Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/18/1 - October 1915 - Part 1

AWM38
Official History,
1914-18 War: Records of C E W Bean,
Official Historian.

Diaries and Notebooks

Item number: 3DRL606/18/1

Title: Diary, October 1915
Includes references to RAN Bridging Train, the
landing, Sir Walter Braithwaite and Sir lan
Hamilton.

AWM38-3DRL606/18/1

Diary 18
Oct 5 -

Oct 23

Original DIARY No.18.
AWM 38 3DRL 606 ITEM 18 [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 consideration 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 mistake 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 wat 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

October 5. Went to Anzac with
Lawrence.  found my dugout in process
of being rebuilt for winter - where it was
it stopped a drain. There has been a violent a sort 
of half-attack here. The ws a violent
bombardment of Anzac on Oct 4 from
9am to 10am. At the end of it a few
Turks came up the end of a sap which we
had sand bagged, & a dozen or so worked
over the bank in some dead ground &
prepared to rush the barrier from behind.
A couple of bombs killed some of them & /
attack petered out. One fell just outside
the barrier, wounded ^& crying on Allah! The men threw over
grappling irons & hooked them in his clothing
& lifted him half way & tried to get hold of
him - they got two of their arms shot thro in
doing so - but he fell back. Poor Devil,
what we wanted was his papers, not him -
why must we torture these poor brutes by
worrying them when they are dying. He did
tt night & we got him. He had a paper w
12^th Battn on it - proby 12^th Regt. ws meant -
That ws / regt previously here. The Arab
Divn is up at / North o / line - a sort of half
hearted attack ws made on the 29 Div. there also.
Oct 6. Came on to Suvla thro' trenches
& for first time saw Australian Bridging [[?]]
Diary 10
Oct 5-
Oct 23

Here is their story as
Bracegirdle gave it to me:
Diagram - see original document

On His Majesty's Service.
[[R?]]
C Bean Esq
[[?]]

[*Hdqers
Dardanelles
17.10.15.*]
Dear Bean
Too sorry to miss
you and not to have
been able to say goodbye
personally - Best of
luck - All my heartfelt
good wishes are with
your Australians & NZers
[*Ian Hamilton*]

October 5. Went to Anzac with
[*On His Majesty's Service.
[[R?]]
C BeanEsq
[[?]]*]
tt night 
12th Battn on it - proby 12^th Regt. ws meant
That ws / regt previously here. The Arab
Divn is up at / North o / line - a sort of haff
hearted attack ws made on the 29 Div. there also.
Oct 6. Came on to Suvla thro' trenches
& for first time saw Australian Bridging [[?]]
Here is their story as
Bracegirdle gave it to me:
Diagram - see see original scan
1st Bn ws at B & A

---
[[shorthand]] Port Said heard change of plan.
At Aden [[shorthand]]
Stone Piers [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] Piers.
Engrs [[shorthand]] Anafarta - [[shorthand]]
Salt Lake Pier [[shorthand]] by 2.30 Sat.

were going. Chatham
under [[shorthand]] - but unit to / W. Office.
Transferred [[shorthand]] "Cerberus, "
[[shorthand]] "Victory"

-----
W.O. 2 [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]]
Admiralty [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]]
at Cockatoo  [[shorthand]] harness &
waggons [[shorthand]] Col Standing 
[[*shorthand*]] unit [[shorthand]]

[[shorthand]] Left June 3.
At P.S.d on
Sund 18 July [[shorthand*]
Medforce:
Reached Imbros Mudros 10 a.m. 21 July.
Imbros 7.20 July 25.
288 offrs & men
26 1st Rif.

----
314 

----
9 rif [[shorthand]] Asked [[shorthand]] to 20
2
& 3 [[shorthand]] reached at Mudros
in ^S.S. Pt Macquarie. Senior [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] wired to G,H,Q
Bracegirdle [[shorthand]] Arragon [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]]

G.H.Q. & 9th [[shorthand]]

[[shorthand]]

[[shorthand]] test [[shorthand]]

for towing across [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] for water
storage purposes. [[shorthand]] pontoons
are buried [[shorthand]] full up w
water [[shorthand]] It [[shorthand]] pontoons - 1.
A [[shorthand]] by GHQ
to take notes on use of [[shorthand]]
for Piers; also Russians.
Engineers barrel piers ^in sections RE
[[shorthand]] Imbros [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] & we [[shorthan*]] at A beach.
R E went on w [[shorthand]].  We had

beach. I came [[shorthand]] 9^th
Corps B. Gen. H. Bland.
Lt. Commr L.S. Bracegirdle
R.A.N.
[[shorthand]] out testig wdnt tow in
a seaway - wdnt [[shorthand]]
Read Adm. [[shorthand]] to tow them.
We tore bows out of one. Embarked on
Itria. Took 2 [[shorthand]] to load.
First boats ships left 7 p.m. [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] dusk. They [[shorthand]] straight Suvla.
We left at [[shorthand]]
5 a.m. [[shorthand]] shelled at 8 a.m.
Taube [[shorthand]] 2 bombs one near
stern [[shorthand]] on beam [[shorthand]]. Shelled
at noon [[shorthand]] up anchor [[shorthand]]
closer in.
[[shorthand]]
erect barrel pier at A
[[shorthand]] 10th [[shorthand]] supports
All these beaches mined. We dig our mine
up (some [[shorthand]]) But this was a trip wire
Some consisted of
box & lever 
Diagram - see original scan

Diagram - see original scan
Iron box filled w black shiny powder.
We dug one up in / grass by / beach -
[[shorthand]] itx  Found 6. 5th [[?]]
Abt 2nd 1st week [[shorthand]] on A [[shorthand]] on
sand [[shorthand]] walking.
Diagram - see original scan.
Over 20 mines were blown up. 7 were [[shorthand]] up
1st day. [[shorthand]] no mines at old A
& B
I think they Turks [[shorthand]] warned [[shorthand]]
They cd lay one ^wh [[shorthand]] battn otherwise
1st [[shorthand]] abt 10.30 or 11 on Saturday
Abt 7 [[shorthand]] up
any one [[shorthand]]

4
only 7 [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] Redoubt on Lala Baba. Doris
[[shorthand]] at up Ravine now [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] on left [[shorthand]]
on 7th. She [[shorthand]]
It opened [[shorthand]] at [[shorthand]]

[[shorthand]] 18 pdrs [[shorthand]] an old
A [[shorthand]] every [[shorthand]]

[[shorthand]] Doris. Anticipate
each [[shorthand]]
W Hills & Anafarta [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] Anafarta [[shorthand]]
Lala Baba & B [[shorthand]]
Not Koja Chemen Tepe - tt probly
occupied w Anzac.

-----
130 yds Pier on A [[shorthand]]
285 [[shorthand]]& cdnt get
pinnaces in[[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] urgent [[shorthand]]
9th can [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]]

5
[[shorthand]] gear [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] rifl - as the [[shorthand]] pinnace
[[shorthand]] pulled [[shorthand]]
1 ½ [[shorthand]] khaki [[shorthand]]
superstructure [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] bouyed - connectn
[[shorthand]] using [[shorthand]] end
bay. Only 4 feet of water.
Men wading to put in anchors
Red X [[shorthand]] camped
turks sank [[shorthand]] in pontoon
[[shorthand]] apologised. Col.
/ casualty clearing stn. [[shorthand]] wd have to shell
it again if we alld troops to pass along /
beach under cover of it,
Every [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] crowd [[shorthand]] carry
wounded [[shorthand]] building.