Some of the reasons that Stopford gave for his inaction were surreal, such as the Turks were " inclined to be aggressive. " Hamilton finally cabled Kitchener that the IX Corps generals were unfit for command. Kitchener swiftly replied on the 14th August saying:
Gallipoli
" If you should deem it necessary to replace Stopford, Mahon and Hammersley, have you ant competent generals to take their place? From your report i think Stopford should come home. This is a young man's war, and we must have commanding officers that will take full advantage of opportunities which occur but seldom. If therefore, any generals fail, do not hesitate to act promptly. Any generals i have available i will send to you. "
Before receiving a response, Kitchener made Lieutenant-General Julian Byng available to command IX Corps. On the 15th August Hamilton dismissed Stopford and, while Byng was travelling from France, replaced him with Major-General Beauvoir de Lisle, commander of the 29th Division at Helles. Hammersley was also dismissed but Hamilton intended to retain Mahon in command of the 10th Division. However Mahon was incensed that de Lisle, whom he disliked, was appointed above him and quit, saying " I respectfully decline to waive my seniority and to serve under the officer you name. " He abandoned his division while it was in the thick of the fighting on Keretch Tepe.
Suvla Bay as seen from the Anzac heights
Under General de Lisle's command, the Suvla front was reorganised and reinforced with the arrival of the 29th Division from Helles and the 2nd Mounted Division from Egypt ( minus their horses ) The 10th Irish Division may have been abandoned by their commander, but along with the Anzacs they were fighting hard throughout the August offensive.
The 6th Leinsters were first attached to the 1st Australian Division as a reserve in what is known as the Battle of Sari Bair, from the 7th - 10th August. The Australians appreciated the eagerness with which the Irish detachments carried out their duties, while the Irish admired the spendid physique of the Australians, who unlike the Irish, were deeply tanned from the Gallipoli sun. Thousands of Irish men and women had been exiled to Australia under the crown, or had gone there to seek their fortune, so to find a fellow ' Paddy ' or an Australian soldier of Irish descent serving with the' Aussies ' was not unusual.
The Australians seemed to be without nerves, and very good men to be fighting alongside. On the 9th, the Leinsters relieved the New Zealanders, who had been holding the rocky, steep Rhododendron Spur, an outcrop of the main Sari Bair ridge.
There shrapnel killed several of the men at the foot of the ridge. At daybreak the next day the Turks launched a counter-attack, pouring over the crest of the Chunik Bair and overwhelming the two British battalions on the Leinsters' right and left. Colonel Craske, DSO, leading the 6th Leinsters into action, drove the Turks back after a desperate struggle at close quarters with the bayonet. He and several officers were wounded, and three subalterns were killed. Captain J.C Parke was hit in the arm. Helped by the guns of the Fleet and the artillery at Anzac Cove, the ridge remained in British hands, but the next morning when the Turks could be seen massing for a determined final effort, the Leinsters launched their own counter charge. The Irishmen surged forward, yelling like demons at the top of their voices. It suited the temperament of the Irish soldier. The Turks were driven back temporarily. The 6th Royal Irish Rifles were driven to ground in their first action when two hundred yards short of their objective. They hung on all night in their precarious position, watching for anything that moved in the darkness. Thirst attacked their throats. The next day in a fierce Turkish counter-attack, their line broke only when all the officers but three had become casualties, including Colonel Bradford. The entire 29th Brigade staff became casualties. Brigadier General R.J Cooper fell severely wounded in the lungs. His life was only saved when General Godley later found him on the beach, lying wounded on a stretcher, and had him immediately carried to a lighter.
After the initial Suvla landings the 10th were further broken up; the 31st brigade under Brigadier General F.F Hill was diverted by the navy because of landing diificulties to land on the wrong side of Suvla Bay, away from Kiretch Tepe Sirt Ridge.
The Irish under General Hill were prominent in the capture of Chocolate and Green Hills, the first major success in the peninsula. In their advance inland through the noon of a tropical day burdened by rifles and ammunition all were exhausted and in need of water. Losses from land mines and shrapnel fire were unceasing. To reach the northern shore of the now dry Salt Lake and link up with the 11th Division, the Irish troops had to pass over a narrow neck of land raked by enemy artillery. Leading the way was the towering figure of Colonel Geoffrey Downing of the 7th Dublins, who inspired all by his calm fearlessness: ' He stood in the centre of the bullet-swept zone quietly twirling his stick . .As an old soldier he knew there were times when an officer must be prepared to run what would otherwise appear unnecessary risks. ' Looming ahead was Chocolate Hill; only one hundred and sixty feet high, it was a strong defensive position, its sides seamed with trenches. For these ' freshies of the Irish brand ' as an ANZAC captain called these New Army soldiers, it was a challenge.
