Fateful cavalry charge earns Aussies an Israeli monument

[kiwi]

Fateful cavalry charge earns
Aussies an Israeli monument




By Dan Goldberg   Published: 04/30/2008
BEERSHEVA, Israel (JTA) -- It was called the ?last great cavalry charge in history.?
Ninety years ago, a pivotal World War I battle in the flatlands of the Negev Desert helped pave the way for the creation of the Jewish state

thanks to a death-defying charge by a contingent of battle-weary Australian soldiers.

After British troops had tried unsuccessfully for two days to outgun Turkish troops, 800 Australians of the Light Horse Brigade, whose horses had not drunk in 48 hours, were ordered on Oct. 31, 1917 to ride into the firing line of 4,000 entrenched Turks armed to the teeth.

Their slouch hats adorned with emu feathers, the Australians galloped across the three-mile desert at sunset. By nightfall they had managed to achieve what some 50,000 British soldiers could not, routing the Turks at Beersheva.

The Gaza Strip fell one week later, Jerusalem was captured the following month and eventually Damascus was taken, precipitating the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the start of the British Mandate and, ultimately, the creation of the Jewish state.

Thirty-one Australians were killed in the fateful battle.

On Monday, a memorial to those Australian soldiers was unveiled by Israeli President Shimon Peres and Australian Govenor-General Michael Jeffery. The bronze sculpture features a mounted soldier in full flight leaping over the Turkish trenches to capture the biblical city?s all-important wells.

The sculpture is the centerpiece of the Park of the Australian Soldier in this southern Israeli city, a $3 million park built by the Melbourne-based philanthropic foundation of Richard and Jeanne Pratt.

The Battle for Beersheva was ?audacious in concept, skillful and courageous in execution,? said Jeffery, who this week became the first Australian head of state to visit Israel while in office.

On his weeklong state, Jeffery visit also met with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni.

About 1,000 people, many of them descendants of the Australian Light Horse Brigade, attended the sculpture?s unveiling. The biggest applause went to a representative of the Turkish Embassy who was invited to lay a wreath. New Zealand soldiers also performed a traditional Maori haka dance.

?This is where the gallant 800 changed the history of the Middle East,? said Sam Lipski, the Pratt Foundation?s chief executive.

Aside from helping turn the tide of the war, the legendary cavalry charge took place on the same day as Britain?s war cabinet signed off on the Balfour Declaration -- the first time a world power had backed the creation of a Jewish homeland.

Two days later, on Nov. 2, 1917, British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour formally sent the declaration to Lord Rothschild.

?What would have happened to our country and our history if this did not take place?? Peres said of the cavalry charge. ?The distance between Australia and Israel is far geographically, but morally we are very close.?

The Park of the Australian Soldier tells the story of how Australians have fought in the Middle East ? in two world wars and other conflicts, including the invasion of Iraq in 2003, when Australia?s elite forces neutralized Saddam Hussein?s Scud missiles that were aimed at Israel, Lipski said.

?It is a story of how in the past 90 years Australian soldiers have come to this land to fight, defend, sacrifice and help make peace,? he said.

Monday also saw the opening of the Jewish National Fund?s Anzac Trail, which traces the route taken by Australian and New Zealand troops from Beersheva to Gaza.

Earlier in the day, a group of descendants of the Light Horse Brigade visited the site of the battlefield.

?It?s all so emotional to think we are here 90 years later,? said a tearful Brian Cantwell, 68, whose father, Jack, was a sergeant in the charge ?This was an Australian-led victory.?

?I?m very emotional,? said Lorna Bourchier, 82, whose uncle, Murray Bourchier, was a commander of the charge. ?I feel proud that somebody who was part of our family helped turn a page in the history of Israel.?

