A failed Australian feint attack at Gallipoli in which 372 of 600 men were killed or wounded due to poor coordination, with negligible Ottoman losses.
Key Facts
- Date
- 7 August 1915
- Australians involved
- 600 soldiers
- Australian casualties
- 372 killed or wounded
- Number of charges
- 4 charges
- Ottoman casualties
- Negligible
- Australian formation
- 3rd Light Horse Brigade
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The Gallipoli campaign had stalled into a protracted stalemate since April 1915. To break the deadlock, British and Allied forces planned an offensive to seize the Sari Bair range. A feint attack at the Nek by Australian light horsemen was intended to divert Ottoman attention and support a simultaneous New Zealand assault on Chunuk Bair.
On 7 August 1915, two regiments of the Australian 3rd Light Horse Brigade launched four successive bayonet charges across the narrow Nek ridge toward Ottoman trenches on Baby 700. The attacking force numbered 600 men. Poor coordination and inflexible command decisions meant the charges continued despite the failure of each preceding wave, resulting in the men advancing into concentrated Ottoman fire.
The assault achieved nothing militarily; 372 Australians were killed or wounded while Ottoman casualties were negligible. The battle became one of the most striking examples of futile sacrifice in the Gallipoli campaign and has since been widely commemorated in Australian memory, notably through the 1981 film Gallipoli.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Alexander Godley.
Side B
1 belligerent