Egypt - February/March 1916

On Wednesday 23rd February 1916, Thomas and his battalion were based at Serapeum when they were ordered to decamp.  Thomas and his battalion spent many hours dismantling their tents and packing equipment.  This continued throughout the night and into the early hours of the following morning.  At 4am the following day, Thomas marched to the rail siding and boarded a train that transported him to Tel el Kebir. They arrived at Tel el Kebir later that afternoon and set up camp.

 


Picture of the 29th Battalion's tents (Egyptian location is unknown)

 

On Saturday 26th February 1916, the 29th Battalion's commander, Colonel Tivey (later promoted to Brigadier General), inspected the battalion at Tel el Kebir. Whilst at Tel el Kebir, the 29th Battalion continued to strengthen military defences (there was still the threat that the Turks would attack the Canal) until they were relieved from duty on Sunday 4th March. 

On Wednesday 22nd March, General McCay arrived in Egypt to take command of the 5th Division. His appointment as commander of the 5th Division was contentious within the AIF as it was commonly thought that his political influence (he was once Federal Defence Minister) and high society connections scored him the role.  It is unlikely that Thomas would have liked or respected McCay, who, as you will soon read, demonstrated a poor regard for the troops.  

On Thursday 23rd March 1916, the 5th Division was ordered to relocate from Tel-el-Kebir to the canal at a base camp called Ferry Post (see map).   The 29th Battalion (along with the other three battalions of the 8th Brigade) were assign the role of advance party for the Division and were transported to Ferry Post  by a 'train' (see picture below).  The remaining brigades of the 5th Division were ordered on a 3 day march from Tel el Kebir to Ferry Post in temperatures that exceeded 40 degrees Celsius.  Incredibly, McCay gave full marching orders, which meant soldiers had to carry full packs (42kg), and wear their full uniform, including helmet.  Hundreds of soldiers dropped out of the march and there were unconfirmed rumours that some soldiers died of heat stress.  When these soldiers eventually arrived at their destination exhausted and obviously not in any fit state, McCay gave them a tirade and told them their poor performance was "no excuse". 

As luck would have it, Thomas and his battalion were spared this 3 day march.  For the troops that endured this cruelty, it was a demoralising experience and contributed to tensions among the brigades. A perception had crystalised that the 8th Brigade, which included Thomas' 29th Battalion, was receiving special treatment.   The 8th Brigade became known as the "Tivey Chocs" (Austin 1997), or "chocolate soldiers", a derogative term for that era. 

"They received this nickname because they were the most complete equipped unit that every left Australia. They were commanded by a well known public mad (Tivey), and the woman folk had seen that lacked nothing in sweaters or bed socks.  They had a band for every battalion..." (RH Knyvett, ‘Over there with the Australians’, cited in Cornfield, R., Don't Forget Me, Cobber!, Melbourne University Publishing Ltd., Melbourne, 2009)

 Tel el Kebir, Egypt. c. 1916. This troop 'train' is likely to be the train Thomas boarded for Suez Canal Zone. (Donor Mrs C. Chapman) [Australian War Memorial: H12866] In late March 1916, the I ANZAC Corp departed for France.  The II ANZAC Corp, which included Thomas' 29th Battalion remained in Egypt and continued military training and defending the Suez Canal.  During this period, the 5th Division's artillery was being reorganised with speed in readiness for the Western Front.  This included four hours of lectures followed by eight hours of practice each day. (Lindsay, P., Fromelles, Hardy Grant Books, Victoria, 2007).  Though the artillery units were well trained they lacked one crucial ingredient: battlefield experience.   A report on the 5th Division's artillery on page 294 of the official history of the II ANZAC Corp in Egypt 1916 has an eerie prescience about it :  "The artillery is not coming on as fast as General Godley had anticipated, and I do not think it will be ready for service in France until the end of June. . . . "  (Australian War Memorial, Arrival Of ANZAC II, p.294).  The artillery's lack of battlefield experience would result in many bombs falling short, killing and injuring many soldiers from Thomas 29th Battalion just prior to and during the Battle of Fromelles.