A BACKGROUND OF THE WAR

Dominion, Volume 33, Issue 187, 4 May 1940, Page 10

A BACKGROUND OF THE WAR

Gallipoli Evacuation

ACCOMPLISHING THE

IMPOSSIBLE

The feat of evacuating the British forces from that part of Norway south of Trondheim, accomplished as we are told without the loss of a single man in the actual operation of departure, cannot but recall (he evacuation o£ the Allied forces from Gallipoli at the end of 1915 and the beginning of 1916. This feat was described by lhe then Prime Minister of England, Mr. Lloyd George, as without parallel in military or naval history.

The comparison cannot be taken beyond a certain point because the two expeditions were on an entirely different scale, and the number of the Allied casualties in the Gallipoli campaign far exceeded the total force that the Allies had in the pan of Norway now evacuated. Three Army Corps had to leave Gallipoli.

How this great operation was successfully undertaken without the Turks .suspecting anything till it was too late is a story that will always rank high in the annals of military and naval endeavour. All the lessons of experience taught that such a venture would mean heavy loss—and the Allies prepared for it. Yet there was no loss. A Gamble Which Won

The decision to evacuate Gallipoli was made in November, 1915, on the advice of General Monro and, because everyone expected the cost to be heavy, it was a difficult decision to make. In addition, it was clear that the evacuation must be a piecemeal operation, because it was impossible to transport three army corps at one time with the available shipping. There was also the factor that bad weather with consequent rough seas off the open beaches might interrupt operations at a critical stage.

The whole thing has been described by John Buchan, in Nelson’s ‘‘History of the War” as a gigantic gamble with fate, though every precaution was taken to lessen the odds. The plan, which was mainly the work of Lord Birdwood, was to remove the equipment, including heavy guns, by instalments at night over a 10-day period. A large portion of the troops would also be embarked during those days, with certain picked battalions left to the last. Bluffing The Turks

Preparations had to be conducted for rearguard actions if they became necessary, and everything must be made to appear normal—with gun and rille fire—during the day. The weather stayed fine, the bluff worked and a marvellous achievement resulted.

The operation fell into three parts, the Suvla and Anzac sections being evacuated first, the Cape Helles one later. Night by night the men saw their numbers shrink as the transports stealthily came and went. At Anzac, where the beaches were in places less than two miles from the enemy lines, the problem was the more acute, particularly as some of the guns were on dizzy heights and had to be''brought down part by part. This work was brilliantly performed and half the guns and half the men in the New Zealand batteries disappeared in a single night. All the time an elaborate bluff had to be kept up to blind the Turks to the fact that they were missing a glorious opportunity. It all went like clockwork, and after the last men had gone the Turks took some hours to discover what had happened. The next night there came a furious gale that would have made embarkation impossible. Repeating The Dose

There then remained the men at Helles, where nobody ever dreamed that, with the Turks knowing what had already happened, a similar feat could be accomplished. Yet it was, though the deception had to be even more subtle, the weather made the work more difficult, and at one stage it seemed as though the Turks had realized what was happening. The force left with only one casualty,' a wounded man. At Suvla there 'was also one wounded man, at Anzac two.

When it was all over the Allies were able to set against the failure of the expedition as a whole the fact that, by the remarkable success of the evacuations, they had upset every precedent in military history. Frozen Petrol

Frozen petrol may be used in planes of the near future if a process now under investigation in the United States is successful. The idea is to eliminate the lire hazard of high-test aviation petrol by freezing it solid in the tanks. A device is supposed to thaw out the fuel only as needed by the power units. Frozen petrol will not burn or explode, and theoretically, at least, warplanes so equipped would be comparatively unaffected by incendiary machine-gun fire. Clacton

Clacton, or Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, where a German mine-laying seaplane caused a severe explosion on being forced to land after being damaged, is one of the most popular seaside resorts on the east coast of England, and is much frequented by Londoners in the holiday season. It has a population of about 16,000, which is greatly augmented by visitors during the summer, when ships.ply’regularly to and from London. It is equipped with all the usual appurtenances of an English seaside town, with promenades, a large pier, bandshell, swimming pool and other facilities for the enjoyment of holidaymakers. Summary Of Events

April 25: Steady embarkation of Germans from Baltic Sea ports and many German Hights over Sweden. Debate on British Budget. American estimate that Allies will obtain 10,000 planes from there by end of 1041. April 26: British fighter planes reach Sweden. German dash up Oster Valley. Hard lighting near Trondheim. R.A.F. attacks on supply ships.

April 27: Germans cheeked in Gudbrands Valley after hard lighting, but enemy pressure maintained. German ■White Paper alleging Britain intended to invade Norway issued.

April 28: Further British landings in Norway. Namsos position improved. Minefields laid off Narvik and in Gulf of Finland.

April 29: Germans reach railway north of Bombas but receive another check in Gudbrwnds Valley. 'Three German supply ships torpedoed. R.A.F. raid on Oslo airport. April 30: Events in Norway approach crucial point with German claim to have captured Dombas and made junction with troops from Trondheim. Britain diverts ships from Mediterranean. May 1: Extensive R.A.F. raids on enemy air bases. British successes round Narvik but admission that situation in Dombas section is dangerous.