[sniper]

 The village of BIR SABA lay on the northern edge of the Sinai Desert in a shallow saucer at the foot of the judean Hills, Beerhseba was protected by Tel El Saba, a 300 metre feature on the northern bank of the Wadi Saba 3 kilometres to the east. It was a great mound which had a commanding view of the surrounding plain. The Wadi ran across the south of the town from east to west.
  The enemy was Turkey, Imperial Germany's eastern ally. They held the line, Gaza-Beersheba. At Beersheba were the 27th Division and Battalions from the 16th and 24th Divisions, supported by artillery. The enemy's defence extended from Tel El Saba on the eastern flank. Two lines of trenches were dug into the cliff face of the Tel. A series of inferior trenches extended along the Wadi; they were not protected by wire. These extended to a group of detached trenches on the south-west flank. The enemy had good zones of fire.
  General Sir Edmund Allenby commanded the British Eastern Expeditionary Force of two corps.
  Lt-Gen Sir Harry Chauvel commanded the Desert Mounted Corps. He had no misgivings about his troops; they had sheer quality, leadership and experience; many had been at Gallipoli. These men of the Light Horse were without peer.
  Lt Gen. Sir Philip Chetwode commanded the British XX Corps. He had defined the Gaza - Beersheba line.
  Chauvel's Desert Mounted Corps were to capture Beersheba.
  Chauvel's orders were to straddle the Beersheba-Hebron Road at Sakati 8 kilometres north-east of Beersheba, capture Tel El Saba, then storm the town. The mission was to be executed on the first day of the battle.
  He had two divisions, each of three brigades. The ANZAC Mounted Division (ANZACs) included the 1st and 2nd Australian Light Horse Brigades and the New Zealand Mounted Rifle Brigade.
  The Australian Mounted Division included the 3rd and 4th Austrlian Light Horse Brigades and the 5th (British) Yeomanry Brigade. In support were the Light Batteries of the Royal Horse Artillery.
  The Battle of Beersheba was to be a three-phase operation supported by the British. The first phase was to be a night ride from wells at Asluj and Khalasa 20 kilometres to the south in the Sinai, to positions south and south-east of the town. In the second phase, the 2nd Australian Light Horse Brigade was to advance to Sakati and act as a cut-off force. The 1st Australian Light Horse and New Zealand Mounted Rifle Brigades were to capture Tel El Saba. Finally, with the road and Tel secure, the ANZAC's were to storm the town. This did not eventuate. This was the most significant factor in the Battle of Beersheba, forcing Chauvel to commit his reserve - the Australian Mounted Division. In a preliminary operation, the British Infantry of XX Corps were to secure positions to the south-west astride the Khalasa-Beersheba Road.
  At Asluj and Khalasa the men of the Desert Mounted Corps watered; they carried three days rations. Despite great loads, the horses were touched with excitement. Smoking was forbidden and talking subdued. The bare hills of Sinai sounded with the beat of thousands of shod horses. They rode 30 kilometres through the night.

[sniper]

