GALLIPOLI HISTORY

Dominion, Volume 25, Issue 168, 12 April 1932, Page 9

GALLIPOLI HISTORY

The Official Record CAUSES OF FAILURE Lost Opportunities AMONG CLASSIC TRAGEDIES By Telegraph—Press Assn. —Copyright. London, April 0. Th© "Daily Telegraph’s” copyright summary of the Official History of the Gallipoli Campaign ends with a dramatic account of the evacuation of Helles in a single night on January 8, 1916, which General Birdwood decided upon, realising the extreme difficulty of further hoodwinking the Turks as to the troops intentions. The official historian, General Aspinal Oglander, Chief of Staff in the campaign, In his epilogue, says he considers that the drama of the Dardanelles campaign, by reason of the‘beauty of its setting and the grandeur of its theme, will rank among the world’s classic tragedies. He declares that there is little doubt that the-idea of forcing the Straits in order to help Russia, to eliminate Turkey from the war and to rally the Balkan States to the Entente, was one of the few great strategical conceptions of the World War. There is still less doubt that in the spring of 1915 the operation was not beyond the capacity of the Entente. The failure was due to utter lack of preparation before the campaign began. Despite this fundamental folly, the issue hung in the balance during March and April. The naval attack of March 18 was abandoned at the very moment the Turks were resigning themselves to defeat. In connection with the military landings in April, the lack of guns and ammunition provoked Inevitable penalties. Excess of Caution. Even later Ohunuk Bair was lost by the excess of caution of one column commander on August 8, and a golden opportunity was lost at Suvla when twenty British battalions, were opposed by a single Turkish detachment of 1500 men, with no Turkish reserves within thirty miles. The narrow margin by which success was 'missed proves that General Sir lan Hamilton did not set his troops an impossible task, though it was undoubtedly hazardous.

Examining the causes of failure, General Oglander says that two factors must not be overlooked, the splendid fighting qualities of the Turkish soldier in defence and the brilliant leadership of the Turkish Fifth Army. The Turkish soldier, being generally from the peasant class, bad an advantage 'over the invader that he could thrive on simple fare and endure conditions which entailed severe hardships for the British troops. The Turks owed much to General von Sanders's bold, quick decisions. x "The Man of Destiny.”

It is also impossible to appraise too highly the assistance General von Sanders received from the “Man of Destiny,” the present ruler of Turkey, who showed in Gallipoli, at the head of the infantry division, outstanding genius for command. \ Mustapba Pasha’s ready grin of the situation on April 25 was primarily responsible for the Anzac’s failure to gain their objective on the day of landing. His vigorous action on August 9 saved the situation at Suvla, while his brilliant counter-attdek on Chunuk Bair on August 10 placed the Turks in undisputed possession of the Sari Bair Ridge. Though the ’Dardanelles campaign failed, it played a great part in the eventualy fortunes of the war by hampering Germany’s use of her forces on the Western Front in the spring of 1915. It helped to make Italy enter the war, kept Greece out, and forced Bulgaria to hold aloof for many months.

Finally, the fighting on Gallipoli destroyed the flower of the Turkish Army, and paved the way for Ix>rd Allenby’s victory in Palestine. “Truly it may be said,” adds the historian, “that those Who fell on Gallipoli did not fall in vain.”

The history will be published on Anzac Day.