Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/93/1 - November 1917 - Part 1

AWM 38
Official HIstory,
1914-1918 War: Records of C E W Bean,
Official Historian.

Diaries and Notebooks

Item number: 3DRL606/93/1

Title: Diary, November 1917
Includes references to the 3rd Division, Lord
Birdwood and the Australian Corps.

AWM 383DRL606/93/1
 

DIARY
Nov 6 -
Original DIARY NO.93.
AWM38. 3 DRL 606 ITEM 93 [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
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EXCEPTIONS
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43

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12  1
93
Nov. 5.
I saw the
general this morning.
he told me the plan
about the 4^th Divn.
Gen. Plumer wanted to transfer
the 4^th Divn back _∧ At / end o / offensive to Gen. Godley.
Birdie sd : Surely this is absurd.
You will give it to him to train
all / winter & then give it
back to me to fight in /
spring - wh wd be unfair
to the 4^th Division & to
to me & to him. & to t
Plumer sd: oh no.
We were going to have
Divn Corps of 3 Divns during
/ winter. then in / spring we meant
 

12 2
to give you an English
Divn & the II nd Anzac Corps
an English Divn to make
you up to 4 Divns each!
Birdie told him tt this -
he wd find - ws directly
contrary to / expressed
wish o / Austln Govt.
Later Birdie saw Haig &
asked him Kiggell tt /
5 Divns shd be brought
together. Both sd it ws
quite impossible - no one
man cd manage 5 Divns.
Besides, the to have an odd number
of divisions in a Corps
was not feasible. The
system of reliefs of Divns by
 

12 3
Divns ws agst it.
Birdie sd: But they
Plumer told me they were
going to make / Corps of each
of 3 divisions - you have
an odd number.
That ws only temporary,
they sd.
Well, if / Austln Govt
offered you a 5^th Divn & sd
tt it wd supply it provided
you kept the Corps 5 together
you wd accept it, surely,
willingly, Birdie replied.
Then came, after /
offensive, / questn of
how to keep / numbers
 

12 4
up. The 4^th Divn ws shortest
of recruits; Maclagan sd
it, was not fit for / line.
So Birdwood put to Haig /
idea of keeping one divn
as a Reserve Division - 
always out resting right
back at Etaples or somewhere.
It wd have to feed / other
divns if necy; but their
reinfts wd not come thro'
it. xx In this way he
sd he estimated we cd have
5 Divns in March, 8000
short of full strength in all,
& no reinfts. Then if
one division were taken
 

12 5
badly knocked - lost
6000 men, say - the
4^th wd automatically
take its place & the
damaged Divn wd become
reserve Division.
We are sd to have
Reinfts have bn
stopped for the 4^th Divn.
Most o / others seem to
think this means the
breakup of the the 4^th Divn.
I came to the 3rd Divn today
w Dyson. No news of Gaza where
we took yesty 5000 yds
"of front line system."
No news ^here of Italy - where
/ Italians say they "detained
xxxxxxx parties o /
 

12 6
enemy seeking to cross
the Tagliamento. What
does "detained" mean?

Oct Nov 6th. All day
with the 40^th Bn who were
having their courtmartials
tried (14 of them at this Bn HQ)
by a court w a British
legal expert - in 1st Anzac
we have an Australian.
While there, getting
history of Paschendaele
& the Ridge, the news
arrived tt / Canadians
had taken Paschendaele
& Mosselmarkt - their 1st
& 2nd Divns getting all
 

12 7
objectives exc. Valour
Farm.
Everyone ws greatly
cheered. "As one o / men
sd - we'll take the Canadians
into / family which if they
get Paschendaele."
The news also arrived
there tt they had bn
transferred to 1^st Anzac
Corps - Every one who came
in & heard it, & / officer
who opened / message (one
from Gen. Godley desiring to
see them to say good bye)
ws brimming over w surprise
 

12 8
& pleasure.
I told them it meant
all our divisions wd
be together. "That's splendid."
was / simple comment.
——
7th Oct. Nov. With 39^th &
382^th Bns all day -
I took a photo of each
& of 40^th - of the offrs at
their H.Qrs. I shall
always take one where
I can, as w most of
our Bns it is / only
chance (owing to our
absurd censorship) tt they