30th October 1917
  1800: Asluj and Khalasa were cleared.
31st October 1917
  0555: 100 British guns opened in support of the preliminary operation.
  0700: The Desert Mounted Corps halted, and patrols were pushed forward. Beersheba with its mosque was clearly in view; it offered no prize in rations or quarters, but something more coveted were the ancient wells to water those parched men and their Waler mounts. A large pool could be seen shimmering in the Wadi; there had been a storm on the 27th.
  0830: The British rushed forward and captured their objectives to the south-west and brought forward their guns.
  0900: The ANZAC's were ready to seize the road and the Tel. The enemy was observed reinforcing the Tel.
  0930: The 2nd Brigade moved into artillery formation, advanced through a Bedouin camp, and thundered to the Hebron Road Sakati without slackening. Turkish batteries fired, but formation and ground gave them protection. With this task accomplished, they remained in a Wadi for the day.
  1000: The Somerset Battery opened up on Tel El Saba from 3000 metres to cover the ANZAC assault. The 3rd Australian Light Horse Regiment was ordered to attack from the south-east. A spirited gallop under heavy fire brought the 3rd to within     1500 metres of the enemy. They dismounted. The Auckland Regiment conformed to the north. The Inverness Battery gave covering fire to the Somersets as they galloped to within 1000 metres of the Tel. The ANZAC's were severely punished but they continued their advance, eventually bringing effective Hotchkiss fire onto the cliff. The prospect of the 3rd scaling the 200 metre cliff was not good, so they gave full opportunity to the Aucklanders.
  1300: The 2nd Australian Light Horse Regiment was ordered to support the 3rd. They advanced at the gallop, dismounted and rushed their horses back so quickly that the enemy though they had retreated. They fired on the horses; this enabled the 2nd to advance unharmed. Meanwhile, the 3rd had gained the bank. The Wellington's were thrown in to support the Aucklanders. The enemy was now under heavy fire.
  1500: The New Zealanders rose and dashed up the slopes with the bayonet. The 3rd continued, but the Aucklanders were first in. Some Turks surrendered; others fled into the town. The 2nd and 3rd gave chase then fought off a counter-attack. At last the ANZAC's had secured the Hebron Road and Tel El Saba. Chauvel had not expected to lose as much time. He had already detached the 9th and 10th Regiments from the Australian Mounted Division in support of the ANZAC's.
  1430: With the day on the wane, it was now neck or nothing; the time had come to commit the reserve. Chauvel issued decisive orders for the occupation of Beersheba. Brig. Grant of the 4th Australian Light Horse Brigade and Fitzgerald of the Yeomanry were at Headquarters; they pleaded for the honour of the charge. Put Grant straight at it was Chauvels terse order.
  1630: The 4th and 12th Australian Light Horse Regiments drew up behind a ridge. From the crest, Beerhseba was in full view. The course lay down a long, slight slope which was bare of cover. Between them and the town lay the enemy defences. The 4th was on the right; the 12th was on the left. They rode with bayonets in hand. Each drew up on a squadron frontage. Every man knew that only a wild, desperate charge could seize Beerhseba before dark. They moved off at the trot, deploying at once into artillery formation, with 5 metres between horsemen. Almost at once the pace quickened to a gallop. Once direction was given, the lead squadrons pressed forward. The 11th Australian Light Horse Regiment and the Yeomanry followed at the trot in reserve. The Turks opened fire with shrapnel. Machine guns fired against the lead squadrons. The Royal Horse Artillery got their range and soon had them out of action. The Turkish riflemen fired, horses were hit, but the charge was not checked. The Lighthorsemen drove in their spurs; they rode for victory and they rode for Australia. The bewildered enemy failed to adjust their sights and soon their fire was passing harmlessly overhead. The 4th took the trenches; the enemy soon surrendered. The 12th rode through a gap and on into the town. Their was a bitter fight. Some enemy surrendered; others fled and were pursued into the Judean Hills. In less than an hour it was over; the enemy was finally beaten.
  From his headquarters, Chauvel had watched the battle develop. He saw the New Zealanders swarming the Tel; on their right the 9th and 10th LH Regiment were trotting in pursuit under shrapnel. On the Wadi the 2nd and 3rd LH Regiments were pressing forward in their attempt to take the town from the east. The Royal Horse Artillery were firing in support. Then over the ridge rode the 4th and 12th . . . shrapnel . . . the signal to charge! Not for almost an hour did Chauvel learn that Beersheba had been won.
  Then disaster. The 9th and 10th in pursuit were bombed by a lone German aircraft; they suffered heavy casualties. The Desert Mounted Corps watered at the wells of the patriarchs and in the pool. For days, the charge was the talk of the camps and messes.
  The Australian Light Horse had galloped into history.
  South Australians can be proud of the contribution of the 3rd and the 9th in the Battle of Beersheba.
  A Squadron 3rd/9th South Australian Mounted Rifles began as the Reedbeds Cavalry in 1841 and is privileged to have inherited the honors, the history and the tradition of the Australian Light Horse.

[sniper]

The struggle for freedom has ended they say,
The days of fatigue and Remorse,
But our hearts one and all are in memory today,
We are losing our old friend, the Horse.

The old quadruped that has carried us thro'
The sand ridden caravan track
And shared in the charge of the gallant and true
With the boys who will never come back.

