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10
BRAW LADDIES AMIDST THE CLASH OF THE EMPIRES
The main offensive was launched at the
Cape Helles beaches on 25 April and
was directed by Major-General Aylmer
Hunter-Weston, a Royal Engineer
who had been born at Hunterston in
Ayrshire in 1864. His 29th Division
(“
The Incomparable
”) was considered to
be one of the best trained in the Army
and contained two Scottish infantry
Battalions, 1st King’s Own Scottish
Borderers (KOSB) and 1/5th Royal
Scots, a Territorial Force Battalion,
together with IV (Highland) Mountain
Brigade,Royal FieldArtillery.
Yet before they could give an
account of themselves in the fighting
they had to be taken ashore.That proved
to be no easy task. In addition to a
specially adapted Clyde-built collier the
River Clyde
which was run ashore at V
beach carrying two thousand men, the
main force was landed in ships’ cutters
pulled by a variety of tug boats. The
intention was to secure the beaches and
then to advance on the ridge between
Krithia and Achi Baba which would
be the key to taking control of the
peninsula. As was the case throughout
T H E L A N D I N G S AT CA P E H E L L E S A N D A N Z AC C OV E
MAJOR-GENERAL AYLMER HUNTER-WESTON (LEFT FRONT)
AND STAFF AT CAPE HELLES, GALLIPOLI, 1915
Aylmer Hunter-Weston was known as “Hunter-Bunter”. He was a hard and aggressive
commander who frequently stated that he cared nothing about casualties; with his
gruff red-faced ferocity he might have been a figure of fun had he not been in such
an important position.