4 August 1916: Holding the line
Even with the reinforcements, the position on Wellington Ridge became perilous as it came under fire from Ottoman artillery on Mount Meredith. Soon after 6am Chauvel had to pull his men back further, onto the reverse slopes of the ridge. Parts of the 31st (OT) Regiment advanced to the crest and there stopped, although this was enough to allow them to pour fire into the British camp below. Some of the infantry from 156th Brigade of 52nd (Lowland) Division swung around slightly to bolster the flank of the Australians, although Lawrence refused to make any large scale redeployments. The rest of the 31st (OT) Regiment began frontal attacks on the Lowlanders’ positions, supported by heavy artillery, pinning the bulk of the 52nd Division in place.
The Australians and New Zealanders at the foot of Wellington Ridge could only dig in and persevere under heavy artillery and machine gun fire, although on the positive side being so close to their camp meant that a flow of tea could be maintained to the troops. The stubborn resistance of the lighthorsemen, ably assisted by the Ayr Battery of the Royal Horse Artillery, discouraged the Ottomans from advancing any further:
“The Ayrshire battery in particular won the whole-souled admiration of the Anzacs. Every time a likely target showed up the Lowlanders smashed it instantly. Once some German machine guns, cleverly posted, were inflicting considerable damage on the Australians. The Ayrshires vouchsafed the Huns three shells, which landed precisely on the spot, wrecking the guns and slaughtering the teams.”
Even with the reinforcements, the position on Wellington Ridge became perilous as it came under fire from Ottoman artillery on Mount Meredith. Soon after 6am Chauvel had to pull his men back further, onto the reverse slopes of the ridge. Parts of the 31st (OT) Regiment advanced to the crest and there stopped, although this was enough to allow them to pour fire into the British camp below. Some of the infantry from 156th Brigade of 52nd (Lowland) Division swung around slightly to bolster the flank of the Australians, although Lawrence refused to make any large scale redeployments. The rest of the 31st (OT) Regiment began frontal attacks on the Lowlanders’ positions, supported by heavy artillery, pinning the bulk of the 52nd Division in place.
The Australians and New Zealanders at the foot of Wellington Ridge could only dig in and persevere under heavy artillery and machine gun fire, although on the positive side being so close to their camp meant that a flow of tea could be maintained to the troops. The stubborn resistance of the lighthorsemen, ably assisted by the Ayr Battery of the Royal Horse Artillery, discouraged the Ottomans from advancing any further:
“The Ayrshire battery in particular won the whole-souled admiration of the Anzacs. Every time a likely target showed up the Lowlanders smashed it instantly. Once some German machine guns, cleverly posted, were inflicting considerable damage on the Australians. The Ayrshires vouchsafed the Huns three shells, which landed precisely on the spot, wrecking the guns and slaughtering the teams.”
Another major boost to the Australians was the behaviour of the commander of the 2nd ALH Brigade, Colonel John ‘Galloping Jack’ Royston (above, right). The 56 year old ex-ranker and veteran of the Zulu and Boer Wars had proven to be an absolute dynamo in action. Despite his age and bulk, he was on the move all day, constantly exulting his men to ‘Keep your heads down, lads! Stick to it! Stick to it! You are making history today.’ His indomitable spirit was passed on to his men. He reportedly ran fourteen horses into exhaustion during the day, and even when wounded would not slow down. At 3pm, Chauvel had to personally chase Royston down and order him to have his wound dressed, and after that he would be seen riding along the front line with blood-stained bandages flapping out behind.