Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/12/1 - August 1915 - Part 1

AWM38
Official History,
1914-18 War: Records of C E W Bean,
Official Historian.
Diaries and Notebooks
Item number: 3DRL606/12/1
Title: diary, August 1915
Includes reference to lone Pine, German
Officers' Trench, the Chessboard and the Nek.
AWM38-3DRLK606/12/1

Original      DIARY No.12.
AWM383DRL 606 ITEM 12 [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 his 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 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

Diary 12.
Aug 6/7
12
C.E.W.Bean.
Battle of Aus 6th.
Diary 12-Aug 6-7
(obtained as soon as I was
able to get about - Aug
10 to 14)

(:X: The date shd be
Aug 10. C.EW.B.)
We blew up mines at L. Pine
abr afternoon at ------
Often whole trench ws covered
wooden loopholes were bricked up
w sand bricks with revetted
firesteps.
Trenches all seemed to be
made w object of being enfiladed
from N. Observatn posts all back
from firing line.
1
Aug 9. Cont. :X:
Story of Aug 6. as Peter Schuler
got it today: 

Our men left from 2 lines of trenches.
At head of each sap were officers or NCOs w
whistles. As soon as Maj. King
blew his the others blew theirs.
Men went over [[shorthand]] trench, some of them,
on ladders.
When got to T trenches found them
covered w occasional beams beams and brushwood
w occasional holes in it for
skylight. It ws thro' these tt our
men fired down at / Turks
who had gone into / tunnels.
Some of our men stepped down thro'
these holes feet foremost.
T's had gone into tunnels. They werent
expecting bombardment attack &.
perh. feebleness of bombardment didnt
put them wise. We had knocked
their head cover abt a bit in
previous three days & they were
in tunnels when our men arrd.
our chaps cd see them there

Step sometimes 3 ft

Diagram - see original scan
- prob. used as
sleeping platform.
Mines were very deep & were
finally cleared
by [[shorthand]]
sandbags
Diagram - see original scan
XXXXXX
Cass went in at 8pm Sat
night (2nd) & had 20 k. & 70
wd. in right section tt night.
At 5 pm. on 8th reld by 7 Bn
at 11 am. on 8^th the 2nd had attacked
b artillery & rifle fire did no good.
2
& stood firing at them.
Turkish tunnels were splendidly
made w ledges 

Diagram - see original scan

where men
cd lie leaving the central passage
open. Trenches v. deep w snug
dug outs. [contained lots of ammn
& German m.gs]
Stephenson (4 Bn ?2 Bn) wd went
along telling men to get down into trench.
Turks were often in tunnels running
down out towards our lines. We dont
know yet where some o / tunnels
lead to. They have plenty of
Commn trenches & tunnels. Our
Aero map didn't show all.
An officer wd run along some
of this maze of trenches &
suddenly at some corner he
wd fall. Men behind him wd
wait & snipe from behind traverse
at men who had shot their offr.

Diagram - see original scan
12.30 Sund. (Aug 9) after [[shorthand]] a few
bombs they bombed us out of this
bit.
Bn front 165 yards, salient 250

---
Stephens 2 Bn: 120 went out of
reserves, 66 out of parapet
B Coy out of reserves, C over par.
A reserve. D coy came same
was as first two.
1st line went over T trench to 2nd line
2nd line went to nearest trench.
100 dead [[shorthand]] area. Positn
captured by 5.45 in 5 advances.
3
In one case they found a heap of 6
dead Australians on one side & 8
dead Ts. on other of one of these
recesses. Generally battle of bombs.
We hadnt many men killed considering
severity of attack. Majority were slightly
wounded.
We sand bagged end of Commn.
trenches. We are sniped from J.Jolly
& all sides - in fact head cover is 
needed. Trenches were very deep
& day (Aug 9-Aug 10) has bn largely
occupied in dragging T. dead out of
them, (abt 100 of theirs & 50 of ours buried
by fatique parties of Tommies). Dead
lay 3 deep in some trenches - in
some cases were simply buried there -
In one sap leading our way / end
ws blocked by 30 T. dead.
On The Sunday night they
counter attacked w bombs
mostly thrown from / Commn