At dusk, after a heavy bombardment the Irish attack on the hill began and the 6th Inniskilling and 6th Irish Fusiliers on the flanks pressed forward. In the centre was the wild boisterous charge of the 7th Dublins who raced in competition with each other towards the crest, Major R.S.M Harrison, a Dublin Fusilier regular officer leading 'A' Company, and Captain Poole Hickman, the New Army Irishman, leading the Pals of 'D' Company. A former D Company officer describes how: " D Company came into our ditch with a dash for all the world like a wild forward rush at Lansdowne Road. " Fatigue and thirst were forgotten as they gained . .
The Australians seemed to be without nerves, and very good men to be fighting alongside. On the 9th, the Leinsters relieved the New Zealanders, who had been holding the rocky, steep Rhododendron Spur, an outcrop of the main Sari Bair ridge.
There shrapnel killed several of the men at the foot of the ridge. At daybreak the next day the Turks launched a counter-attack, pouring over the crest of the Chunik Bair and overwhelming the two British battalions on the Leinsters' right and left. Colonel Craske, DSO, leading the 6th Leinsters into action, drove the Turks back after a desperate struggle at close quarters with the bayonet. He and several officers were wounded, and three subalterns were killed. Captain J.C Parke was hit in the arm. Helped by the guns of the Fleet and the artillery at Anzac Cove, the ridge remained in British hands, but the next morning when the Turks could be seen massing for a determined final effort, the Leinsters launched their own counter charge. The Irishmen surged forward, yelling like demons at the top of their voices. It suited the temperament of the Irish soldier. The Turks were driven back temporarily. The 6th Royal Irish Rifles were driven to ground in their first action when two hundred yards short of their objective. They hung on all night in their precarious position, watching for anything that moved in the darkness. Thirst attacked their throats. The next day in a fierce Turkish counter-attack, their line broke only when all the officers but three had become casualties, including Colonel Bradford. The entire 29th Brigade staff became casualties. Brigadier General R.J Cooper fell severely wounded in the lungs. His life was only saved when General Godley later found him on the beach, lying wounded on a stretcher, and had him immediately carried to a lighter.
After the initial Suvla landings the 10th were further broken up; the 31st brigade under Brigadier General F.F Hill was diverted by the navy because of landing diificulties to land on the wrong side of Suvla Bay, away from Kiretch Tepe Sirt Ridge.
The Irish under General Hill were prominent in the capture of Chocolate and Green Hills, the first major success in the peninsula. In their advance inland through the noon of a tropical day burdened by rifles and ammunition all were exhausted and in need of water. Losses from land mines and shrapnel fire were unceasing. To reach the northern shore of the now dry Salt Lake and link up with the 11th Division, the Irish troops had to pass over a narrow neck of land raked by enemy artillery. Leading the way was the towering figure of Colonel Geoffrey Downing of the 7th Dublins, who inspired all by his calm fearlessness: ' He stood in the centre of the bullet-swept zone quietly twirling his stick . .As an old soldier he knew there were times when an officer must be prepared to run what would otherwise appear unnecessary risks. ' Looming ahead was Chocolate Hill; only one hundred and sixty feet high, it was a strong defensive position, its sides seamed with trenches. For these ' freshies of the Irish brand ' as an ANZAC captain called these New Army soldiers, it was a challenge.
At dusk, after a heavy bombardment the Irish attack on the hill began and the 6th Inniskilling and 6th Irish Fusiliers on the flanks pressed forward. In the centre was the wild boisterous charge of the 7th Dublins who raced in competition with each other towards the crest, Major R.S.M Harrison, a Dublin Fusilier regular officer leading 'A' Company, and Captain Poole Hickman, the New Army Irishman, leading the Pals of 'D' Company. A former D Company officer describes how: " D Company came into our ditch with a dash for all the world like a wild forward rush at Lansdowne Road. " Fatigue and thirst were forgotten as they gained . .
