Historic war records sold at Sotheby’s

Press, 26 December 1986, Page 18

Historic war records sold at Sotheby’s

NZPA staff correspondent London

“The men landed with great dash although suffering a lot of casualties ... and swarmed up the steep hills in a most wonderful way. “They threw off their packs at the foot of the hills and went up like Ghurkas, driving the

Turks before them from one trench to another.” So read extracts from the Godley papers, a collection bought at Sotheby’s in London for the British National Archives, and written for dispatch to King George V from the Turkish coast during World War I.

General Sir Alexander John Godley, commander-in-chief of the New Zealand forces, was official correspondent for Colonel Clive Wigram, private secretary to the King from 1911 to 1933.

His papers, bought at auction for £l3OO ($3600), included 34 typewritten letters signed by ; Godley and Wigram and copies of long reports to Wigram. They describe the landing at Gallipoli, where New Zealanders and Australians fought some of their biggest battles of the war, and the Anzacs under his command. In one letter dated Cairo February 5, 1915, Godley reported to the King: “On the whole I think the behaviour of both the Australians and New Zealanders has been excellent , since ■ their arrival, considering they have been cooped up for eight weeks on board ship and at first 30,000 and later 40,000 men were suddenly let loose amid the temptations of Gallipoli.

“The only ones who really got at all out of

hand were some of the Australian infantry, but this lasted only a short time.”

Writing from Gallipoli on May 7, 1915, Godley said the fighting had been “a very high trial for men who have never been in action before.

“It was a question of whether we could stick it out. The men who had been ashore all day fighting were very much exhausted and also unquestionably shaken.

“The Turks have attacked our trenches fairly determinedly and a good many of them have been shot and bayonetted actually in. our trenches.

“The beach is continually shelled and sniped ... the incessant din and firing goes on day and night but I think they will be all right.”

The collection was purchased for the National Archives by Norman Morris, a Briton who was formerly employed in the public affairs section at the New Zealand High Commission in London. He was representing the