th Battalion, consolidating them into the Chessboard position.[35]
The unsuccessful effort by British, Australian and New Zealand troops to capture Baby 700 resulted in heavy casualties. The exact number of casualties is not recorded, but historian Chris Coulthard-Clark estimates them at around 1,000.
References
- Footnotes
- Ottoman Turkish Empire. While the terms have distinct historical meanings, within many English-language sources the terms "Turkey" and "Ottoman Empire" are used interchangeably, although sources differ in their approaches.[1]The sources used in this article predominantly use the term "Turkey".
- ^ The Chessboard got its name from the "criss-cross" shape of the Turkish trenches resembling a chess board.[10]
- 1st Australian Division.[16]
- Citations
- ^ Fewster, Basarin, Basarin 2003, pp. xi–xii
- ^ Hutchinson 2006, p.51
- ^ Fewster, Basarin, Basarin 2003, p. xiii
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 584
- ^ a b Hart 2011, p. 88
- ^ Hart 2011, p.78
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 576
- ^ a b Bean 1941a, p. 577
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 579
- ^ "Gallipoli Placenames". Australian Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Archived from the original on 24 October 2013. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 578
- ^ Broadbent 2005, pp. 121–122
- ^ Bean 1941a, pp. 581–582
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 582
- ^ Stevenson 2012, p.121
- ^ Macleod 2004, p.55
- ^ Bean 1941a, pp. 583–584
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 585
- ^ Broadbent 2005, p. 128
- ^ Turkish General Staff 2004, plate 20
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 586
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 587
- ^ Bean 1941a, pp. 593–594
- ^ Bean 1941a, pp. 587–588
- ^ Bean 1941a, pp. 588–589
- ^ a b Bean 1941a, p. 591
- ^ Bean 1941a, pp. 589–590
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 590
- ^ Bean 1941a, pp. 591–592
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 592
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 593
- ^ Bean 1941a, p.594
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 595
- ^ Bean 1941a, pp. 596–597
- ^ Bean 1941a, p. 597
- ^ Coulthard-Clark 1998, p. 105.
- ^ Bean 1941b, p. 249
- ^ Hart 2013, p. 184
- ^ Bean 1941b, p. 463
- ^ Coulthard-Clark 1998, pp. 107–110
- Bibliography
- OCLC 220878987.
- Bean, Charles (1941b). The Story of ANZAC from 4 May, 1915, to the Evacuation of the Gallipoli Peninsula. Official History of Australia in the War of 1914–1918. Vol. II (11th ed.). Sydney: Angus & Robertson. OCLC 39465972.
- ISBN 978-0-670-04085-8.
- Coulthard-Clark, Chris (1998). The Encyclopaedia of Australia's Battles (1st ed.). Sydney, New South Wales: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86448-611-2.
- Fewster, Kevin; Basarin, Vecihi; Basarin, Hatice Hurmuz (2003). Gallipoli: The Turkish Story. Crows Nest, New South Wales: Allen and Unwin. ISBN 1-74114-045-5.
- Hart, Peter (2011). Gallipoli. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19991-187-5.
- Hart, Peter (2013). Gallipoli. London: Profile Books. ISBN 978-1-84668-161-5.
- Hutchinson, Garrie (2006). Pilgrimage A Traveller's Guide to Australia's Battlefields. Collingwood, Victoria: Black Inc. ISBN 1-86395-387-6.
- Macleod, Jenny (2004). Gallipoli Making History. Oxford: Routledge. ISBN 1-13577-156-1.
- Stevenson, Robert (2012). To Win the Battle: The 1st Australian Division in the Great War 1914–1918. Australian Army History Series. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-10702-868-5.
- Turkish General Staff (2004). A Brief History of the Canakkale Campaign in the First World War. Ankara: Turkish General Staff Printing House. ISBN 978-9-75409-307-0.