P5757b-5757B Hon Dave Grills [1] CHARGE of BEERSHEBA

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P5757b-5757B Hon Dave Grills [1] CHARGE of BEERSHEBA

Extract from Hansard [COUNCIL — Thursday, 31 October 2013] p5757b-5757b Hon Dave Grills CHARGE OF BEERSHEBA — ANNIVERSARY Statement HON DAVE GRILLS (Mining and Pastoral) [5.33 pm]: It was about an hour ago 96 years ago today that Lieutenant General Sir Harry Chauvel said the famous words, “Put Grant straight at it.” For those who do not know what I am talking about, today is the anniversary of the charge of Beersheba. A lot has been made of Beersheba in movies, so I thought I would honour this anniversary given I have been a serving member of A- Squadron, 10th Light Horse Regiment. That regiment participated in Beersheba, not in a charge but in a flanking action to prevent the enemy from escaping. Beersheba was a heavily fortified town 43 kilometres from the Turkish bastion of Gaza. It was at the right end of a defensive line that stretched from Gaza to the Mediterranean coast, and is a very important place. The Australians were there. Two frontal attacks on Gaza in March and April failed and the British Army recognised that it had to try again and that Beersheba should be taken. At dawn the British Army sent in the best troops it had, which was the Australian Light Horse Regiment. The British XX Corps launched an attack on Beersheba at dawn, but by late afternoon they were struggling, given the heat, the lack of water and the distance they had to march and fight in to get to their objective. General Sir Harry Chauvel, who was the commander, gave those famous orders and the 4th Light Horse Brigade charged towards Beersheba. Brigadier General William Grant responded by ordering the light horsemen of his 4th and 12th regiments to charge at the Turkish trenches. As we know from the movie, and other history on this, at the time the British used the light horsemen as standard infantry. They rode up to the objective, stopped short, dismounted and went in on foot. However, this time, they decided they would not do that, and, of course, the horses were thirsty and there was water ahead. Anybody who rides a horse will know that a thirsty horse will go wherever he wants to go—whatever you tell him! The light horsemen took off with their bayonets drawn. The momentum of this surprise attack took them through the Turkish lines. They took Beersheba in less than an hour. They overran the Turkish trenches, taking 38 Turkish and German officers and about 700 other ranks prisoner, and securing the water supply, which is what they were after in the first place. The Australians suffered 67 casualties, with two officers and 29 from other ranks killed and eight officers and 28 other ranks wounded. It was also sad that a number of their trusty horses, the Walers, were killed in that attack. Soldiers of the Seventh Ottoman Army, which defended Beersheba, also took heavy casualties. Today, when members see our troops on television doing their best in Afghanistan, they might see the distinctive emu plumes in their hats. All Australian light horsemen wear that. In fact, Harry Chauvel, a Queenslander, first started wearing the emu plume. In honour of our brave soldiers in 1917 and our brave Defence Force members who serve today, I recognise today as the anniversary of the Charge of Beersheba. [1] .

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