Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/92/1 - October - November 1917 - Part 1

AWM38

Official History,

1914-18 War: Records of C E W Bean,

Official Historian.

 

Diaries and Notebooks

 

Item number: 3DRL606/92/1

 

Title: Diary, October - November 1917

Includes references to the fighting at Decline

Copse Wood.

 

[Bar Code]

AWM38-3DRL606/92/1

 

Original  DIARY No. 92

AWM38   #DRL 606 ITEM 92 [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.

 

wdcocks & Andersen.

42  watch    anderson's/.

Brain - get car

144 Goddaughter's Rind    Films for V.P.K.

It's [shorthand symbol] packed to mother   Treloar re Smart.

The Commth bank.     Sas's lollies.

Campion.

Mr Fs [shorthand symbol]

 

11       1   DIARY Oct 18.1917-  92

From October 18 to Oct 25 I have

been visiting units out of the line

& writing up the records &

this diary. Three big. events have

happened outside this battlefield.

To start with, the Germans have made

an attack on each of the two big

shaky partners in the alliance -

the Russians & the Italians, -

the Russians & the Italians, -

in order to give heart to their own

allies, especially the Australians; &

to drive these two out of the

Alliance before the winter, & encourage

the opposition which exists pretty

powerfully in both but especially in

Russia. The Germans are sd

to have bn [harrying?] divisions -(as

many as ten, I have heard - I don't

know if it is true) - away from the

West to Russia; & we know of

one division which ws to have bn

sent to Italy but wh ws kept 

 

 

2

 

x Possibly this is 4 from West.

Ward Price says they have 300,000 men

there, mostly from Russia

 

11      3

here to face us because this

front was so heavily threatened.

The Australian push along the

Polygon Broodseinde Ridge has

beyond all doubt helped enormously

to limit reduce these two political offensives.

I doubt if I Germans will

have enough men to place against

the Russians to reach St Petersburg;

& they have only helped I Australians

with 4x. With the Australians they

claim to have taken 30,000 prisoners

& 300 guns. No one doubts tt there

is no comparing I fighting qualities

o I Italian & I German - the

Northern Italian is fine material;

but the Southern -

 

At the same time the French

found tt I Germans were shortening

their line near Laon (as one of

the prisoners captured by us here 

 

11      4

had foretold - (I believe tt ws

I first information we had of it) -

& they attacked on October 24

& penetrated 3000 yds. Since then

they have gone another 2000; they

have taken altogether 10,000 prisoners

& 300 guns. The Frech are wonderfully

swift after their barrage.

 

In I meanwhile I Germans

tried to raid London, 3^ or 4 days ago,

w Zeppelins. The idea ws,

I suppose, to catch a5 on I hop

on a dark night when we

supposed London ws safe - &

it succeeded as far as I can

see; except tt I Zeppelins

when they shut down their engines

& floated over London did no

damage. They became lost,

somehow, on I way back; &

no less than 5 out of 11 were

smashed up in France or lost

in I Mediterranean.

 

11               5

At Ypres we have bn preparing

for a fresh push. The Canadians

are to attach Paschendaele; but

this time they take as a whole

days objective the first objective

of I NewZealanders & our 3rd

Divn, after having subjected it

to a fortnights bombt instead of

24 hours. They go later for

Pashendaele in a second leap,

& ^make a third leap after that.

 

Sadly, the reformed

character, ws talking to Monash

I other day in front of Murdoch

as to I proper depth of an

offensive. "What do you think

you can properly attempt?"

he asked - "1000 yards?"

Monash thought more; Sadly

argued tt it ws not safe to go

for more than 1000.

 

Yet if it ws not he who

11       6

proposed to go 3000, I will

eat my hat.

 

Oct. 26. This morning our

2nd Bde attacked on I flank

o I Canadians. The 2nd had

only to put out some posts.

along I Rly & just S. of it.

 

The Xmas Book is due

for posting if it is to arrive

anywhere near Xmas; I

believe the Xmas mail goes

out just after November 1 & we

can scarcely catch that. I decided

to go over to London to get the

Acquittance Rolls & Bookplates.

Leaving this morning one cd just

get news of our attack starting

& if possible, how it went; &

returning at once cd send

news o I real result by I

time the ^units came th out & I

details came through. The 

 

11             7

Boulogne Boat ws stopped-

I suppose I wild weather

had dragged up I mines - &

I Calais boat started at 8 a.m.

So I wrote my cable overnight,

to be ready, saying what I

weather ws like & tt I attack

had started; & told Barker to

call me at 4.30 to start at

5 (& call Boddy & I car at 4.)

Gallagher of the War Res Museum

section ws to come with me

& go to Boulogne to arrange a

depot for storing museum

stuff in the Pay Office there.

 

I got to bed after midnight.

The moon was three quarters

full & our aeroplanes were

going out to bomb I German

aerodromes. Just after dinner

a couple of German planes were

 

11          8

caught in our searchlights

& very beautiful they looked

with the brilliant little tracer

bullets from 20 machine

guns in I distance after

them (I believe our

planes also tackled them

I other night when they got into

I searchlights - our planes

flying with two little white

lights underneath the wings).

 

About 11 I heard I

first of our machines going

out with its high musical

hum- there at I went outside

I hut & there it was, three little

points ^of warm light streaking over amongst the

stars, going straight ^as an arrow for

its destination on some

German aerodrome.

No sooner had its hum died

down & I little lights faded

 

11         9

than another hum came

growing from I same direction

as wk I first, & two more

little heads swam over; &;

as soon as tt had gone,

another & another. For quite

an hour, as I was writing

there, they hummed overhead.

At 5 xx I went to bed

in my clothes. I was waked

by Barker saying: "It's 5.10

sir - they failed to wake me

up when they sd they wd; what

shall I do".

 

I thought all chance of

catching I boat ws gone. Still,

I sent him to call Boddy,

& arranged w Gallagher [who

lost his arm at Pozieres &

dresses slowly) to come

down ^to Boulogne when I car meets

me on my return;.