British Empire The third attack on Anzac Cove (19 May 1915) was an engagement during the Gallipoli Campaign of the First World War.

Expecting an imminent continuation of the battle, three Allied brigades arrived within twenty-four hours to reinforce the beachhead, but no subsequent attack materialised.

On 5 May the Turkish Army commander, the German officer Otto Liman von Sanders, ordered his troops to adopt a defensive posture.

Another consideration was that eliminating the ANZAC position would release four or five divisions to move against the British and French beachhead at Cape Helles.

[26][nb 7] The ANZAC command had no inkling of the impending attack, and as late as 16 May they recorded that they were opposed by only between 15,000 and 20,000 troops.

The aircraft's crew observed that the valleys opposite the ANZAC position were "densely packed with Turkish troops".

A second aircraft, sent to confirm the sighting, also reported that even more troops were being landed at Eceabat on the peninsula's eastern coast, only around five miles (8.0 km) from the ANZAC beachhead.

[28] Just after dark the British battleship HMS Triumph reported seeing a "considerable" number of mounted troops and artillery moving north from Krithia.

[30] With all the evidence pointing to an impending Turkish assault, the ANZAC troops were ordered to stand-to at 03:00, half an hour earlier than normal, and they improvised defences by throwing out rolls of barbed wire on rests to the front of their lines.

2 Section, where the Australian 4th Battalion reported seeing movement, and light reflecting off bayonets, in the valley between Johnston's Jolly and German Officers' Ridge.

Waves of Turkish reinforcements attempted to follow the first line, but they were also mown down and by daylight the only movement seen was the wounded trying to reach help.

Eventually it was expected that the two extensions would meet in the middle, but by the time of the attack there was still a gap of around fifty yards (46 m) between them.

Despite one of the 3rd Battalion's machine-guns jamming, this assault and the following waves were beaten back, although some Turks did reach the Australian trenches.

The Turks came so close to the supporting Australian artillery that the artillerymen disabled their guns, so they could not be used against them, and joined the infantry in the trenches.

[37] At Wire Gully a group of Turks got close enough to a 2nd Battalion machine-gun to destroy it with a hand grenade, allowing them to move forward and reach the Australian trench.

They advanced in two waves through a field of wheat, but only three men survived the Australian fire to reach the 10th Battalion's trench, and were then shot on the parapet.

Turkish wounded and survivors could be seen moving back to a gully, but in the growing light they were in full view of an 11th Battalion machine-gun, which caused devastation amongst their ranks.

[40] Another part of the 5th Division had gathered unseen below Courtnay's Post, which was held by the 14th Battalion, and at 04:00 they rushed the trench, throwing hand grenades.

However, from another section of the post Private Albert Jacka led a small group of men in a counter-attack on the Turks.

[43] For some time after the start of the Turkish attack, the Turks opposite Quinn's just threw hand grenades at the post.

As elsewhere, they were stopped by the weight of the Australian fire, not only from the trench they were attacking, but also by the defenders at Pope's and from the 2nd New Zealand Artillery Battery.

The defenders from the 1st and 3rd light horse regiments opened fire, and only three Turkish soldiers reached the Australian positions before being shot.

[45] On Russell's Top the Auckland Mounted Rifles were in a precarious position; their trenches were still far from being fully constructed, and three saps heading towards The Nek had yet to be joined up.

4 Section the Canterbury Mounted Rifles observed the Turks forming in Malone's Gully, in preparation for another assault on Russell's Top.

This pattern of attack was kept up until around 10:00, when Allied observers reported a reluctance among the Turkish troops to leave their trenches.

[51] In the northern sector Major-General Alexander Godley, commanding the New Zealand and Australian Division, decided to attack.

The men were selected in equal proportion from all three squadrons, and Captain William Hardham VC was chosen to command them.

That, along with a prisoner disclosing that another attack was imminent, persuaded GHQ to recall the New Zealand Infantry Brigade from Cape Helles to Anzac Cove that night.

[58][59] The next day, 20 May, the smell of rotting corpses in no man's land and the numerous wounded still located between the lines convinced the New Zealand and Australian Division staff to suggest an armistice.

The stench round the trenches where the dead had been lying for weeks was awful, some of the bodies were mere skeletons, it seems so very different to see each side near each others trenches burying their dead, each man taking part in this ceremony is called a pioneer and wears 2 white bands on his arms, everybody is taking advantage of the armistice to do anything they want to do out of cover and a large number are down bathing and you would think today was Cup Day down at one of our seaside beaches.