Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/205/1 - 1915 - 1918 - Part 1

AWM38
Official History,
1914-18 War: Records of C E W Bean,
Official Historian.
Diaries and Notebooks
Item number: 3DRL606/205/1
Title: Notebook, 1915 - 1918
Includes references to the 9th, 12th, 18th and
20th Battalions, 5th Infantry Brigade, Mont St
Quentin, Beaurevoir, Bullecourt, Framerville and
Gallipoli.
AWM38-3DRL606/205/1 

Original DIARY NO.205.
AWM38  3DRL 606 ITEM 205 [1]
DIARIES AND NOTES OF C. E. W. BEAN
CONCERNING THE WAR OF 1914 - 1918
THE use of these diaries and notes is subject to conditions laid down in the terms
of gift to the Australian War Memorial.  But apart from those terms, I wish the 
following circumstances and considerations to be brought to the notice of every
reader and writer who may use them.
These writings represent only what at the moment of making them I believed to be
true.  The diaries were jotted down almost daily with the object of recording what
was then in the writer's mind.  Often he wrote them when very tired and half asleep;
also not infrequently, what he believed to be true was not so - but it does not
follow that he always discovered this, or remembered to correct the mistakes when
discovered.  Indeed he could not always remember that he had written them.
These records should, therefore, be used with great caution, as relating only what
their author, at the time of writing believed.  Further, he cannot, of course, vouch
for the accuracy of statements made to him by others and here recorded.  But he
did try to ensure such accuracy by consulting, as far as possible, those who had
seen or otherwise taken part in the events.  The constant falsity of second-hand
evidence (on which a large proportion of war stories are founded) was impressed
upon him by the second or third day of the Gallipoli campaign, notwithstanding that
those who passed on such stories usually themselves believed them to be true.  All
second-hand evidence herein should be read with this in mind. 
16 Sept., 1946.  C. E. W. BEAN

AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL 
ACCESS STATUS 
OPEN 

20 Bn Mt St Q.
xx  (Capt Anthon. Maj. McDonald)
The C.O. found while Bn ws
on / way up tt there were still
Germs in the SE end of Clery.
The xxx 10 Bde thought this ws
clear but there might be Germs.
still there.  For this reason
Bn went round by ELEu Alley.
Another reason ws to get the
Bn as far as possible without 
being seen - 3rd Divn had
been seen heavily shelled previous
aftn w of Clery. 
When Bn got thro in 6.c
the A Coy, wh hd, found tt
the trench had bn used by / 
Germs for horse standings -
1

They had to break these
barriers down - mostly
timber & ruberoid; all
/ time they were getting
heavy m.g. fire from abt 
Berlingots trench (wh ws
higher (on a ridge) & from 
the extreme SE end o / village.
The trench ws low & they 
had to crawl. 
After they got to abt
Abt 50 yds W o /
junctn of Eleu Alley & Lt Gonds
trench Lt Anderson Anthon
w / leading pln of A coy
wh ws well ahead got a 
m.g.  A German fired on
them - & they had to get out
of / trench under m.g. fire from
/ knuckle ahead, flank the
2 

gun - & got 7 Germans & a 
m.g. It ws abt 1 p.m. in
the day. This gun ws only abt
20 yds away in / bend o /
same trench - he had opened
a little bit short - & they got
out & behind him.  He turned
it in then - xxxx without a bomb.
They got into St. Gond trench
& got several Germans in a
huge dugout there.  They were in
/ dugout & were taken when
it ws examined.
The back of this trench ws
open to m.g. fire from /
gun in / extreme end o /
village.  They trained their
m.gs. on this gun & the
3rd Divn came in from behind
3

& took these Germs.  They 20Bn had
passed by them thro the 3rd
Divn outposts.
20 Bn found it cd not go
across / rd.  main road
as there was a thick
nest of 8 German m.gs.
in the pocket betw / rd
& / railway at 12 B 3.7.
These were covering / Omiecourt
Bridgehead. There xx were also
2 m.gs. in xx Avion trench. 
Lt Elliott went up the C.T.
to Avion trench & bombed
these 2 m.g. posts killing
8 Germans & taking several
prisoners. They then tried
to get across / rd at /
pocket (thro Avion trench) but
4

m.g. fire from the pronounced
height abt 7 A 4.2. had
them. The C.T.s & the road were
were ^then all covered by separate
guns. ^Rest of Bn then came up in
rear & occupied St. Gond trench
& Lt Balmeno w Sergt
Welch D.C.M., M.M., went
forward crossed / rd &
went along / rly line.
They got 14 prisoners &
2 m.g.s from / pocket.
They crawled in on their bellies &
threw a bomb - one ^went for each
o / two different posts. This
cleared / pocket.
They Bn then waited
till dusk. in St Gond trench. 
5

Anthons Coy had taken 60 prisoners
at dusk  D C B A
followed round in tt order
xx filing out of St Gond trench
onto / main Rd keeping
under / cover o  / high
bank beneath wh /
rd runs. They folld /
rd to the high bank
wh crosses it (running NE)
The hill rises like a bamp
from tt bank.
A Coy rushed into /
Gully made by tt bank,
killing several Germans -
Lt Elliott A Coy went bombing up
Slant Alley & Lt Anthon A Coy
up St Didier Alley. The
Germans ran in droves from
6

/ far end o / Alley up over
/ hill on / sky line. Anthon
saw Elliotts L.G. firing on
them (heard / noise o / L.G.
& saw / sparks) Anthon put
his ^L. gunner up & X fired.
There were lots of Germs k.
there.
From this ^the cross trench wh cuts / end of these trenches they got
4 mgs & 84 prisoners.
They then passed backwards
for reinfts & / remainder o /
Bn came forward - B Coy
occupying Slant Alley to form
a defensive flank - the rest
taking a positn ahead in /
unnamed trench facing
the front, & awaiting further
orders.
During / night the C.O.
7

came up & gave them their
instrns. There were only
11 offrs. & 246 o.r. in the
Bn - total Strength & so it
ws a very windy prospect.
Out of these 8 men of A Coy

had bn. k-  2 of C.Coy & a few
wd.  The A Coy men were
killed in Avion trench.
As / aftn got on he barraged
Eleu trench very heavily but

just missed, over and short.
(continued later).
at ※
[For "Robinson" on one of the
above pages read McDonald -
written in error].
8