Turk told Nicholson:
Acting orderly to Col. og Regt

(a reservist) & also another a
Sergt, 1 [[shorthand]] Balk. [[shorthand]] sd tt
prev. day we had caused lot of losses
by bombardment. On day of real
bombardment they took most o / men
into tunnels - they were there when
out troops charged.
Sergt sd didnt exp attack
having had bombardment before.
When he got word from observing officer
"Look out / English are coming: He
rushed to get men out of tunnel
but it ws too late. Before he cd
do it Engl. were there. He thought
his officers were k.
4
trenches. These bombers had /
exact range of our trenches whereas
we didn't know exactly where
they were. But we came to know
& then our case improved. Our
men h. bn exercised in bomb throwing
all day (Aug 9 Aug 10) by order of one Col. at
least (Cass now 2 Bn vice Scobie k.)
Our men at last fot superiority in
bombing. ^Our Supply of bombs unlimited.
4 Bn ws taken out for 24 hrs
but put in agn on Sunday night.
It went in 600 strong & came out
200 strong this morning.
Some British troops are now
in reserve.
We are thinking of putting
head cover over trenches tonight -
Turks had apptly got every
available pine tree for miles &

The Popes H. machine guns - or
one one of them - wh ws taken out of its
trench & put on / parapet o /
support trench & fired back over
it - caught a number of men Turks
lying down crowded behind L.Pine on Aug
8 or 9. The gun ws opened on
them & one Turk ws  seen to drop
on / left, another on / right, &
so on - over about a rood of
ground. The fact ws / barrel o /
gun is so worn tt it sprays its
bullets - as I saw also at
left of line when Capt Rose ws
firing at T. observers.
About / twelfth time /
gun ws used in this postitn
on Popes one left ws put thro'
& it ws taken down & imd.
a 75 shell landed within 6

feet of where it had bn, followed
by ½ a dozen others.
5
put into the place. We can see
into / gully from it.
The attack on G.O. Trench.
At 11 o'c. a mine ws exploded;
at 11.15 another. Two others at 11.40.
We gave fumes 20 mins. to clear & then
rushed from tunnels.
We cdnt go over top bec. the
forwd concealed firing line ws there not
broken through.
We cdnt therefore had to gather in
tunnels & go thro from there. Mass
of men crowded along both all
tunnels. At end of them were officers
& men to go out. Trench ws only
few yds away. At 12 men started
to go out. They simply fell back
into arms of men waiting behind.
Doctor Black says every man had

[Att on L. Pine
One man in 3 Bn got 4 sandbags
carried them out in front of trench
filled them, lay behind them & observed
for his officer & told him where
bombthrowers were. He got thro'
alright.

One chap got into 3rd trench.

Saw a T. who ran. He ran
after him till Turk ws joined

by 3 ts. Then his turn to run.

Doubled round corner after corner

till met 6 Australians. Two knelt,

two stood, shot 8 & when Ts
appeared, let them have it.
2 men on jumping in found
sap full of Turks. Wanted to take
them prisoner but G. (?) officer fired [[shorthand]]

They shot him & then took rest - 62.
? There were ? 400 T. dead in one section,

mostly k by bombardment.]

6

more than one bullet in him. It
seems Ts. had laid m.g. on place ready.

Men behind had ts waiting  Wounded
had to be dragged into ^tunnel. Men behind
had to go out af over them - 3 officers
were killed. I fancy / regt. broke.
They were brought up to it again once

or twice but only 10 men or so cd
go at once & they wdnt or cdnt 
face it. I believe Walker got

onto Forsyth & told him he ought
to have bn on / spot organising 
/ attack. Bennett, / Colonel, ws
terribly cut up & offered to throw
away his life. A 3rd attempt
ws ordered, but message 
afterwds arrived saying tt
it ws not able to delivered until
order given - & order ws not
given. I believe only one o /

7

mine craters ws actually under
/ trench - possibly none of them.
The attack might conceivably have
succeeded if / men stole out v. quietly.

----

Forsyth:
6^th Bn (all 600) ordered to attack 3 [[?]]

made 2 attacks, 3rd cancelled.

11 pm mine [[shorthand]] under left of trench.

11.30 second mine [[shorthand]]
11.40 two mines together.
Had to get men out into tunnels

Can't be sure yet whether mines 
were under trench yet. Took Alld
20 [[shorthand]] into place,

clear gases etc.
Black [[shorthand]] 

[[shorthand]] sev. rounds.

8

Men in [[shorthand]] scared.
Cdn't get men out. Told to
[[shorthand]]

Second attack ordered.

3.55 2nd attack too place [[shorthand]]
onr or 2 [[shorthand]]

3rd [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]]. Bennett [[shorthand]]
Forsyth [[shorthand]] Divn [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] Forsyth

[[shorthand]] gave [[shorthand]] Glasfd
came along w notebook -
Forsyth went [[shorthand]] before 2nd 'L'
& now. Glasfd

Divn [[shorthand]] 3rd [[shorthand]] & tt he
shd be there & ws ordered.

reorganise & stand ready but

nothing more happened. It ws
after this Glasfd came along.

------