Oh those long weary days thro' a miniature hell
Short of water and nothing to eat,
Each hour we climbed down for a few minutes' spell
And dozed safe and sound and your feet.

When the enemy shrapnel broke overhead,
As we passed up that Valley of Death,
You never once slackened in that hail of lead
Though the boldest of all held their breath.
But we never forgot you, old Comrade and friend,
When the QM Dump hove in sight.
What the Buckshee to Gippo's we scored in the end
And your rations were doubled that night.

Then came the long journey, the greatest of all,
The cavalry stunt of the world.
The sons of Australia had answered the call
And the Ensign of Freedom unfurled.

And now we are leaving you footsore and worn
To the land where the Mitchell grass grew,
Where you frolicked like lambs in the sweet scented morn,
To the song of the Dismal Curlew.

So farewell to the Yarraman old warhorse, farewell,
Be you mulga bred chestnut or bay.
If there's a hereafter for horses as well
Then may we be with you some day.

 
 

[sniper]

In saga and in story their tale has been told,
As long down the years of madness the battle tides have rolled;
Their drops of crystal water - more precious than gold
The Wells of old Beersheba were battle scarred of old.

On an Autumn evening that seems so long ago
The war-worn Walers reached them with stately step and slow,
And the guns roared welcome, peal upon thunder peal,
The Wells of old Beersheba were held by Moslem steel.

On barren cactus ridges the British army lay,
All sore in need of water at the burning close of day;
And so the desert riders must charge at evening gloom -
The Wells of old Beersheba - to victory or doom.

A league across the desert, slowly Walers came,
And Turkish shrapnel answered with a burst of flame
That flashed amid the smoke clouds, deep in the murky haze,
The Wells of old Beersheba with trench-lines all ablaze.

They lined the ridge at sunset and, in the waning light
The far-flung line of squadrons came on in headlong flight,
The desert land behind them - in front the fearful fight,
The Wells of old Beersheba must fall before the night.

The Turkish rifles raked them and horse and man went down,
But still they held the gallop towards the blazing town;
They heard the hot lead whining, the big guns thunder-roll -
The Wells of old Beersheba their destiny and goal.

With cold steel bayonets gleaming, in sodden seas of blood
They raced towards the stronghold, all in a crimson flood,
Such maddening surge of horses, such tumult and such roar
The Wells of old Beersheba had never seen before.

They stormed across the trenches and, so the stories say,
They drove the Moslem gunners as wild winds scatter spray.
No force or fire could turn them on that long maddening run,
The Wells of old Beersheba had fallen with the sun.

Fast through the gap behind them column on column poured,
Loud in the darkening dust - wrack the guns of England roared;
Won in a race of ruin through the lurid waves of flame
The Wells of old Beersheba had brought them deathless fame!

Remember them, my brothers, lend them a helping hand -
They led that charge of splendour that won the Promised Land -
And those who came not homeward, their memory is grand -
The Wells of old Beersheba will guard their graves of sand.

[sniper]

Emu Plumes on a felt slouch hat and a rifle 'cross their back
Eight hundred Aussie horsemen, many learnt to ride outback.

They swept towards the Turkish lines across the Sinai sand
To Beersheba, where the Turkish troops did elect to make their stand.

It was the secret to this desert war, the only water to be found
And five thousand British troops had failed to take the town.

These Australian Lighthorsemen had a commaner named Chauvel
Who's orders were impossible, they were, to take the well.

Six thousand yards to the Turkish line must these gallant horesmen ride
At full gallop they must go till they reach the Turkish side.

Artillery shells flew overhead, as across the sand they raced
Not fast enough were the Turkish guns to check their lightning pace.

As they cleared the Tukish trenches, machine gun bullets filled the air
But they sped on to Beersheba with the Turks now in despair.

With bayonets drawn, they charged the town, they were a fearsome sight
But they had fulfilled their orders, they took the town by night.

And forty gallant horesemen paid the ultimate price to see
The fulfilment of God's prophecy, to set Jerusalem free.

[Observer_1938]