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6. Absent Without Leave British Generals commanded the campaign for the Black Sea and Galipolli Peninsula. By the time the ANZAC Army had arrived back in Alexandria (Egypt) the majority of Australians had had enough of the British style of warfare. It should be noted that, for the most part from this point on the Australian Armed forces would remain under Australian Command for the remainder of the war. This change brought frugalness towards human life and an end to senseless slaughter. Now there was only to be slaughter where it made sense and was planned. To the boys on the ground Egypt was for all intense and purposes their last hope or stop before the next battle. Now that the true reality of death had been displayed to them all in a way that left no question as to their fate, many of the men went off in search of life and living before their next campaign. (Forbes Boys in Egypt - Letter from Reg Prow) By now Charles Bourke had endured the months of training in the hot sun of Randwick and the subsequent journey across the ocean to the shores of Galipolli. He had fought four straight nights against the Turks holding Courtney Ridge. He had endured the incredible night attack on May 19 by the cream of the Turkish Army. An attack followed by such devastation the first official truce had to be called just to bury the stinking dead bodies. He had been wounded, nursed back to health and then landed again back on Galipolli just in time to participate in the only successful movement of the campaign, The Silent Ruse. The total withdrawal of the Army, the tearful goodbye to all those soldiers and Mates left behind sleeping forever on the shores of Gallipoli would be known as the Silent Ruse. The following speculation is based on written reports of similar incidence throughout the Australian Army in and around the Alexandria area. Many of the Australian soldiers had taken leave of their duties, legal or not and had gone into the towns to have some living before going off again to have some dying. On January 24, 1916 during the 0600 roll call, Charles Burke was listed as breaking camp. During most combat phases, and especially during an attack this offense is punishable by death. These were not normal times. The Australian Army, Bourke included had been subjected to an extreme amount of cruelly and mismanagement under the British. The Australian Command showed an incredible amount of prudence on behalf on their soldiers that were, in their eyes the finest fighting machine in the world. On January 27, 1916 2315 hour Private Bourke returned to duty. He was absent without leave for 89 hours and for his crime he was sentenced to forfeit four days pay, and F.P. Duty N.O. for seven days. In February, he was promoted. On February 17, 1916 Charles Bourke was listed as waiting for promotion to be Lance Corporal. His offence of breaking camp put behind him Bourke was now moving up the ladder of command. It took until July 8, 1916 for the complete paper work to get through all chains of command. He would be dead in two weeks. The Battalion had been rested refitted and re supplied. The Battalions fighting spirit had been set into its foundation and further cemented by the bitter months on Galipolli. This spirit was gladly passed into the new and eager recruits. The spirit never left the Battalion. It became her trademark. It was the ferocity of her fighting style that gave her success in battle. The enemies facing the Third had a deep and solemn respect for the Australians in the Third. Bourke, now age 20 was considered a veteran of this battalion. While he and his mates ate and trained, the Generals were planning the next move for the AIF. In France there was stalemate. The British and French had planned a summer offensive along the Somme River to relieve German pressure along the Verdun front. The AIF was directed to France and join the fighting that had, up until now been dogged and mired in mud, rain and trenches. The bodies pilled up so thick in France one needed wings to stay above them. On March 23,1916 Charles Bourke and the rest of the Battalion set sail for France. The fighting they were going to would be quite different from the matters dealt with on Galipolli. France was a 200 mile long front that swallowed battalion's whole. It took only a few well placed machine guns on one side and a drunken commanders wave of a hand one the other side to send 10,000 men over the top to their death. High explosives, gas and the lack of sanitation made conditions at the front line almost unbearable. No matter how deep each side burrowed into the earth the limbs still came tumbling out their graves and into the paths of soldiers heading to the front line. |
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